,the ,cambridge ,manuals of ,science and
                                        
,literature                             
,,links ,,with ,,the ,,past ,,in        
,,the ,,plant ,,world                   
,,cambridge ,,university ,,press        
,london3 ,,fetter ,,lane1 ,e4,c4        
,c4 ,f4 ,,clay1 ,manager                
,edinburgh3 #ajj1 ,,princes ,,street    
,london3 ,h4 ,k4 ,,lewis1 #acf1 ,,gower 
,,street1 ,w4,c4      ,berlin3 ,a4      
,,asher ,,and ,,co4      ,leipzig3 ,f4  
,a4 ,,brockhaus      ,new ,york3 ,g4 ,p4
 ,,putnam',s ,,sons      ,bombay and    
,calcutta3 ,,macmillan ,,and ,,co41     
,ltd4        ,all rights reserved       
,illustration3 ,sequoia magnifica       
,knowlton1 in the ,yellowstone          
,national ,park4 7,from a photograph    
kindly supplied by ,prof4 ,knowlton47   
,see p4 #ajd4                           
,,links ,,with ,,the                    
,,past ,,in ,,the                       
,,plant ,,world                         
,,by                                 ,a4

 ,c4 ,,seward1                          
,m4,a41 ,f4,r4,s4                       
,professor of ,botany in the            
,university of ,cambridge               
,cambridge3                          at 
the ,university ,press                  
#aiaa      ,cambridge3    ,,printed ,,by
 ,,john ,,clay1 ,m4,a4 ,,at ,,the       
,,university ,,press      ,with the     
exception of the coat of arms at the    
foot1 the design on  the title page is a
 reproduction of one used by the        
earliest known  ,cambridge printer1     
,john ,siberch1 #aeba          ,,preface
      ,,my object in writing this book  
is primarily to call attention to some  
of the many questions which are raised  
by an enquiry into the relative         
antiquity of existing plants1 and to    
illustrate the nature of the  evidence  
afforded by the records of the rocks4   
,one may agree with the  dictum1 ',there
 is but one art--to omit1' but to       
practise this art is  often a difficult 
task4 ,while fully conscious of the     

incompleteness of  the treatment of the 
subjects dealt with in these pages1 and 
of defects  in the method of            
presentation1 ,i hope that ,i may       
succeed in attracting  some of my       
readers who are already interested in   
living plants to the  study of plants of
 former ages4    ,i am greatly indebted 
to my colleague ,dr ,c4 ,e4 ,moss for   
reading the  proofs and for many        
valuable suggestions4 ,i wish to thank  
,mr and ,mrs  ,clement ,reid1 ,prof4    
,mac,dougal of the ,arizona ,desert     
,laboratory1 ,prof  ,campbell of        
,stanford ,university1 ,prof ,f4 ,h4    
,knowlton of the ,united  ,states       
,national ,museum1 ,washington1 ,mr ,a4 
,g4 ,tansley1 ,prof ,yapp1 and ,mr  ,w4 
,r4 ,welch for photographs which they   
have allowed me to reproduce4 ,as  on   
many previous occasions1 ,i am indebted 
to my wife for contributing  drawings4  
,a4 ,c4 ,,seward4    ,botany ,school1   
,cambridge4 ,july #aiaa4        ,the    
numbers in brackets interspersed in the 

text refer to the  ,bibliography at the 
end of the volume4          ,,contents  
,,page    ,preface                      
vii      ,,chap4       ,i4              
,introductory3 the ,longevity of ,trees1
 etc4       #a      ,,ii4 ,the          
,geographical ,distribution of ,plants  
#ae     ,,iii4 ,the ,geological ,record 
#ci      ,,iv4 ,preservation of ,plants 
as ,fossils               #ef       ,v4 
,ferns2 their ,distribution and         
,antiquity         #ga      ,,vi4 ,the  
,redwood and ,mammoth ,trees of         
,california     #ie     ,,vii4 ,the     
,araucaria family                       
#ajf    ,,viii4 ,the ,maiden ,hair ,tree
                           #aba         
,bibliography                           
#acd          ,index                    
#aci           99       99       99     
99       99      ,links with the ,past  
,,erratum    ,page #gh4 ,omit lines #e1 
#f1 and #g1 from ,one to but inclusive4 
,transcriber ,note3 ,this correction has
 been applied4 ,here is the             

original sentence3--          ,one filmy
 species of ,todea is represented in the
 ,british flora        by ,todea        
radicans in the ,killarney district of  
,ireland2 but        the maximum        
development of the genus is in ,new     
,zealand4             99       99       
99       99       99          ,,chapter 
,i    ,,introductory3 ,,the ,,longevity 
,,of ,,trees1 ,,etc4     ',believe me   
who have tried4 ,thou wilt find         
something more in    woods than in      
books4 ,trees and rocks will teach what 
thou canst    not hear from a master4'  
,st ,bernard4      ,the recent          
publication in the daily press of       
instances of human  longevity under the 
heading ',links with the ,past' prompted
 a comparison  between the length of    
time represented by the duration of a   
tree  and the lifetime of a human being4
 ,the comparison of single lives        
suggested the further step of           
contrasting the antiquity of the oldest 
family-histories with the remoteness of 

the period to which it is  possible to  
trace the ancestry of existing members  
of the plant kingdom4    ,my primary    
object in these pages is not to deal    
with familiar cases  of longevity in    
trees1 but to consider in the first     
place some of the  problems connected   
with the origin of the present ,british 
flora1 and  then to describe a few      
examples of different types of plants   
whose  ancestors flourished during      
periods of the earth's history long ages
  before the advent of the human race4  
,in dealing with plants of former ages  
we are confronted with the  difficulty  
of forming an adequate conception of the
 length of time  embraced by geological 
periods in comparison with the duration 
of the  historic era4 ,some of the      
',selections from the ,greek ,papyri'   
recently  edited by ,dr ,milligan       
7,cambridge #aiaj7 refer to common-place
 events  in terms familiar to us in     
modern letters3 we forget the interval  
of  #bjjj years which has elapsed since 

they were written4 ,similarly1 the      
close agreement between existing plants 
and species which lived in  remote      
epochs speaks of continuity through the 
ages1 and bridges across  an extent of  
time too great to be expressed by       
ordinary standards of  measurement4     
,terms of years when extended beyond the
 limits to which  our minds are         
accustomed cease to have any definite   
meaning4 ,while  there is a certain     
academic interest in discussions as to  
the age of  the earth as expressed in   
years1 we are utterly unable to realise 
the  significance of the chronology     
employed4 ,after speaking of the        
futility  of attempting to introduce    
chronological precision into periods  so
 recent as those which come into the    
purview of archaeologists1  ,mr ,rice   
,holmes suggests a method better adapted
 to our powers4 ,he  says--',ascend the 
hill on which stands ,dover ,castle1 and
 gaze upon  ,cape ,grisnez1 let the     
waters beneath you disappear2 across the

 chalk  that once spanned the channel   
like a bridge men walked from the white 
cliff that marks the horizon to where   
you stand4 ,no arithmetical  chronology 
can spur the imagination to flights like
 these7#a74' ,on the  other hand1 the   
use in some country districts in        
,britain of spindles  almost identical  
with instruments used in spinning by the
 ancient  ,egyptians1 and similar       
survivals described by the author of a  
book  entitled ,the ,past in the        
,present7#b71 bring within the range of 
our  vision an early phase of the       
historic era4 ,the rude implements still
  fashioned by the flint-knappers of    
,brandon in ,suffolk connect the        
present with the ,palaeolithic age4     
,measured from the standpoint of        
historic reckoning1 survivals from      
prehistoric days appeal to us as        
persistent types which have remained    
unchanged in a constantly changing      
world4    ,in one of his essays         
,weismann quotes an old ,german saying  

with regard  to comparative longevity1  
which asserts that 'a wren lives three  
years1  a dog three times as long as a  
wren' and so on in a regularly ascending
  series3 the life of a deer is         
estimated at three times that of a crow 
and an oak three times that of a deer1  
which means that1 computed  on this     
basis1 an oak lives nearly #bj1jjj      
years7#c76 ,this fanciful  illustration 
of the relative longevity of an oak is  
the expression of  a truth1 namely the  
superiority of trees over animals in    
regard to  the duration of life4 ,as a  
seventeenth-century translator of       
,pliny's  ,natural ,history writes1 ',in
 old times trees were the very temples  
of the gods3 and according to that      
antient manner1 the plaine and  simple  
peasants of the country1 savouring still
 of antiquity1 do at  this day          
consecrate to one ,god or other1 the    
goodliest and fairest  trees that they  
can meet withal4' ,oaks growing in      
,pliny's day in the  ,hercynian forest  

are said to have been there 'ever since 
the creation  of the world7#d74' ,sir   
,joseph ,hooker1 in an account of some  
,palestine  oaks1 gives a drawing of a  
famous tree at ,mamre1 known as         
,abraham's  ,oak1 which is supposed to  
mark the spot where the ,patriarch      
pitched  his tent7#e74 ,examples such as
 these1 though of no scientific value1  
serve to illustrate the well-founded    
belief in the extraordinary  longevity  
of trees4 ,in the absence of evidence to
 the contrary1 it  would be rash to deny
 the possibility that ,william the      
,conqueror's ,oak  in ,windsor ,forest1 
described by ,loudon in his ,arboretum  
,britannicum  and mentioned by later    
writers1 may be a survival from the     
reign of  the king whose name it bears4 
,although it is seldom possible to state
  with confidence the exact age of old  
oaks and yews famed for length  of days1
 there can be no doubt as to the        
enormous antiquity of  many of our trees
 whose years are 'sacred with many a    

mystery4' ,the  section of a trunk of   
one of the mammoth trees of ,california 
7,sequoia  gigantea7 exhibited in the   
,natural ,history department of the     
,british  ,museum1 shows on its polished
 surface #acce concentric rings denoting
  successive increments of wood produced
 by the activity of a cylinder  of cells
 situated between the hard woody tissue 
and the bark4 ,it is  generally assumed 
that each year a tree produces a single 
ring1 though1  as is well known1 an     
estimate of age calculated on this      
assumption  cannot be regarded as more  
than an approximation to the truth4 ,if 
this  giant tree1 which was felled in   
#ahij1 was then #acce years old1 it had 
already reached an age of over two      
centuries when ,charlemagne was  crowned
 ,emperor at ,rome4 ,the concentric     
rings on a tree trunk owe their         
existence to certain structural         
differences between the wood formed  in 
the spring and in the late summer4 ,in  
,sequoia1 as in other members  of the   

great class of cone-bearing trees1 the  
wood is composed of  comparatively      
narrow elements which serve to carry    
water from the roots  to the branches   
and leaves4 ,as spring succeeds winter  
the inactivity of  the plant-machine is 
followed by a period of energetic life2 
opening  buds and elongating shoots     
create a demand for a plentiful supply  
of  ascending sap1 and in response to   
this the tree produces a fresh  cylinder
 of wood composed of relatively wide    
conducting tubes4 ,after  the first rush
 of life is succeeded by a phase of more
 uniform and  gentler activity1 the     
demand for water becomes less exacting  
and the  wood which is formed during the
 rest of the growing season consists of 
narrower water-pipes4 ,a period of rest 
ensues1 until in the following  spring  
new layers of larger tubes are laid down
 in juxtaposition to  the narrower      
elements of the latest phase of the     
preceding summer4  ,this alternation of 
larger and smaller tubes produces the   

appearance  of concentric rings on a    
cross-section of a tree4 ,it is not the 
pause  in the active life of the plant  
which is responsible for the effect  of 
rings1 but the fact that the wood       
produced immediately before and         
immediately after the pause is not      
structurally identical4 ,in trees  grown
 under the more uniform conditions of   
certain tropical regions1  the annual   
rings are either feebly developed or    
absent2 for example1 in  some ,indian   
oaks the wood shows no concentric rings 
of growth4    ,stated in general terms1 
rings of growth in the wood of a tree   
are  the expression of a power possessed
 by the plant of regulating the         
structure of its component elements in  
response to the varying nature  of the  
external stimuli4 ,in certain           
circumstances1 for example after  the   
destruction of the young buds by        
caterpillars1 the tree makes a  special 
effort to repair the loss by producing a
 new set of shoots4  ,this may be       

