PROCEEDINGS OP THE PERTHSHIRE SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE. 
79 
tions carried on so successfully many years ago. Proceed¬ 
ing to Doune Station, the party was met by the Rev. 
Biot Edmonston, minister of Blairdrummond, who had 
kindly consented to act as guide to his fellow-members. 
Crossing the Teith by the old bridge, from which a most 
picturesque view of the historically-famous Doune Castle 
was obtained, Watston Loch was reached and examined for 
aquatic plants and mollusca. Of the former, none but 
the usual species to be met with in similar places were 
detected, though the abundance of white water-lilies in full 
flower elicited much admiration. On the other hand, 
mollusca were conspicuous by their absence. In the 
neighbourhood of the loch several plants were gathered, 
including Veronica scutellata, Carex disticha, C. fulva, 
Habenaria chlorantha (the butterfly orchis, with white and 
odorous flowers), &c. 
The party then drove to Blairdrummond Moss, the 
special object of search on which was a species of heath, 
the Andromeda polifolia, which here attains its northern 
limit in Britain. That the “ reclaiming ” operations 
alluded to above had been rewarded with great suc¬ 
cess was apparent in the rich fields of beans, potatoes, 
and corn which cover a great part of the ground marked 
in the Ordnance Survey map as “ Blairdrummond Moss.” 
A little part still, however, remains, and to it the 
party took their way in search of the much-wished- 
for Andromeda. At first it seemed as if the search 
was to be in vain, for the reclaiming operations are 
still being carried on, and the physical characteristics 
of what remains of the moss are being quickly altered. 
At last, and by diligent searching in appropriate places, a 
tiny bit of the Andromeda was detected, and hailed with 
rapturous shouts, which quickly brought the other 
botanists to the spot. Subsequently, more of it was 
found, but it is much to be feared that sooner or later the 
Andromeda is doomed to become extinct as a Perthshire 
plant. 
Amongst other plants noticed on the moss were Nastur¬ 
tium palustre, Potamogeton pusillus, Myrica gale , &e. 
Some interesting insects were also observed, the chief 
being the butterfly Chortobius Davus, the form being 
that found in mosses in the North of England and South 
of Scotland, and different from the Highland form, which 
is commoner in Perthshire. 
Leaving the moss the party returned to Doune by way 
of Blairdrummond House, in the park surrounding which 
many magnificent trees were seen and duly admired. 
Under a noble oak near the house, some magnificent speci¬ 
mens of a rather local plant, Ornithopus perpusillus, were 
gathered, and here the whole party were photographed by 
one of the members,—two of whom had taken an oppor¬ 
tunity during the day of obtaining several photographic 
reminiscences of the excursion. During the day about 160 
species of flowering plants were noted. 
August 3rd. 
3. To Comrie and Glenartney. 
Starting from Crieff, the party drove by Comrie to 
Glenartney, up which they proceeded several miles, and 
then conducted the rest of their investigations on foot, 
gradually working down the glen till Comrie was again 
reached, whence they returned to Crieff in time for the 
last train. In Comrie some of the botanists were a 
little puzzled by the name of a house—“ Hollandbush,” 
—which, after discussion, they concluded to be a local 
corruption of the Saxon word, “ hollen,” or “ holyn,” the 
old name of the holly. On reference to Jamieson’s Dic¬ 
tionary, we see, however, that the form “ holland,” 
“holyn,” was known to him. It is, however, after all, 
probably only a corruption of “ hollen,” and it is easy to 
imagine how such an alteration arose. A somewhat 
similar case is the corruption of “ lilac ” into “ lily-aik ” or 
“lily-oak.” 
During the excursion the geology of the district was 
demonstrated by Professor James Geikie, while the 
departments of zoology and botany were under the care of 
Dr Buchanan White. Dr Alexander Thom, jr., made 
preliminary arrangements, for the excursion, but was, un¬ 
fortunately, debarred by his professional engagements from 
accompanying his brother-members. 
While passing Ochtertyre, Dr Geikie pointed out the 
distribution of the drift deposits. Between the Turret 
Burn and the lower end of the broad carse that stretches 
west to Comrie, the Old Red Sandstone conglomerate is 
buried under great accumulations of coarse shingle, gravel, 
and sand. These accumulations form the hillocks, banks, 
knolls, and hummocks lying between the high-road and 
Ochtertyre. Many large erratics occur in and upon them. 
They are morainic and fluvio-glacial deposits, having been 
brought together by two large glaciers—one of which 
(formed by the union of local glaciers descending from 
Glen Turret, and the valleys of the Barvick, the Keltie, 
and the Shoggie) flowed south and dilated into the hollow 
below Ochtertyre, while the other crept down from Loch- 
earnhead, filling up the great loch, creeping down to 
