PREFACE. 
Notwithstanding the number of works upon British 
Ferns which have been published of late years, the 
author believes this little volume may be found of 
some service. 
It is not intended as a substitute for the admirable 
treatises of Newman, Sowerby, Moore, and others, but 
rather as a convenient Handbook for Amateur Collec¬ 
tors, which will give correctly, and without the neces¬ 
sity of much searching, the distinguishing features of 
every species, and the means of quickly identifying 
any specimen that may be found. With this aim, the 
author has limited the contents of the volume to an 
accurate and concise account of each Section or 
Group, Genus, and Species, and has purposely omitted 
any description of the methods of cultivation, propa¬ 
gation, drying and preserving, &c., as full particulars 
on all these points are to be found in many other 
books. 
The Habitats are mentioned in general terms, but 
are not precisely and minutely described according to 
B 
