110 THE AUSTRALIAN NATURALIST. 
0.06 mm. long and 0.04 wide; they are surrounded with 
a collarette of square subsidiary cells, and the stomata 
number 16,250 to the square inch; the low average 
accounting for the largeness of the stomata. 
Bossitaea Walkeri, FvM: “Stick Bush,” “Sun Bush.” 
The dilated stems of the bush appear in section like a 
two-edged sword, and are crowded with very minute 
‘stomata which run up to 67,500 to the square inch. They 
are surrounded with curved subsidiaries and sunk below 
the surface. The regularity with which they are placed 
resembles the planting of an orchard, and all are 
oriented. 
The effort of leaf development in this plant does 
not get beyond minute leaf-buds, which occur regularly 
on the edges of the branches. 
These leafless plants impart a very remarkable ap- 
pearance to the plains, as, well as being peculiar as to 
their aspect; some branches, as those of the Afophyl~ - 
um, stand erect like inverted brooms, while those of the 
LExocarpus aphylla are in divaricate, brittle angles, and 
others of the Casuarina making vain attempts to sweep 
the ground with their pendent and whistling beards; 
then those of the Sarcostemma run in a wild, meaning- 
less manner over the rocks and old stumps, as if these 
needed binding down to the earth. 
Doubtless, it is mainly owing to the frequent occur- 
rences of such sights that the West bears to an unaccus- 
tomed eye, such a weird aspect; and yet it has a fascina- 
tion that the longer residents have learned to love. 
In the discussion which followed the reading of 
Archdeacon Haviland’s paper, surprise was expressed 
that plants growing in such conditions should have ex- 
posed stomata, seeing that xerophilous plants generally 
have these organs protected. Mr. A. G. Hamilton 
pointed out that in some of the Hakeas the ‘stomata, 
while seemingly exposed, are really effectually conceal- 
ed, being situated at the bottom of a depression which 
is covered by a little raised hood of epidermal cells, 
_ He thought that this might probably be the case with 
the stomata mentioned in the paper. 
a 