recorded by the occurrence of two       
concentric rings in one  season4 ,an    
extreme instance of departure from the  
normal has recently  been described7#f7 
in which a tree of ,theobroma cacao 7the
 cocoa  tree71 planted in ,ceylon in the
 summer of #ahic and felled in ,january 
#aija1 after a life of just over #g     
years1 was found to have #bb rings in   
its stem4 ,in this case the tree shed   
its leaves three times a year1 and  each
 break in the uniformity of its vital   
activities was registered  by the       
apposition of what under ordinary       
conditions are spoken of as  spring and 
late-summer wood4 ,at ,aden trees stated
 by natives to be  very old showed only 
five or six rings of wood1 a fact       
connected with  the almost complete lack
 of rain and with the uniform conditions
 of  existence4    ,the degree of       
accuracy to be allowed to estimates of  
age founded on  the number of 'annual'  
rings is1 however1 of secondary         
importance in  comparison with the      

enormously greater hold on life         
possessed by trees  as contrasted with  
the higher animals4 ,early in the       
nineteenth century  the ,swiss botanist 
,a4 ,p4 de ,candolle expressed the      
opinion that trees  do not die from     
senile decay1 but only as the result of 
injury or  disease4 ,trees are          
constructed on a plan fundamentally     
different from  that underlying the     
structure of the highly complex human   
organism1  and are thus endowed with a  
sort of potential immortality4 ,it has  
been suggested that some of the large   
corals in the ,red ,sea which  are still
 tenanted by living polyps may have been
 growing in the days  of the ,pharaohs4 
,the coral polyp represents the growing 
portion of a  lifeless mass of rock     
which is constantly extended by the     
activity of  the organism at the summit 
of each branch4 ,between a coral-reef   
and a  tree there are many essential    
differences1 but a rough analogy may be 
recognised4 ,a tree1 unlike the higher  

animals1 does not reach a stage  at     
which the whole of its substance attains
 a condition of permanence  and fixity4 
,it consists of a complex               
branching-system in which each  shoot   
increases in length by virtue of the    
youthful vigour of its apex3  to a large
 extent the tree as a whole consists of 
lifeless material  incapable of further 
growth1 as is the case of the older     
portions of  a coral-reef2 but the      
regular increase in girth of the trunk  
and its  branches demonstrates that this
 comparison is only partially true1 and 
that the power of growth in a tree is   
not confined to the extremities  of the 
youngest shoots4 ,the tip of every twig 
is composed of minute  cells endowed    
with a potentiality of development like 
that which  characterises the embryonic 
tissues of a seedling just emerged from 
the  seed4 ,in the course of its growth1
 each branch1 by means of its living    
and dividing cells1 contributes to the  
several parts of the complex  mechanism 

of the tree4 ,while the greater number  
of cells acquire a  permanent form and  
lose the power of further development1  
there  remains a cylinder of cells      
endowed with perpetual youth4 ,this     
cylinder  of living cells1 known as the 
cambium1 extends between the wood and   
bark from one end of the tree to the    
other3 by its periodic activity it  adds
 new layers of tissue each year and     
thus1 by increasing the amount  of      
conducting tubes for the transport of   
water and for the distribution  of      
elaborated food1 it enables the tree to 
respond to the increasing  demands which
 are the necessary accompaniment of     
increasing size4 ,it  has already been  
pointed out that in the spring when the 
sap flows most  vigorously the cambial  
cylinder produces larger tubes1 and     
afterwards  when the tree settles down  
to its normal life1 these are succeeded 
by  narrower and stronger tubes4 ,these 
later formed elements serve also  an    
important mechanical purpose2 by the    

strength of their walls they  increase  
the supporting power of the tree and    
enable it to sustain the  added burden  
of the annual increase in the weight and
 extent of its  spreading branches4     
,it is the persistence of permanently   
juvenile tissue in certain regions  of a
 tree1 together with the remarkable     
power of repairing injuries  and        
shedding effete parts1 that constitute  
some of the most striking  contrasts    
between the higher animals and plants4  
,the embryo oak in the  earlier stages  
of development consists entirely of     
actively growing  cells2 by degrees     
differentiation of the embryonic tissues
 results  in the localisation of regions
 of cell-production at the tips of  the 
elongating stem and root4 ,these apical 
groups of cells are1 in  fact1 portions 
of the embryonic organism which persist 
so long as the  plant lives4 ,this      
continuity between the growing tip of an
 old oak  stem and the cells of the     
undifferentiated embryo affords one of  

the  most remarkable examples in nature 
of a link between the past and the      
present4    ,if we pass beyond the      
stretch of time represented by the life 
of  a single tree1 a few successive     
generations suffice to carry our        
retrospect back to the days when forests
 of oaks1 birches1 and other  trees     
impeded the progress of the ,roman      
invaders1 and1 a stage farther  back1 to
 the age of ,neolithic man whose remains
 are occasionally  found in our heaths  
and moors and in the submerged forests  
round our  coast4 ,the blocks of oak and
 beech1 some of which are as sound as   
when  first felled1 recently discovered 
below the foundations of parts of       
,winchester ,cathedral constructed at   
the end of the twelfth or in the        
opening years of the thirteenth century1
 are relics of ,norman forests4  ,in the
 course of some excavations at ,brigg in
 ,lincolnshire in #ahhf a  dug-out boat 
was found nearly #ej feet long and from 
#d to #e feet in  breadth4 ,the stem of 

the oak from which the canoe had been   
fashioned  shows no sign of branching   
for a length of over #dj feet1 a fact   
which  points to the growth of the tree 
in a forest where the race for light    
induced the development of clean        
columnar stems4 ,the ,brigg 'dug-out1'  
now in the ,hull ,museum1 was discovered
 in an old alluvial valley of the       
,ancholme river1 formerly connected with
 the ,humber1 and it may be that  it was
 used by ,neolithic man as a ferry for  
river-service7#g74    ,from the period  
claimed by archaeologists we pass by    
gradual stages  into the domain of the  
geologist4 ,as ,huxley wrote1 'when even
 the dim  light of ,archaeology fades1  
there yet remains ,palaeontology1       
which444  has brought to daylight once  
more the exuvia of ancient populations1 
whose world was not our world1 who have 
been buried in river beds  immemorially 
dry1 or carried by the rush of waters   
into caves1  inaccessible to inundation 
since the dawn of tradition7#h74' ,the  

length  of time represented by a        
succession of long-lived individuals of 
the  same species becomes enormously    
extended when we pass to the history  of
 families1 and disinter from the        
sediments of other ages the remains  of 
extinct types4 ,as we descend the       
geological series familiar types        
gradually disappear1 and through a      
succession of changing floras we        
penetrate to the fragmentary records    
contained in the older rocks until  the 
absence of documents sets a limit to our
 quest4    ,illustration3 ,fig4 #a4     
,pinus sylvestris ,linn1 in the ,black  
,wood of  ,rannoch4 7,photograph by ,mr 
,a4 ,g4 ,tansley47    ,the ,scots pine  
shares with the oak1 the beech1 the     
aspen1 the yew1  and several other trees
 the right to be included in the native 
flora of ,britain4 ,in the peat-beds of 
,scotland even up to #cjjj feet  above  
sea-level the stumps of pines occur in  
abundance1 and in many  places recent   
researches have revealed the occurrence 

of successive  forests of pines1 oaks1  
and spruces separated from one another  
by  the accumulations of swampy         
vegetation7#i74 ,the spruce fir has long
  ceased to be a member of the ,british 
flora1 but in a few localities in  the  
,scottish ,highlands patches of primeval
 pine forests remain4 ,the  accompanying
 photograph 7,fig4 #a71 taken by my     
friend ,mr ,a4 ,g4 ,tansley1  in the    
,black ,wood of ,rannoch in north-west  
,perthshire1 shows a few  trees of      
,pinus sylvestris growing in their      
native soil3 the form of  the older tree
 7,a7 suggests comparison with that of a
 well-grown  beech such as we are       
familiar with in ,english plantations4  
,this  spreading dome-shaped habit seems
 to be a peculiarity of the ,highland   
tree1 and is one of the characters which
 have led some botanists to  regard it  
as a variety 7,pinus sylvestris var4    
scotica7 of the  ordinary ,scots pine4  
,though it is doubtful if any relics of 
primeval  pine woods are left in        

,england1 abundant evidence of the      
former  existence of the ,scots pine is 
afforded by the submerged forests       
exposed at low-tide on many parts of the
 ,english and ,welsh coasts and  at the 
base of some of the ,english peat moors4
 ,during the construction  of the ,barry
 docks on the north coast of the        
,bristol ,channel a  few years ago1 the 
exposed sections of peat and forest beds
 were  investigated by ,dr ,strahan and 
by ,mr ,clement ,reid4 ,there is        
evidence of  a subsidence of the land to
 an extent of #ee feet since the        
formation of  the lower peat-beds       
containing oak1 hazel1 willow1 and other
 trees4 ,the  pine1 unknown in ,wales   
during the historic period1 was         
recognised in  the ,barry cutting4 ,the 
occurrence of a polished flint implement
 assigns  a date to the uppermost       
portion of this old land-surface7#aj74  
,it is impossible within the limits of a
 small volume to discuss in  detail the 
evidence furnished by the records of the

 rocks as to the  relative antiquity of 
the different constituents of the       
present  vegetation of ,britain4 ,in    
later chapters a few selected plants are
  described which are pre-eminently     
ancient types4 ,before passing to the   
consideration of the data on which the  
geological history of plants is  based1 
brief reference may be made to one of   
the most interesting and  difficult     
problems of botanical research1 namely  
the history of the  ,british flora4     
,,chapter ,,ii    ,,the ,,geographical  
,,distribution ,,of ,,plants     ',no   
speculation is idle or fruitless that is
 not opposed to truth    or to          
probability1 and which1 whilst it       
co-ordinates a body of well             
established facts1 does so without      
violence to nature1 and with a due      
regard to the possible results of future
 discoveries4'                          
,sir ,joseph ,hooker4      ,in the      
vegetation of the ,british ,isles the   
leading rle is played  by that large    

group to which the term ,flowering      
,plants is frequently  applied4 ,this   
group1 including the two sub-divisions  
,dicotyledons  and ,monocotyledons1 is  
known by the name ,angiosperms1 a       
designation  denoting the important fact
 that the seeds are developed in an     
ovary  or protective seed-case 71 a     
vessel or box74 ,the fact that  these   
highly elaborated products of           
development made their appearance1  so  
far as we know1 at a comparatively late 
stage in the history of  the            
plant-world1 attests their efficiency as
 a class and demonstrates  the rapidity 
with which they have overspread the     
surface of the earth  as successful     
competitors in the struggle for         
existence4 ,as ,darwin  wrote in a      
letter to ,sir ,joseph ,hooker in #ahha1
 ',nothing is more  extraordinary in the
 history of the vegetable kingdom1 as it
 seems to  me1 than the apparently very 
sudden or abrupt development of the     
higher plants7#aa74' ,in another letter 

7#ahgi7 to the same friend we  read1    
',the rapid development as far as we can
 judge of all the higher  plants within 
recent geological times is an abominable
 mystery7#ab74'  ,making allowance for  
the probability1 or indeed certainty1   
that the  imperfection of the geological
 record tends to exaggerate the apparent
  suddenness of the appearance of this  
vigorous class1 and allowing for  the   
fact that our knowledge of the records  
of the rocks in which the  highest      
plants first occur is very incomplete1  
we cannot escape from  the conclusion   
that this recently evolved group spread 
with amazing  rapidity4 ,various reasons
 may be suggested in explanation of the 
dominant position which the ,angiosperms
 hold in the floras of the  world4 ,as  
an instance of their rapid increase     
during the ,cretaceous  epoch#a1 the    
period which has furnished the earliest 
satisfactory  records of ,flowering     
,plants1 the following statement by an  
,american  writer may be quoted3--',the 

rapidity with which it i4e4 the group of
  ,flowering ,plants advanced1          
conquering or supplanting all rivals1   
may  be better understood when we       
remember that it forms #he of the flora 
of the ,dakota group '2 that is a series
 of sedimentary rocks in ,dakota        
referred by geologists to the middle of 
the ,cretaceous period7#ac74 ,in  the   
,wealden rocks of ,england1 which are   
rich in the remains of ,lower           
,cretaceous plants1 no undoubted        
,flowering ,plant has so far been found4
    #a ,for the position of the         
,cretaceous and other systems in the    
geological series1 see the table on page
 #db4    ,the more efficient protection 
of the ovules1 the germs which1 after   
fertilisation1 become the seeds1 the    
extraordinary variety in the  floral    
mechanisms for assisting                
cross-pollination1 the arrangements  for
 nursing the embryo1 and the structural 
features of the wood in  relation both  
to rapid transport of water and to the  

storage of food1  are factors which have
 probably contributed to the success of 
the  ,angiosperms4 ,the degree of weight
 to assign to each contributing cause   
cannot as yet be satisfactorily         
determined1 but the general question    
raised by the recent origin of these    
latest products of evolution  offers a  
promising field for work4 ,while        
admitting our inability  at present to  
do more than suggest possibilities1 we  
may encourage  research by speculation4 
,the members of the ,vegetable ,kingdom 
placed next to the ,flowering  ,plants  
are the ,gymnosperms or naked-seeded 71 
naked7 plants1  including 7i7 the       
,conifers1 e4g4 pines1 firs1 larches1   
the yew1  etc41 7ii7 a small group of   
plants known as the ,cycads1 whose      
existing members1 now almost confined to
 a few tropical regions1 are  the       
descendants of a vigorous race          
represented by many species in the      
floras of the ,mesozoic epoch4 ,a third 
sub-division of the ,gymnosperms1  the  

,ginkgoales1 is represented by a single 
survivor1 which is described  in a later
 chapter as one of the most remarkable  
links with the past in  the plant       
kingdom4    ,the ,gymnosperms are       
geologically very much older than the   
,angiosperms4  ,members of this class   
played a prominent part in the          
vegetation of  the ,coal age and it is  
certain that they existed in the still  
older  ,devonian period4 ,the only other
 group to which reference is made in    
later chapters is that of the ,ferns1   
one of the sub-divisions of a  large    
class known as the ,vascular ,cryptogams
 or ,pteridophyta4 ,these  plants1 like 
the ,gymnosperms1 are represented in the
 oldest floras of  which recognisable   
remains have been preserved4 ,the main  
groups of the  vegetable kingdom1       
founded on existing plants1 are         
distinguished by  well-defined          
differences2 they are comparable with   
separate twigs of a  tree springing from
 larger branches and these again uniting

 below in  a common trunk4 ,the         
vegetation of to-day represents only the
 terminal  portions of the upper        
branches4 ,as we descend the geological 
series1  records of extinct types are   
found which enable us either to trace   
the separate branches to a common origin
 or to recognise a convergence  towards 
a common stock4 ,were a botanist to find
 himself in a forest of  the ,coal age  
he would experience great difficulty in 
assigning some  of the plants to their  
systematic position3 characters now     
regarded  as distinguishing features of 
distinct groups would be met with in    
combination in a single individual4 ,it 
is by the discovery of such  generalised
 types1 which serve as finger-posts     
pointing the way to  lines of evolution1
 that the student of pre-existing plants
 has been  able to throw light on the   
relative antiquity of existing forms1   
and  to trace towards a common ancestry 
plants which now show but little        
indication of consanguinity4            

,confining our attention to the dominant
 group of plants in the ,british  flora1
 namely the ,flowering ,plants1 we may  
profitably consider the  question1      
though we cannot satisfactorily answer  
it1--which members of  this group are   
entitled to be regarded as the most     
ancient inhabitants8  ,the past history 
of our native plants1 and their         
geographical range1  not only in the    
,british ,isles but on the ,continent of
 ,europe1 are  subjects well worthy of  
the attention of field-botanists whose  
interests are apt to be confined within 
too narrow bounds4 ,there are  numerous 
problems relating to the composition of 
the present vegetation  of ,britain     
which might be discussed in reference to
 the relative  antiquity of plants2 but 
in a single chapter it is impossible to 
do  more than call attention to certain 
considerations which are frequently     
overlooked by students of ,british      
species4    ,it is customary to speak of
 the ,british flora as consisting for   

the  most part of species introduced    
into this country by natural means1     
while some plants owe their introduction
 to human agency or are  'escapes' from 
cultivation4 ,it is by no means an easy 
task in some  instances to decide       
whether a species is native or          
introduced1 but  in some cases1 a few of
 which are mentioned1 there is no doubt 
as to  the alien nature of the plants4  
,the term 'native' needs a word of      
explanation4 ,it is not intended to     
convey the idea that a plant so         
designated came into existence on       
,british soil and spread thence to      
other regions2 but by native species we 
mean such as have reached this  country 
by migration from other lands1 or it may
 be in some instances  have actually    
originated in this part of ,europe4 ,one
 of the best known  aliens in ,britain  
is the ,american water-weed1 ,elodea    
canadensis  7or ,anacharis alsinastrum71
 which was discovered about sixty years 
ago in a canal near ,market ,harborough 

in ,leicestershire7#ad74 ,in all        
probability this ,north ,american       
species was introduced into ,england    
with timber4 ,once established1 it      
spread through the waterways with       
alarming rapidity and became a serious  
pest4 ,elodea affords an  admirable     
instance of the serious interference    
with the balance of  ,nature by the     
introduction of a new competitor into an
 environment  conducive to vigorous     
development4 ,another foreign           
water-plant1  ,naias graminea1 for the  
importation of which ,egyptian cotton   
may be responsible1 has been recorded   
from the ,reddish canal near            
,manchester7#ae74 ,this ,african and    
,asiatic species occurs in ,europe  only
 as a colonist2 it is said to have been 
introduced into ,italy  with ,east      
,indian rice4 ,a more recent case of    
alien immigration due to  unintentional 
human agency is that of ,potamogeton    
pennsylvanicus1  a pond-weed of ,canada1
 the ,united ,states1 ,jamaica1 and     

elsewhere4  ,specimens of this species  
were first noticed in #aijg in a canal  
near  ,halifax close to the effluent    
from a cotton mill4 ,since its discovery
  the plant has slightly extended its   
range4 ,it is suggested by ,mr          
,bennett1 who first identified the      
alien1 that its fruits were brought  to 
this country in goods from the ,united  
,states7#af74    ,of the introduction of
 these and other foreign plants we have 
satisfactory records2 but there are many
 others which may owe their  presence to
 man's agency1 though we have no        
information as to their  arrival4    ,it
 has long been recognised that several  
members of the ,british flora  are      
related to ,scandinavian species4 ,the  
,scandinavian flora1 as ,sir  ,joseph   
,hooker says in his well-known paper on 
the ',outlines of the  ,distribution of 
,arctic plants1' 'not only girdles the  
globe in the  ,arctic ,circle1 and      
dominates over all others in the ,north 
,temperate  ,zone of the ,old ,world1   

but intrudes conspicuously into every   
other  temperate flora1 whether in the  
northern or southern hemisphere1 or on  
the ,alps of tropical countries'7#ag74  
,the view generally held is that  during
 the ,glacial period this ,arctic flora 
was driven ,south1 and aided  by        
land-bridges1 which were afterwards     
submerged1 many of the northern         
migrants found a more congenial home in 
,britain4 ,it is however by no  means   
improbable that this conclusion may have
 to be considerably  modified4 ,mr and  
,mrs ,reid1 as the result of their      
careful analysis  of the ,pre-,glacial  
,flora of ,britain1 express the opinion 
that 'the  pre-glacial plants suggest   
climatic conditions almost identical    
with  those now existing1 though        
slightly warmer' 7#bg1 #b74 ,it is      
noteworthy  that the list of plants     
given in their paper does not include   
any  typical ,arctic species4 ,the      
occurrence on the mountains of ,scotland
  and elsewhere of such plants as       

,silene acaulis1 ,dryas octopetala1     
,saxifraga oppositifolia and other      
,saxifrages1 ,rubus chamaemorus  7the   
,cloudberry71 and the dwarf ,birch      
illustrate the ,arctic-,alpine  element 
in our flora4    ,the opinion is held by
 many ,swiss botanists that their       
,alpine species  have in large measure  
been derived from non-glaciated parts of
 the  ,pyrenees1 that is from a region  
which was presumably able to retain its 
flora at a time when more northern lands
 were exposed to extreme ,arctic        
conditions4 ,my friend ,dr ,moss        
believes that some of the so-called     
,scandinavian plants came to ,britain   
from ,central ,europe after the  retreat
 of the ice2 if this view is correct it 
means that some at least  of our        
,arctic-,alpine plants reached these    
islands by a southern rather  than by a 
northern route4    ,interesting examples
 of far-travelled northern plants       
recently  described by ,professor       
,engler of ,berlin afford additional    

illustrations  of the general principles
 enunciated many years ago by ,sir      
,joseph  ,hooker4 ,a species of         
flowering ,rush1 ,luzula spicata var4   
simensis1  occurs at an altitude of     
#cfjj metres in ,abyssinia and on       
,kilimanjaro4  ,luzula spicata is found 
in the whole of the ,arctic and         
,subarctic belt  in ,scotland1          
,auvergne1 the ,jura mountains1 and     
elsewhere4 ,the species  probably began 
its career in the northern hemisphere   
where it grew  abundantly on the higher 
ground in the ,arctic ,circle3 it       
eventually  travelled along the ,north  
,american ,andes and appeared in ,mexico
 under a  guise sufficiently distinct to
 warrant the use of another name1       
,luzula  racemosa4 ,in an eastern       
direction it reached the ,himalayas and 
is  represented in ,abyssinia by a      
closely allied form4 ,from ,abyssinia to
  ,kilimanjaro ,luzula spicata 'had to  
travel a long distance2 but it is  not  
impossible that it either still exists  

or has existed previously on  a few of  
the high mountains between ,abyssinia   
and ,kenia1 from which1  having advanced
 to the ,kilimanjaro1 it again produced 
new forms4444  ,at any rate1 it is      
impossible to do without distribution of
 seeds of  alpine plants by air-currents
 or by birds from one mountain to the   
other in explaining the history of      
distribution'7#ah74    ,the majority of 
,british plants are identical with      
species in ,central  and ,northern      
,europe3 of these1 some are among the   
most widely spread  ,english species1   
e4g4 the ,daisy and ,primrose1 while    
others1 such as  the ,oxlip 7,primula   
elatior71 are confined to the ,eastern  
counties1  and others1 such as the      
,cheddar ,pink 7,dianthus caesius71 are 
restricted to ,western counties4        
,before considering a small section of  
the ,british flora which is the  most   
interesting from the point of view of   
origin1 a short digression  may be      
allowed in order to call attention to   

the importance of a  branch of science  
which ,darwin spoke of as 'that grand   
subject1 that  almost keystone of the   
laws of creation1 geographical          
distribution1'  and in #ahdg referred to
 as 'that noble subject of which we as  
yet  but dimly see the full bearing4'   
,it was largely as the results  of his  
study of distribution in the ,galapagos 
,islands that ,darwin  determined to    
'collect blindly every sort of fact     
which bears anyway  on what are         
species4' ,the acceptance of the view   
'that each species  was first produced  
within a single region'7#ai71 raises the
 subject of  geographical distribution  
to a far higher plane than it occupied  
in  pre-,darwinian days4 ,although most 
people are familiar with some of  the   
commoner means by which plants are able 
to colonise new ground  through the     
adaptation of their fruits and seeds to 
various methods of  transport1 the      
conception of a plant as a stationary   
organism tends  to prevent due allowance

 being made for the comparative facility
 with  which1 in the course of          
successive generations1 a species is    
able to  wander from place to place4    
,the individual animal is endowed with  
powers of locomotion enabling it to seek
 new feeding-grounds and to  avoid      
enemies2 but with the exception of some 
of the simplest forms a  plant cannot   
move--'le matin la laisse o la trouve le
 soir4'    ,the rate of travel may or   
may not be rapid1 but in a comparatively
  short time1 if the conditions are     
favourable1 a tree may spread over  a   
wide area4 ,mr ,ridley1 ,director of the
 ,botanic ,gardens1 ,singapore1  writes 
as follows in reference to the rate of  
travel of one of the  common ,malayan   
trees 7,shorea leprosula71 which bears  
winged fruits  particularly well adapted
 to wind-transport3 ',if we assume that 
a tree  flowers and fruits at #cj years 
of age and the fruits are disseminated  
to a distance of #ajj yards1 that the   
furthest fruits always germinate  and so

 continue in one direction1 it will be  
seen that under such most  favourable   
circumstances the species can only      
spread #hjj yards in #ajj  years1 and   
would take #eh1fff years to migrate #ajj
 miles'7#bj74    ,there is1 however1 one
 type of distribution--what is called   
discontinuous distribution--to which    
special attention should be  directed on
 account of its intimate association    
with questions  relating to the past    
history of living organisms4 ,many      
examples might  be quoted from both the 
animal and plant kingdoms in support of 
the  view that discontinuous            
distribution is a criterion of          
antiquity4 ,when  identical or very     
nearly identical plants occur in regions
 separated  from one another by areas in
 which the particular species is        
unknown1  the inference is either that  
the surviving individuals are remnants  
of a large number formerly distributed  
over a wider continuous area1  or that  
in the course of evolution similar      

conditions in widely  separated areas   
led to the production of identical      
types4 ,the former  view is much the    
more probable3 it is consistent with the
 conclusions  arrived at on other       
grounds as to the connexion between     
discontinuous  distribution and ancient 
lineage4 ,the explanations of the       
widespread  occurrence among different  
races of similar objects or legends     
afford  an analogous case4 ,as ,dr      
,andrew ,lang points out in ,custom and 
,myth1  it is held by some students that
 the use of the bull roarer--to cite a  
specific instance--by different peoples 
denotes descent from a common  stock1   
though he considers the more probable   
explanation to be that  similar minds1  
working with simple means towards       
similar ends1 might  evolve the bull    
roarer and its mystic uses anywhere4    
,the ,cedars of ,lebanon afford an      
interesting example of discontinuous    
distribution4 ,they illustrate how a    
species1 which may be assumed to  have  

originated in one region1 in the course 
of its wanderings may  undergo slight   
changes until1 at a later stage when the
 plants have  disappeared from parts of 
the once-continuous area1 the remaining 
outlying groups of individuals are      
spoken of under different specific      
names4 ,the cedars of ,lebanon1 known as
 ,cedrus libani1 occur as  isolated     
groups on the ,lebanon hills as outliers
 of the larger  forests of the ,taunus  
#bej miles distant4 ,the ,african cedar1
 ,cedrus  atlantica1 is separated from  
the ,lebanon cedar by a distance of     
#adjj  miles4 ,approximately the same   
distance divides the ,lebanon cedar from
  the deodar1 ,cedrus deodara1 which    
extends from ,afghanistan along  the    
,himalayas almost to the confines of    
,nepal4 ,sir ,joseph ,hooker  regards   
the three cedars as varieties of one    
species which once  formed a continuous 
forest3 he attributes the present       
discontinuous  distribution1 in part at 
least1 to the effects of a warmer       

succeeding  a colder climate4 ,the less 
favourable conditions drove the         
vegetation  of the lowlands to seek more
 congenial habitats at higher altitudes4
  ,in this connexion it is interesting  
to find that in ,algeria the cedar  is  
confined to the higher ground where the 
snow lies long in the  spring7#ba74     
,the ,tulip ,tree of ,north ,america and
 ,central ,china affords one of  many   
examples of existing flowering plants   
which illustrate the  close connexion   
between present distribution and past   
history4 ,the  genus ,liriodendron1     
often cultivated in the south of        
,england1 is  now represented by two    
species1 the best known of which--the   
,tulip  ,tree1 ,liriodendron            
tulipera--extends from ,vermont to      
,florida and  westwards to ,lake        
,michigan and ,arkansas4 ,the leaves    
bear a superficial  resemblance to those
 of the ,sycamore1 but are as a rule    
easily  distinguished by the truncated  
form of the apex2 the specific name  was

 suggested by the tulip-like form of the
 flowers4 ,fossil leaves  of            
,liriodendron are not uncommon in the   
,cretaceous rocks of ,disco  ,island in 
latitude #gj ,n41 where they occur with 
other flowering  plants which bear      
striking testimony to the mildness of   
the ,cretaceous  climate in high        
northern latitudes4 ,one of the         
associated flowering  plants is a       
species of ,artocarpus1 described by ,dr
 ,nathorst as  ,artocarpus ,dicksoni    
which bears a close resemblance to ,a4  
incisa  the bread-fruit tree of the     
southern tropics of the ,old ,world4    
,without  attempting to deal fully with 
the past history of ,liriodendron1 it   
may  be confidently stated that the     
records of the rocks are consistent with
  the idea of antiquity suggested by the
 present distribution of the two        
surviving species4    ,islands such as  
,great ,britain and ,ireland1 situated a
 short distance  from a continent1      
contain many plants which are widely    

spread in  different parts of the world1
 together with a very small number      
peculiar to the ,british ,isles though  
closely allied to species on the        
neighbouring continent or to plants     
farther afield4 ,the occasional         
recognition of species previously       
believed to be confined to ,britain     
tends to reduce the short list of our   
endemic types4    ,an enquiry into the  
origin of an island flora involves a    
consideration  of the data in regard to 
changes in level and relative           
distribution of  land and water in the  
course of geological evolution4 ,it is  
generally  agreed that at no distant    
date1 in a geological sense4 ,great     
,britain  and ,ireland were united to   
the continent4 ,there is1 however1      
another  fact to reckon with1 namely the
 prevalence of ,arctic conditions in    
northern ,europe when a thick sheet of  
ice spread over the greater  part of the
 ,british ,isles4 ,there can be no doubt
 that the severity of  the climate      

during the ,glacial period was such as  
to destroy a large  proportion of the   
vegetation4 ,the question is1 were all  
the flowering  plants destroyed or were 
some of the hardier species able to     
survive1  either on the higher peaks    
which kept their heads above the level  
of  the ice or on the southern fringe of
 ,england beyond the ice-covered        
region8 ,it is impossible to give a     
definite answer3 the probability  is    
that nearly all the pre-,glacial species
 were destroyed1 but it is  not         
impossible that some ,alpine-,arctic    
plants escaped extinction1  while others
 retreated to more southern and less    
,arctic areas by means  of a            
land-connexion with ,france or crossed  
the intervening sea by  ocean-currents1 
by animal agency1 or by wind4           
,although we possess but imperfect      
information as to the extent and        
duration of land-bridges between        
,britain and the continent1 there are   
no special difficulties in the way of   

accounting for the presence  of         
,scandinavian1 ,germanic1 and other     
elements in the ,british flora4  ,there 
are1 however1 other and more difficult  
problems to consider in  reference to a 
small group of flowering plants which   
are met with in  the west and south of  
,ireland1 also1 to a less extent1 in    
,cornwall and  in a few other localities
 in the south-west of ,england4 ,in     
,connemara  in the west of ,ireland1    
where hard frosts are unknown and winter
 snows  are rare1 there are three kinds 
of ,heath1 ,st ,dabeoc's ,heath         
7,daboecia  polifolia71 the             
,mediterranean ,heath 7,erica           
mediterranea7 and  ,erica ,mackaii which
 are not found elsewhere in the ,british
 ,isles or  in the whole of northern    
,europe1 but reappear in the ,pyrenees4 
,the  ,london ,pride 7,saxifraga        
umbrosa71 another ,pyrenean plant1 grows
  on the south and west coast of        
,ireland from ,waterford to ,donegal4   
,arbutus ,unedo1 the ,strawberry tree1  

which flourishes in the ,killarney      
district of ,county ,kerry and occurs in
 neighbouring localities1 has  a wide   
distribution in the ,mediterranean      
region4 ,devonshire and  ,cornwall      
possess two other ,heaths1 ,erica       
ciliaris1 which extends into            
,dorsetshire and occurs in north        
,brittany1 and ,erica vagans1 both      
,pyrenean species1 while a              
,mediterranean plant4 ,gladiolus        
illyricus1  grows in the ,new ,forest4  
,in #ahdf ,edward ,forbes dealt with the
 problems presented by the  distribution
 of ,british plants in an essay which   
has exercised a  far-reaching influence4
 ,when ,forbes published his work1      
comparatively  little was known as to   
the possibilities of transport of seeds 
and  fruits across barriers of          
water7#bb74 ,his conviction that the    
known  means of dispersal were          
insufficient to account for the presence
 of  ,mediterranean or ,lusitanian      
plants in ,ireland led him to turn to   

geology for a solution of the problem4  
,he was thus led to put forward  the    
view that in the course of the ,tertiary
 period when1 as we know  from          
palaeontological evidence1 the climate  
of north and west ,europe  was much     
warmer than it is now1 and long-before  
the beginning of the  climatic changes  
which culminated in the ,glacial period1
 there was a  land-connexion between the
 west of ,ireland and the south-west of 
the  continent4 ,mr ,praeger1 whose work
 on the ,irish flora is well known to   
systematic botanists1 agrees with the   
conclusions of ,forbes1 and sees  in the
 ,portuguese and ,mediterranean plants  
'relics of a vegetation  which once     
spread along a bygone ,european         
coast-line which stretched  unbroken    
from ,ireland to ,spain'7#bc74 ,if this 
explanation is correct it  entitles     
,arbutus1 ,st ,dabeoc's heath and other 
members of this southern  group to be   
regarded as a very old section of our   
flora4 ,there is1  however1 another side

 to the question3 granting that a       
certain number  of ,irish plants were   
able to withstand the rigours of an ,ice
 age1 it  is hardly likely that the     
strawberry tree and other southern      
types1  which it is admitted flourish in
 the south-west of ,ireland because of  
the mildness of the climate1 were of the
 number of those which endured  an      
extreme ,arctic phase4 ,moreover1 if    
these ,mediterranean species  are       
survivals from the ,tertiary period1 if 
they have been isolated  since          
pre-,glacial days as an outlier of a    
southern flora1 we might  fairly expect 
that during the long interval between   
their arrival and  the present day new  
forms would have been produced closely  
related  to1 though not identical with1 
the parent types4 ,this1 however1  has  
not been proved to be the case4 ,darwin 
in speaking of ,forbes'  ,essay in a    
letter to de ,candolle in #ahfc says    
that he differs from  most of his       
contemporaries 'in thinking that the    

vast continental  extensions of ,forbes1
 ,heer1 and others are not only advanced
 without  sufficient evidence1 but are  
opposed to much weighty evidence'7#ab74 
,the alternative view is to regard      
,arbutus and its compatriots as         
post-,glacial arrivals and not as       
survivals from a widely spread          
,tertiary flora4    ,a recently         
published account of the ,new ,flora of 
the volcanic island  of ,krakatau       
furnishes an instructive and remarkable 
demonstration of  the facility with     
which a completely sterilised island1   
separated  by several miles of ocean    
from neighbouring lands1 may be         
restocked  with vegetation7#bd74 ,in    
#ahhc the island of ,krakatau1 then     
densely  covered with a luxuriant       
tropical vegetation1 was partially      
destroyed  by a series of exceptionally 
violent volcanic explosions4 ,after this
  catastrophe only a third of the island
 was left3 the surface was deeply       
covered by pumice and volcanic ash and  

no vestige of life remained4 ,in  #aijf 
a party of botanists who spent a few    
hours on ,krakatau collected  #acg      
species of plants3 the vegetation was in
 places so dense that it  was with the  
greatest difficulty they penetrated     
beyond the coastal  belt1 and some of   
the trees had reached a height of #ej   
feet4 ,the seeds  and fruits of this new
 flora have been carried by             
ocean-currents1  by wind1 and by the    
agency of birds from other islands in   
the ,malay  ,archipelago4 ,the nearest  
islands1 except the small island of     
,sebesi1  about #ab miles distant1 are  
,java and ,sumatra1 separated from      
,krakatau  by a stretch of water about  
#be miles in breadth4 ,it is reasonable 
to  wonder whether1 had ,forbes known of
 this and similar modern instances  of  
the capabilities of plants as           
travellers1 he would have adopted the   
view he did4 ,in this connexion it may  
be added that in recent years the       
glaciation of ,ireland has been shown to

 be more extensive than it was  believed
 to be when ,forbes wrote his essay4    
,there would seem to be no insuperable  
objection to the conclusion  that the   
,mediterranean plants in ,ireland and in
 the south of ,england  reached their   
present home after the retreat of the   
ice at the end  of the ,glacial period1 
and after ,ireland became an island4 ,a 
full  consideration of the problem is   
beyond the scope of this book1 but  ,i  
have briefly stated the case1 not with  
the authority of an expert  but in order
 to draw attention to a particularly    
fascinating study in  plant-migration4  
,illustration3 ,fig4 #b4 ,eriocaulon    
septangulare ,with4 ,west ,connemara4   
7,photograph by ,mr ,w4 ,r4 ,welch47    
,in a volume by ,w4 ,canton entitled ,a 
,child's book of ,saints a story is     
told in which the presence in ,ireland  
of ,mediterranean species receives  a   
more picturesque explanation4 ,the ,monk
 ,bresal was sent to teach the  brethren
 in a ,spanish monastery the music of   

,irish choirs4 ,in later  years ,bresal 
longed for a sight of his native land1  
though he loved his  home and 'every    
rock1 tree1 and flower' in his adopted  
country4 ,after  returning to ,ireland1 
his thoughts reverted to ,spain2 'it    
appeared  to him as though he was once  
again in a granite nook among the rocks 
beside the ,priory'2 he saw the         
ice-plant with its little stars of white
  flowers sprinkled with red 7the       
,london ,pride7 and a small evergreen   
tree from which he had often gathered   
the orange-scarlet berries  7,arbutus74 
,the ,prior of the ,spanish monastery   
'with heavenly vision  saw ,bresal      
gazing at the evergreen tree and the    
ice-plant1 and turning  to the trees    
blessed them and commended them to go   
and make real his  dream4 ,as ,bresal   
brushed away his tears he saw with      
amazement at his  feet the ice-plant and
 hard by the evergreen tree4'    ,the   
plant represented in ,fig4 #b is another
 ,british species which tasks  the      

ingenuity of students of                
plant-geography4 ,this is the ,pipe     
,wort  7,eriocaulon septangulare71 the  
sole representative in ,europe of a     
certain family of ,monocotyledons3 it   
flourishes in the west of ,ireland  and 
in the western islands of ,scotland but 
nowhere else in ,europe2 it  is native  
on the other side of the ,atlantic in   
,canada and the northern  ,united       
,states of ,america4 ,mr ,praeger in    
describing the striking mixture  of     
species in the west of ,ireland writes1 
',the pool from which we  gather the    
,american ,pipe ,wort is fringed with   
,pyrenean ,heathers4 ,the  cracks which 
are filled with the delicate green foam 
of the maiden hair  are set in          
,bearberry and ,spring ,gentian2        
,habenaria intacta1 far from  its       
,mediterranean home1 sends up its       
flower-spikes through carpets of        
mountain ,avens2 and ,st ,dabeoc's      
,heath and the dwarf ,juniper straggle  
together over the rocky knolls'7#be74   

,the presence of ,eriocaulon on the     
western edge of ,europe may be          
attributed to migration in pre-,glacial 
days from ,north ,america by way  of a  
land-connexion1 of which ,greenland and 
,iceland represent surviving  portions4 
,the opinion held by ,forbes1 and       
advocated by some later  naturalists1   
that the southern companions of         
,eriocaulon in the west of  ,ireland are
 survivors from a ,tertiary flora which 
have lived through  the ,ice ,age1 is   
consistently extended to the ,pipe      
,wort4 ,on the other  hand1 before      
yielding to the temptation to regard    
these ,american and  ,mediterranean     
species as links with the ,tertiary     
period1 we must be  convinced that the  
possibilities of post-,glacial          
introduction1 even  without the aid of  
land-bridges1 have been exhausted4 ,the 
,pipe ,wort is  a botanical puzzle which
 affords a good example of the accession
 of  interest to field-botany effected  
by a knowledge of the distribution  of  

the component members of the ,british   
flora4 ,the problem of its past  history
 suggests an experimental enquiry into  
the adaptability of its  seeds to       
dispersal1 and emphasises the importance
 of the co-operation  of botanists and  
geologists in a common endeavour to     
trace the origin  of ,british plants4   
,in addition to the ,pipe ,wort1 mention
 may be made of three other  ,american  
flowering plants recognised in the      
,irish flora4 ,sisyrinchium             
angustifolium recorded from the west of 
,ireland is native in temperate  ,north 
,america2 the orchid1 ,spiranthes       
romanzoffiana1 met with in the  south   
and north of ,ireland1 is widely spread 
in ,canada and the northern  ,states1   
while ,sisyrinchium californicum1 a     
native of ,california  and ,oregon1 was 
discovered by ,mr ,marshall in marshy   
meadow-land near  ,wexford7#bf74 ,in the
 case of the more recently discovered   
,american  immigrants1 the possibility  
of human introduction must be borne in  

mind1 though there are no special       
reasons for doubting that some1 as in   
the case of ,eriocaulon1 reached the    
,irish coast by natural agencies4       
,,chapter ,,iii    ,,the ,,geological   
,,record     ',all the ,epochs of the   
,past are only a few of the front       
carriages1    and probably the least    
wonderful1 in the van of an interminable
    procession4'                        
,j4 ,b4 ,bury 7,the ,science of         
,history74      ,the portion of the     
earth's surface accessible to           
investigation is made  up in part of    
accumulations of old sediments1 some    
indistinguishable  from the shingle1    
sand1 and mud now in process of         
formation by the  ceaseless action of   
denudation2 others have been hardened1  
gently  folded or violently contorted   
and so far altered by crust-movements   
as to render their sedimentary origin   
well nigh unrecognisable4 ,it is  these 
sediments of former ages1 the dust of   
lost continents1 in which  are preserved

 the majority of the fragmentary remains
 of plants and  animals1 the flotsam and
 jetsam of successive phases of         
evolution4    ,the crust of the earth1  
as ,darwin wrote1 'with its imbedded    
remains  must not be looked at as a well
 filled museum1 but as a poor collection
  made at hazard and at rare            
intervals'7#ai74 ,it is from this       
imperfect  record that we seek to       
discover the relative antiquity of the  
several  groups or genera of living     
plants1 and in the structure of extinct 
types we endeavour to discover          
connecting links between divisions of   
the plant kingdom which in the course of
 evolution have retained little  or no  
signs of a common descent4    ,sir      
,joseph ,hooker in a letter to ,darwin  
in #ahei speaks of his  'conviction that
 we have not in a fossilised condition a
 fraction of  the plants that have      
existed1 and that not a fraction of     
those we have  are recognisable         
specifically'7#ab74 ,considering the    

nature of the  palaeontological         
documents the wonder is how much they   
have taught us1  and we may look with   
confidence to the results of future     
research in  a field of which the       
importance has only recently been       
appreciated4  ,with the strata of       
sedimentary origin are frequently       
associated igneous  rocks1 and in many  
continental regions1 as in the majority 
of oceanic  islands1 the crust of the   
earth consists wholly of volcanic       
material or  of rocks produced by the   
gradual solidification of molten magmas4
 ,rocks  composed mainly of carbonate of
 lime1 such as limestones and chalk1    
bear witness to ocean beds or to        
sediments deposited on the floors of    
inland seas beyond the reach of land    
detritus where coral reefs were  reared 
or the shells and other calcareous      
skeletons of animals supplied  the      
material for future land4 ,in such rocks
 the remains of calcareous  seaweeds are
 frequently recognisable and            

occasionally1 as in the  ,english chalk1
 fragments of wood testify to transport 
from a distant  land4    ,while there is
 little difficulty in explaining the    
nature of much of  the earth's crust1 in
 several parts of the world the strata  
are totally  unfossiliferous and closely
 simulate crystalline rocks4 ,in many   
cases  it is believed that such strata  
represent ancient sediments which in    
the course of ages have been reduced by 
metamorphic agencies to a  condition    
which has obscured or entirely          
obliterated all traces of  their        
pristine state4    ,since the pioneer   
work of ,william ,smith1 who in the     
early days of the  nineteenth century   
first realised the importance of fossils
 as aids to  the determination of       
relative age1 geologists have devoted   
themselves  to the task of correlating  
the sedimentary rocks of the world1     
using  as criteria the order of         
superposition of the strata and the     
nature of  their organic remains4 ,the  

result has been to classify portions of 
the  earth's crust into periods or      
chapters1 which together constitute a   
record of geological evolution as       
complete as it is possible to obtain    
from the available data4 ,the           
accompanying table shows the order of   
sequence of the epochs1 which stand for 
terms of years of a magnitude  beyond   
our powers to grasp4    ,the division of
 geological history into larger and     
smaller periods does  not imply the     
recurrence of sudden revolutions2 it is 
in some measure  dictated by            
considerations of convenience1 but more 
particularly by  our ignorance of       
certain stages in the history of the    
world due to the  imperfection of the   
record4      ,,geological ,,table4      
,showing the position in the ,geological
 ,series of the strata referred to  in  
this volume4      ,tertiary 7,cainozoic7
          ,recent                       
,superficial accumulations containing   
human          ,pleistocene             

remains 7,metal age1 ,neolithic and     
,palaeolithic ages1 ,glacial deposits7  
,pliocene           ,cromer ,forest-bed1
 etc4              ,miocene             
,absent from ,britain4                  
,oligocene          ,bovey ,tracey beds1
 etc4              ,eocene              
,london ,clay1 etc4        ,secondary   
7,mesozoic7          ,cretaceous        
,chalk                                  
,wealden beds                           
,purbeck and ,portland beds 7,upper     
,jurassic7        ,jurassic             
,oolites 7,middle ,jurassic7            
,lias 7,lower ,jurassic7                
,rhaetic beds        ,triassic          
,keuper      7,marls with rock-salt1    
etc47                            ,bunter
           ,primary 7,palaeozoic7       
,permian           ,red ,sandstones1    
etc4                                    
,magnesian limestone                    
,coal ,measures        ,carboniferous   
,millstone ,grit                        
,carboniferous limestone                

,devonian          ,devonian limestones1
 etc4                            ,old   
,red ,sandstones              ,silurian 
,sandstones1 shales1                    
some limestone              ,ordovician 
,slates1 sandstones1                    
,volcanic rocks1 etc4                   
,cambrian          ,slates1 ,sandstones1
 etc4              ,pre-,cambrian       
,slates1 ,volcanic rocks1 etc4          
or ,archean    ,in certain parts of the 
world1 as for example the north-west    
,highlands  of ,scotland1 the ,malvern  
,hills1 ,scandinavia1 and in many other 
regions  in ,europe and ,north ,america1
 geologists have recognised what they   
believe to be the foundation stones of  
the world4 ,these ,archaean  rocks1     
which underlie the oldest fossiliferous 
strata1 belong to a  period of          
geological evolution from which it      
appears to be hopeless to  obtain any   
light as to the nature of the           
contemporary organic world4  ,the       
earliest vestiges of life so far        

discovered exhibit a high degree  of    
organisation1 which unmistakably points 
to their being links in a  chain        
extending far beyond the limits of the  
oldest ,cambrian strata  in which       
recognisable fossils first occur4 ,the  
rocks of the ,cambrian  and ,ordovician 
epochs1 as represented by the grits1    
shales1 slates and  other sedimentary   
strata in ,wales1 ,shropshire1 the ,lake
 district and  elsewhere1 though in     
places rich in the remains of animals1  
afford  no information in regard to the 
land vegetation4 ,from the succeeding   
,silurian epoch very little evidence has
 been gleaned as to the nature  of the  
flora1 and it is not until we come to   
the sedimentary rocks of  the ,devonian 
era that records of plant-life occur in 
any abundance4 ,the  almost complete    
lack of botanical data in the           
pre-,devonian formations  is in part due
 to the fact that these older rocks     
consist to a large  extent of marine    
deposits formed under conditions        

unfavourable to the  preservation of    
plants4 ,that the land-surfaces of the  
older ,palaeozoic  eras supported an    
abundant vegetation there can be little 
doubt4  ,the relics of plant-life       
furnished by the ,devonian and          
succeeding  formations represent the    
upper branching-systems of a deeply     
rooted and  spreading tree1 the lowest  
portions of which have been destroyed or
  have left no sign of their existence4 
,in descending the ,geological series1  
we begin with superficial  deposits1    
such as peat and river-gravels found    
subsequently to the  underlying         
boulder-clay of the ,glacial period4    
,the remains of forest  trees preserved 
in the peat and in submerged forests    
round the  coast connect the vegetation 
of the historic period with that of the 
,neolithic age4 ,at the base of the     
,pleistocene series1 the name given  to 
the latest chapter of geological        
history1 we find evidence of the        
prevalence of arctic conditions in the  

widely spread boulder-clays and  other  
deposits of the ,glacial period4        
,from deposits of post-,glacial date    
abundant plant remains have  been       
obtained1 but we cannot say with any    
degree of certainty what  proportion of 
these plants remained in ,britain during
 the ,ice age1  and whether the greater 
part of the vegetation1 the relics of   
which  have been discovered in          
pre-,glacial beds1 was destroyed or     
driven  south by the advancing ice4 ,we 
may briefly consider some of the more   
interesting facts brought to light by   
the investigation of the fossil  plants 
in the ,lower ,pleistocene and ,upper   
,tertiary beds4 ,it is mainly  to the   
researches of ,mr ,clement ,reid into   
the vegetation of ,britain  immediately 
preceding the ,glacial period1 that our 
knowledge of this  phase of the history 
of the ,british flora is due4           
,illustration3 ,fig4 #c4 ,pre-,glacial  
plants from ,mundesley 7,a71 ,norfolk   
and ,pakefield 7,b1 ,c71 ,suffolk4      

7,photographs by ,mr ,clement ,reid and 
,mrs  ,e4 ,m4 ,reid47 ,a4 ,bidens       
tripartita ,linn4 7 #f72 ,b4 ,picea     
excelsa  ,linn4 7nat4 size74 ,c4        
,stellaria holostea ,linn4 7 #ab74      
,on the coast of ,norfolk in the        
neighbourhood of ,cromer the sections   
of the cliffs reveal the existence of a 
succession of sands1 clays1  and gravels
 underlying ,glacial deposits2 this     
material was probably  laid down near   
the mouth of the ancient ,rhine1 which  
in the latter  part of the ,tertiary    
period flowed across a low area1 which  
is now  occupied by the shallow southern
 half of the ,north ,sea7#bg74 ,the     
plant-fragments found in these          
river-sediments indicate a temperate    
climate4 ,among the plants of this      
pre-,glacial flora are many familiar    
,british species1 such as ,caltha       
palustris 7marsh marigold71 species  of 
butter-cup1 ,stellaria holostea 7greater
 stichwort7 7,fig4 #c1 ,c71  ,bidens    
tripartita 7bur-marigold7 7,fig4 #c1    

,a71 maple1 hawthorn1 the  alder1 hazel1
 the yew1 ,scots pine and numerous      
others4 ,if1 as is not  improbable1     
these pre-,glacial plants were swept    
away by the subsequent  arctic          
conditions1 the great majority of them  
returned to their old  home when a      
warmer climate ensued4 ,there are       
however some pre-,glacial  plants1 such 
as the spruce fir 7,picea excelsa71 a   
cone of which  is shown in ,fig4 #c1 ,b1
 the water chestnut1 ,trapa natans      
7,fig4 #d71  and a few other species no 
longer represented in the ,british      
flora4  ,the genus ,trapa is a striking 
example of a flowering plant which  has 
disappeared since the ,tertiary period  
from many parts of ,europe1  including  
,england1 most of ,sweden1 and from     
several regions in northern  ,europe4   
,it still grows in a few localities in  
,switzerland and in some  of the        
,italian lakes4 ,in pre-,glacial times  
the water chestnut was  widely spread   
from ,portugal and ,england in the west 

to ,siberia in the  east1 and its hard  
four-pronged nuts have been recorded    
from many  post-,glacial peat-moors in  
the north of ,europe4    ,illustration3 
,fig4 #d4 ,trapa natans ,linn4 7nat4    
size74 ,from  ,mundesley4 7,photographs 
by ,mr and ,mrs ,reid47    ,from the    
so-called ,cromer forest-bed and        
associated deposits on the  ,norfolk    
coast several pre-,glacial plants have  
been obtained1 indicating  a temperate  
climate during this phase of the        
,pleistocene period4 ,a few  arctic     
species1 such as the dwarf birch and    
arctic willow obtained from  the        
deposits next above the ,cromer         
forest-bed1 herald the near approach  of
 glacial conditions4    ,it may be      
remarked in passing that no satisfactory
 evidence has been  discovered in       
,britain of the existence of man in this
 part of ,europe in  pre-,glacial days3 
it is1 however1 believed that flints    
from ,tertiary  strata on the continent 
show traces of human workmanship4 ,as   

,sir  ,edwin ,ray ,lankester said in    
#aije1 ',it is not improbable that it   
was in  the remote period known as the  
,lower ,miocene--remote as compared with
  the gravels in which ,eoliths         
primitive stone implements occur--that  
,natural ,selection began to favour that
 increase in the size of the  brain of a
 large and not very powerful semi-erect 
ape'7#bh74    ,though comparatively     
recent in terms of geological           
chronology1 the  remoteness1 according  
to ordinary conceptions of time1 of the 
,tertiary  period is brought home to us 
when we endeavour to grasp the fact     
that it was during this chapter in the  
earth's history that some of  our       
highest mountain-ranges1 such as the    
,alps1 the ,carpathians1 and  ,himalayas
 were formed by the uplifting of piles  
of marine sediments4  ,from ,tertiary   
strata in the ,isle of ,wight1 on the   
,hampshire coast1 and  in the ,london   
basin numerous fossil plants have been  
obtained1 which  afford convincing      

evidence of climatic conditions much    
more genial than  those of the present  
day4 ,the presence of palm leaves and of
 a wealth  of other sub-tropical plants 
in ,lower ,tertiary beds in ,england    
reveals  the existence of a flora       
differing considerably both from that in
 the  uppermost ,tertiary beds of       
,norfolk and from the modern ,british   
flora1  but closely allied to the       
present ,mediterranean flora4    ,the   
basaltic columns of the ,giants'        
,causeway and of the ,staffa ,cave1  and
 the terraced rocks which form so       
characteristic a feature in the         
contours of the ,inner ,hebrides1 are   
portions of lava-flows1 which in  the   
early days of the ,tertiary period were 
poured out over a wide area  of land    
stretching from the north-east of       
,ireland1 through the ,western  isles of
 ,scotland1 the ,faro islands1 to       
,iceland and ,greenland4 ,while  in this
 northern region volcanic activity was  
being manifested on a  stupendous scale1

 a shallow sea extended over part of    
what is now the  south-east of ,england 
in which was deposited a considerable   
thickness  of sedimentary material      
derived from the neighbouring land4 ,in 
this  upraised sea-floor1 known as the  
,london clay1 which is exposed in the   
,isle of ,sheppey and in many other     
localities1 numerous fossil fruits  and 
fragments of wood occur in association  
with marine shells4 ,the  fact that many
 of the fruits were ripe at the time of 
their entombment  led some eighteenth   
century writers to assign an autumn date
 to the  universal deluge4 ,one of the  
,sheppey fruits may be mentioned as an  
especially interesting sample of the    
early ,tertiary flora1 namely  the genus
 ,nipadites1 so named from the very     
close resemblance of the  fossils to the
 fruits of the existing tropical plant  
,nipa4 ,nipa  fruticans1 sometimes      
described as a stemless palm because of 
the  absence of the erect stem which is 
usually a characteristic feature of     

palms1 grows in brackish estuaries of   
many tropical countries 7,fig4  #e1 ,a73
 it has long leaves not unlike those of 
the date-palm and bears  clusters of    
fruits as large as a man's head2 a      
single fruit is two or  three inches    
long and its hard fibrous shell is      
characterised by four  or five          
longitudinal ribs 7,fig4 #e1 ,b74 ,the  
fruits of ,nipa1 which may be  carried a
 considerable distance by ocean-currents
 without losing the  power of           
germination1 are constantly found with  
other vegetable drift  on the beaches of
 tropical islands4 ,the discovery of    
fruits of ,nipa 7or  ,nipadites71 hardly
 distinguishable from those of the      
existing species1  in ,tertiary beds in 
,england1 ,belgium1 in the ,paris basin1
 and in ,egypt  affords a striking      
instance of changes in the geographical 
distribution  of an ancient plant now   
restricted to warmer regions4           
,illustration3 ,fig4 #e4 ,nipa          
fruticans1 ,thunb4 ,a4 ,on the coast of 

the  ,malay ,peninsula4 7,photograph by 
,prof4 ,yapp47 ,b4 ,head of fruits      
7#a_/e  nat4 size74 ,from a specimen in 
the ,british ,museum4    ,while the     
higher members of the ,cretaceous       
system1 as seen in the chalk  cliffs and
 downs1 represent the upraised          
calcareous accumulations on  the floor  
of a fairly deep and clear sea1 the     
lower members testify to  shallower     
water within reach of river-borne sand  
and mud4 ',during the  ,chalk period1'  
as ,huxley wrote1 'not one of the       
present great physical  features of the 
globe was in existence4 ,our great      
mountain ranges1  ,pyrenees1 ,alps1     
,himalayas1 ,andes1 have all been       
upheaved since the  chalk was deposited1
 and the ,cretaceous sea flowed over the
 sites of  ,sinai and ,ararat'7#bi74    
,the ,wealden strata1 at the base of the
 ,cretaceous system1 as seen on  the    
,sussex coast1 in parts of the ,isle of 
,wight1 in the ,weald district  of ,kent
 and neighbouring counties1 point to the

 existence of a lake  over a portion of 
the south of ,england and of the        
,english ,channel4 ,the  remains of a   
rich ,wealden flora have been collected 
from these ,wealden  sediments1 notably 
from the plant-beds of ,ecclesbourne    
near ,hastings1  in which1 so far as we 
know1 flowering plants played no part or
 at most  occupied a very subordinate   
position4 ,a few fossil leaves have been
  described from rocks assigned to a    
,wealden age1--and from the older       
,stonesfield ,slate1 of ,jurassic age1 a
 single leaf is recorded1--which  seem  
to be those of ,dicotyledons2 but it is 
certain that even in the  early days of 
the ,cretaceous period the present      
dominant group in  the plant kingdom was
 in its infancy and in many regions     
probably  unrepresented4 ,when we glance
 at the geological table and consider   
that in all the floras from the ,wealden
 down to the ,devonian period1          
flowering plants played no part1 we are 
able to appreciate the fact of  their   

rapid development1 referred to in a     
previous chapter1 when once  this       
highest type had become established4    
,the rocks comprised in the ,jurassic   
system extend from ,east ,yorkshire  to 
the coast of ,dorsetshire2 they consist 
of a succession of  limestones1 clays1  
sandstones1 and a few thin beds of      
impure coal4  ,sediments of this age    
also occur1 though to a much less       
extent1 on  the north-east coast of     
,scotland and in a few places in the    
,inner  ,hebrides4 ,many of the         
,jurassic strata contain only marine    
shells1  and corals are occasionally    
abundant1 though in the lower members of
  the system in the cliffs near ,lyme   
,regis and at ,whitby fossil plants  are
 fairly common4 ,it is1 however1 from   
the middle ,jurassic beds1  in the      
cliffs between ,whitby and ,scarborough1
 and in some inland  quarries in ,east  
,yorkshire1 that we have obtained the   
richest ,jurassic  flora4 ,rivers from a
 northern land laden with sediment and  

carrying  drift-wood1 leaves and other  
plant fragments1 deposited their burden 
in  an estuary which occupied the       
eastern edge of ,yorkshire4 ,sedimentary
  rocks laid down towards the close of  
the ,jurassic period in the island  of  
,portland in the south and on the       
,sutherland coast in the north have     
furnished valuable records of           
plant-life4    ,the passage from the    
,jurassic to the underlying ,triassic   
system is  formed by some shales and    
limestones in ,south ,wales containing  
remains  of fish and other marine       
organisms4 ,these so-called ,rhaetic    
beds are  poorly represented in the     
,british area1 but on the continent of  
,europe  and in other regions the       
sediments of this age bulk much more    
largely  and have yielded a rich        
collection of plants4 ,the rocks of the 
upper  division of the ,triassic system1
 as seen in the ,midlands1 point to  the
 prevalence of desert conditions2 and in
 the grooved sand-polished  surfaces of 

granite in ,charnwood forest we have a  
glimpse of a  ,triassic landscape4 ,the 
salt-bearing strata of this period in   
,cheshire  and ,worcestershire suggest  
conditions paralleled at the present day
  in the ,caspian and ,dead-,sea        
regions4 ,the vegetation of ,britain1   
and  indeed of the world as a whole1    
seems to have undergone but little      
change during the enormous lapse of time
 represented by the sediments  comprised
 between the ,wealden and ,triassic     
periods4 ,the ,lower ,triassic  flora   
affords evidence of a change in the     
facies of the vegetation and  prepares  
us for the still greater differences    
revealed by a study of  the ,permian and
 ,carboniferous floras4 ,to the student 
of evolution these  ,palaeozoic floras  
are of special interest on account of   
the facts they  have contributed in     
regard to the descent and               
inter-relationship of  different        
branches of the vegetable kingdom4      
,it is by a patient study of the waifs  

and strays of the vegetation  of        
successive phases of the world's history
 preserved in sedimentary  strata1 that 
it has been possible to follow the      
history of many  existing plants and to 
establish links between the present and 
the  past4          ,,chapter ,,iv      
,,preservation ,,of ,,plants ,,as       
,,fossils     ',some whim of ,nature    
locked them fast in stone for us        
afterthoughts    of ,creation4'         
,lowell4      ,the failure of the       
earlier naturalists to grasp the true   
significance  of fossils or even to     
appreciate their nature is an           
extraordinary fact  when we consider the
 pioneer work which they accomplished in
 biological  and geological science4    
,the following extract from the writings
 of so  enlightened a man as ,john ,ray 
serves to illustrate an almost          
incredible  disinclination to admit what
 seems to us the obvious4 ,he           
wrote3--',yet  ,i must not dissemble    
that there is a ,phenomenon in ,nature1 

which doth  somewhat puzzle us to       
reconcile with the prudence observable  
in all its  work1 and seems strongly to 
prove1 that ,nature doth sometimes      
ludere1  and delineates figures1 for no 
other end1 but for the ornament of some 
stone1 and to entertain or gratify our  
curiosity1 and exercise our  wits4 ,this
 is1 those elegant impressions of leaves
 and plants upon  cole-slate1 the       
knowledge of which1 ,i must confess     
myself to leave to  my learned and      
ingenious friend ,mr ,edward ,lhwyd of  
,oxford4444 ,he told  me that ,mr       
,woodward1 a ,londoner1 shewed him very 
good draughts of the  common female     
fern1 naturally formed in cole4444 ,but 
these figures are  more diligently to be
 observed and considered444 ,dr         
,woodward will have  them to be the     
impressions of the leaves of plants     
which were there  lodged at the time of 
the ,deluge'7#ca74    ,the ,mr ,woodward
 alluded to by ,ray thus expressed his  
views on fossils  in an ,essay towards  

the ,natural ,history of the            
,earth3--',the whole  terrestrial globe 
was taken all to pieces and dissolved at
 the ,deluge1  the particles of stone1  
marble1 and all solid fossils           
dissevered1 taken  up into the water1   
and then sustained together with sea    
shells and  other animal and vegetable  
bodies2 the present earth consists and  
was  formed out of that promiscuous mass
 of sand1 earth1 shells1 and the  rest  
falling down again1 and subsiding from  
the water'7#cb74    ,in the later part  
of the seventeenth-century ,steno1 a    
,dane by birth and  ,professor of       
,anatomy at ,padua1 by his recognition  
of the identity of  the teeth in a      
shark's head1 which he had dissected1   
with some fossils  from ,malta known as 
,glossopetrae1 established the true     
nature of  fossils4 ,he also recognised 
a certain orderly sequence in           
fossiliferous  strata1 and in the       
opinion of ,professor ,sollas he is     
entitled to be  considered the ',father 

and ,founder' of ,geology7#cc74    ,it  
was by slow degrees that the early      
observers freed themselves from  the    
obsession that the remains of animals   
and plants in the earth's  crust bear   
witness to a ,universal ,deluge and are 
all identical with  existing species4   
,the possibility that some of the fossil
 plants in  ,english strata might be    
more clearly related to forms now met   
with in  warmer regions was gradually   
realised4 ,the publication of the       
,origin  of ,species stimulated         
palaeontological research1 and botanists
 as well  as zoologists turned to the   
investigation of extinct genera in      
search  of proofs of the doctrine of    
evolution4    ,the common occurrence of 
petrified wood in rocks of different    
ages  is well known4 ,fossil stems are  
occasionally found in their natural     
position of growth1 the structural      
details being rendered permanent by  the
 deposition of siliceous or calcareous  
material from water drawn by            

capillarity into the dead but still     
sound tissues4 ,petrified wood from     
,upper ,jurassic beds is abundant in the
 ,island of ,purbeck2 an unusually  long
 piece of stem may be seen in the small 
town of ,portland fixed  to the wall of 
a house4 ,some of these stems have been 
referred by an  ,american author to the 
,araucarian family of ,conifers1 but the
 structure  is as a rule hardly well    
enough preserved to afford satisfactory 
evidence for identification4 ,in his    
,testimony of the ,rocks1 ,hugh  ,miller
 speaks of fossil wood from the upper   
beds of the ,jurassic system  in        
sufficient abundance on the beach at    
,helmsdale in ,sutherlandshire to  be   
collected in cart-loads2 it is still    
easy to pick up good specimens  on the  
shingle beach a short distance north of 
,helmsdale1 and a recent  microscopical 
examination showed that some specimens  
are pieces of an  ,araucarian tree4     
,impressive examples of petrified trees 
on a large scale are to be  seen in the 

,united ,states1 in ,arizona and the    
,yellowstone ,park4  7,frontispiece47   
,in the northern part of ,arizona the   
country for over  an area of #aj square 
miles is covered with tree trunks1 some 
reaching  #bjj feet in length and a     
diameter of #aj feet4 ,the nature of the
  mineralising substance has given rise 
to the name ,chalcedony ,park for  this 
,triassic forest7#cd74 ,a striking      
example of one of the ,arizona  trees is
 exhibited in the ,british ,museum and  
in a neighbouring case is  a splendid   
petrified stem1 #i ft4 in height1 of a  
conifer discovered in  ,tertiary lavas  
in ,tasmania7#ce74    ,illustration3    
,fig4 #f4 ,section of the north face of 
,amethyst ,mountain1  ,yellowstone      
,park1 including upwards of #bjjj ft4 of
 strata4 ,the  steepness of the slope is
 exaggerated4 7,after ,w4 ,h4 ,holmes47 
,figure #f illustrates the preservation 
of a series of forests of  ,tertiary age
 in the mass of volcanic sediments1     
#bjjj feet in thickness1  known as      

,amethyst mountain1 in the ,yellowstone 
,park district4 ,by the  weathering away
 of the surrounding volcanic material   
the tall stems of  the trees are exposed
 in places on the mountain sides like   
the 'columns  of a ruined temple4' ,the 
height of the river at the foot of the  
cliff  is #fgjj ft4 above sea-level and 
the mountain rises to a height of  #idjj
 ft4 above the sea4 ,in the lower part  
of the section the volcanic  strata are 
seen to rest on a foundation of older   
rocks ,a1 and these  in turn were laid  
down on the eroded surface of a still   
more ancient  foundation1 ,b7#cf74      
,the section as a whole affords a       
striking demonstration of the  magnitude
 of earth-movements since the last of   
these forests was  buried below the     
surface of a sea in which the volcanic  
material  was deposited4 ,the account of
 the ,yellowstone ,park section recalls 
,darwin's description in the            
,naturalist's ,voyage7#cg7 of snow-white
  columns projecting from a bare slope1 

at an altitude of #gjjj ft4 in the      
,cordillera4    ,the abundance of       
drift-wood on the coasts of some        
countries at the  present day helps us  
to picture the conditions under which   
the remains  of former forests have been
 preserved4 ,in his ,letters from ,high 
,latitudes1 ,lord ,dufferin gives the   
following description of drift-wood  on 
the shores of ,spitzbergen3--',a little 
to the northward1 ,i observed1  lying on
 the sea-shore innumerable logs of      
drift-wood4 ,this wood is  floated all  
the way from ,america by the ,gulf      
,stream1 and as ,i walked  from one huge
 bole to another1 ,i could not help     
wondering in what  primeval forest each 
had grown1 what chance had originally   
cast them on  the waters1 and piloted   
them to this desert shore'7#ch74 ,a     
photograph  reproduced in ,amundsen's   
book on ,the ,north ,west ,passage shows
 the  beach on the ,alaskan coast strewn
 with drifted timber7#ci74 ,for the     
accompanying photograph 7,fig4 #g7 of   

the flood-plain of the ,colorado        
,river7#dj71 ,i am indebted to          
,professor ,mac,dougal of the ,desert   
,research  ,laboratory at ,tucson1      
,arizona1 who in a recent letter writes1
 ',during  times of high-water a thin   
sheet of flood covers the flat for many 
miles and bears drift-wood so thickly   
that it is difficult to push a  boat    
through it4' ,the drift-wood consists of
 poplar1 willow1 pine1 and  juniper1    
'the last two have been brought from the
 upper river1 from  as far away as a    
thousand miles4' ,a picture such as this
 affords an  admirable example of the   
wealth of material available for        
preservation  in a fossil state4    ,it 
is only in the minority of cases that   
the accidents of preservation  of       
fragments of ancient floras have given  
us the means of investigating  the      
internal structure of the plant organs4 
,it is far more frequently  the case    
that fossil plants are represented only 
by a carbonised film  on the surface of 

a piece of shale or other rock3 the     
actual substance  of the plant has been 
converted into a thin layer of coal1 and
 though  the venation and other         
surface-features may be clearly         
revealed1 the  internal tissues have    
been destroyed4 ,if a lump of clay      
containing a  piece of fern frond is    
heated1 the result is an impression of  
the leaf  on the hardened matrix and a  
coaly substance in place of the plant   
substance4 ,it is occasionally possible 
by detaching a piece of the  black film 
from a fossil1 and heating it with      
nitric acid and chlorate  of potash and 
then dipping it in ammonia1 to obtain a 
transparent  preparation suitable for   
microscopical examination of the        
cell-outlines  of the superficial layer 
of the leaf or other plant-fragment4    
,this  method of examination1 used by   
several students of fossil plants and   
with conspicuous success by ,professor  
,nathorst of ,stockholm1 often  affords 
valuable aids to identification4        

,illustration3 ,fig4 #g4 ,flood-plain of
 the delta of ,rio ,colorado4 ,the      
hills in the background are #be miles   
distant4 7,from a photograph by  ,prof4 
,mac,dougal47    ,pieces of plants      
embedded in sandy sediment1 if not      
preserved by  petrifaction1 that is by  
the introduction into the tissues of    
some  siliceous or calcareous solution1 
gradually decay and their fragmentary   
remains may be washed away by           
percolating water1 leaving a hollow     
mould  in the gradually hardening       
sediment1 which is afterwards filled    
with  sand or other material4 ,the plant
 itself is destroyed1 but a cast is     
taken which in the case of fine-grained 
sediments reproduces the form  and      
surface-pattern of the original         
specimen4 ,the incrustation of  plants  
by the falsely named petrifying springs 
of ,knaresborough and  other places     
illustrate another method of            
fossilisation4    ,illustration3 ,fig4  
#h4 ,flower of ,cinnamomum prototypum   

,conw4  preserved in amber4  #aj4       
7,after ,conwentz47    ,plants which owe
 their preservation to amber occur both 
as  incrustations and petrifactions4    
,this fossil resin occurs in ,tertiary1 
,cretaceous1 and ,jurassic rocks2 the   
amber found in abundance on the  ,baltic
 coast near ,danzig and occasionally    
picked up on the beach  in ,norfolk and 
,suffolk comes from beds of ,tertiary   
age4 ,pieces of  ,pine-wood have been   
described from the ,baltic beds in which
 the tissues  are perfectly preserved as
 the result of the conversion into amber
  of the resinous secretion which       
permeates their cells3 in this case  the
 amber is a petrifying agent4 ,more     
frequently the preservation is  due to  
incrustation2 as resin trickled down the
 stems of the ,tertiary  pines from an  
open wound1 flowers and leaves1 blown by
 the wind on to  the sticky surface1    
were eventually sealed up in a          
translucent case  of amber4 ,though the 
actual substance may have gone1 the     

mould which  remains exhibits in        
wonderful perfection each separate organ
 of a  flower or the delicate           
hair-clusters on the surface of a leaf4 
,the  flower represented in ,fig4 #h1 a 
species of ,cinnamon1 is one of several 
specimens described by the authors of a 
monograph of ,tertiary plants in  the   
,baltic amber7#da74    ,the fragments of
 plants preserved in nodules of         
calcareous rock  occasionally met with  
in some of the ,lancashire and          
,yorkshire  coal-seams are perhaps the  
most striking examples of the           
possibilities  of petrifaction4 ,by     
cutting sections of these nodules and   
grinding them  to a transparent         
thinness1 the most delicate tissues of  
,carboniferous  plants are rendered     
accessible to investigation under the   
high power of  a microscope4 ,as our    
attention is absorbed by the examination
 of the  details of cell-structure it is
 easy to forget that the section has not
  been cut from a living plant1 but from

 the twig of a tree which grew in  the  
forests of the ,coal age4 ,the          
preservation is such as to enable us    
not only to describe the anatomy of     
these extinct types of vegetation1  but1
 by the application of the knowledge of 
the relation between the  structure of  
the plant-machine and its functions     
gained by a study of  living species1 it
 is possible in some degree to picture  
the plants  of the ,coal period as      
living organisms and to see in the      
structural  framework a reflection of   
external environment4 ,the recognition  
in the  general architectural plan of   
the ,palaeozoic plants1 as in many of   
the  finer anatomical features1 of the  
closest resemblance to plants of  the   
modern world produces an almost         
overwhelming sense of continuity        
between the past and the present4       
,the plants of the ,palaeozoic period1  
though often differing  considerably    
from those of the same class in the     
floras of to-day1  exhibit a remarkably 

high type of organisation4 ,some of the 
most  abundant trees in the forest of   
the ,coal age are decidedly superior in 
the complexity of their structure1 as   
also in size1 to modern survivals  of   
the same stock4 ,on the other hand1 it  
must be remembered that  ,monocotyledons
 and ,dicotyledons which now occupy the 
highest place in  the hierarchy of      
plants have left no sign of their       
existence in any  of the ,palaeozoic    
strata4 ,the greater size of some of the
 ,palaeozoic  plants1 and in some       
respects the more advanced stage of     
evolution which  they represent as      
compared with their nearest relatives of
 the present  era1 must be considered in
 relation to their more important and   
relatively higher position in the       
plant-world than that which is now  held
 by their diminutive descendants4 ,it   
is1 however1 impossible to get  away    
from the conclusion that the oldest     
,palaeozoic flora of which we  have an  
intimate knowledge must be the product  

of development of an age  which is      
represented by a chapter in the history 
of the plant kingdom  at least as far   
removed from the beginning as it is     
separated from the  chapter now being   
written4 ,examples might be quoted in   
illustration of  the risks attending the
 determination of fossils by means of   
external  features alone1 but it may    
suffice to mention the case of a        
specimen  originally described as a     
fragment of a ,cretaceous ,dinosaur     
under the  name ,aachenosaurus          
multidens4 ,by the examination of thin  
sections  this supposed bone was shown  
to be a piece of ,dicotyledonous        
wood7#db74  ,the methods of preservation
 of plants as fossils are numerous and  
varied and the few examples selected    
give but an incomplete idea of the      
subject3 for a fuller treatment of      
fossilisation the reader is referred  to
 more technical treatises 7#dh vol4     
,i474    ,the employment of fossil      
plants as ',thermometers of the ages' is

 a  branch of ,palaeobotany to which a  
passing allusion may be permitted       
though it is only indirectly connected  
with the main question4 ,as  one of the 
most interesting examples of changed    
climatic conditions  revealed by a study
 of fossil plants1 reference may be made
 to the  wealth of material collected   
within the ,arctic circle4 ,the problems
  suggested by the discovery of plants  
in rocks of various ages in  ,north     
,siberia1 ,spitzbergen1 ,franz ,josef   
,land1 ,bear ,island1 ,greenland1  and  
in many other localities in the far     
north are too difficult and             
far-reaching to be discussed in these   
pages4 ,in the ,cretaceous and          
,tertiary strata of the west coast of   
,greenland and ,disco ,island from  #fi 
to #gb north latitude1 to refer only to 
one case1 a great number of  plants have
 been obtained by several of the earlier
 ,arctic explorers  and more recently by
 members of one of the ,peary           
,expeditions4 ,at the  present day on   

the fringe of land on the western edge  
of ,greenland  which is not permanently 
covered with ice1 a considerable number 
of  herbaceous plants are able to exist 
and to produce seed during their        
concentrated period of development2     
while trees are represented only  by a  
few low-growing shrubs such as the dwarf
 ,juniper4 ,in places  accessible to    
investigation beyond the ice-covered    
hills of northern  ,greenland the rocks 
have been shown to consist of           
,cretaceous and  ,tertiary sediments    
containing fossil plants associated with
 seams  of coal4 ,from these beds       
numerous ,dicotyledons have been        
obtained1  some of them almost identical
 with living species characteristic of  
sub-tropical or tropical countries4 ,in 
the lowest of the ,cretaceous  series no
 ,dicotyledons have been found1 but     
flowering plants are  abundant in the   
higher ,cretaceous rocks4 ,allowing for 
the fact that  closely allied species   
are often able to live under very       

different  climatic conditions1 there   
can be no doubt that the ,cretaceous    
and ,tertiary floras of ,greenland      
indicate an average temperature         
considerably higher than that which now 
prevails in the warmest parts  of the   
,british ,isles4    ,in the far south a 
fairly rich ,jurassic flora has recently
 been  discovered by the members of a   
,swedish ,antarctic expedition in       
,graham's  ,land in latitude #fcae ,s4  
and longitude #eg ,w41 which in its     
general  facies bears a close           
resemblance to the ,jurassic flora of   
,yorkshire4    ,although the great      
majority of the records of ancient      
plants are  difficult to interpret by   
reason of imperfect preservation and    
because  of the frequent separation of  
leaves1 stems1 and reproductive organs1 
the student who tries to piece together 
the disjecta membra of the  floras of   
the past shares the opinion expressed by
 the late ,marquis of  ,saporta1--',si  
l'on s'attache  les dchiffrer1 on oublie

 bien vite la  singularit des caractres1
 et le mauvais tat des pages4 ,la pense 
se  lve1 les ides se dveloppent1 le     
manuscrit se droule2 c'est la tombe  qui
 parle et livre son secret4'            
,,chapter ,v    ,,ferns2 ,,their        
,,distribution ,,and ,,antiquity        
',it has been shown that certain forms  
persist with very little    change1 from
 the oldest to the newest fossiliferous 
formations2 and    thus show that       
progressive development is a contingent1
 and not    a necessary1 result of the  
nature of living matter4'               
,huxley4      ,the ,ferns as a whole    
represent a section of the vegetable    
kingdom  which traces its ancestry as   
far into the past as any group of       
plants4  ,impressions of leaves on the  
shales of the ,coal-measures and on     
rocks  of the earlier ,devonian period  
are hardly distinguishable in form and  
in the venation and shape of the        
leaflets from the finely divided  fronds
 of modern ferns4 ,until a few years ago

 these ,palaeozoic fossils  were        
generally regarded as true ferns1 and it
 was believed that ferns  played a      
conspicuous part in the vegetation of   
the earliest periods1 of  which we have 
any botanical knowledge4 ,conclusions   
based on external  form must frequently 
be revised in the light of more         
trustworthy  evidence4 ,it was shown in 
the later part of the nineteenth century
 by  the late ,professor ,williamson of 
,manchester1 whose researches into  the 
plants of the ,coal age shed a flood of 
light on the ancestry  and              
inter-relationship of many existing     
plants1 that some of the  fern-like     
leaves which have long been familiar to 
those who search  among the shales of   
the refuse heaps of collieries1 were    
borne on  stems differing in anatomical 
features from those of any known fern4  
,the investigation of the structure of  
the leaves and their supporting  stems  
led to the recognition of certain       
extinct genera of ,palaeozoic  plants of

 exceptional interest1 to which the term
 generalised type is  aptly applied4    
,associated with anatomical and other   
characters such  as we now regard as the
 attributes of ferns1 these plants      
exhibit  other features not met with in 
modern ferns but characteristic of a    
group of seed-bearing plants known as   
the ,cycads4 ,recent research has       
revealed the existence of several such  
generalised types which1 by  their      
combination of characters now met with  
in distinct sub-divisions  of the       
plant-kingdom1 clearly indicate the     
derivation of ,ferns1 and  ,cycads as we
 know them to-day1 from a common stock4 
,it was in the  first instance by means 
of anatomical evidence--obtained by the 
microscopical examination of sections of
 petrified fragments of stems  and      
leaves--that the generalised nature of  
these ,palaeozoic plants was            
recognised4 ,nothing was known as to the
 reproductive organs4 ,ferns as  now    
represented in the floras of the world  

are essentially seed-less  plants4 ,as  
the author of ,hudibras wrote3          
',who would believe what strange        
bugbears      ,mankind creates itself1  
of fears8      ,that spring like fern1  
that insect weed1      ,equivocally1    
without seed4'    ,the reproductive     
organs or spores borne on the fronds of 
a fern  produce1 on germination1 a thin 
green structure1 known as the           
prothallus1 less than an inch in length3
 this bears the sexual organs1  and as  
the result of the union of the male and 
female cells1 the embryo  fern-plant    
begins its existence as a parasite on   
the inconspicuous  prothallus1 until    
after unfolding its first green leaf and
 thrusting a  slender root into the     
ground1 it starts its career as an      
independent  organism#b4 ,in this       
life-cycle the seed plays no part4    #b
 ,the life-history of a ,fern is clearly
 described by ,prof4 ,bower in a  recent
 volume in this series4    ,it is       
noteworthy that the absence of any      

indication of spore-capsules  and       
spores1 in the case of some of the      
supposed fern leaves from  the          
,coal-measures1 caused some suspicion in
 the mind of an ,austrian               
,palaeobotanist as to the right of such 
specimens to be classed among  the      
ferns4 ,this opinion1 based in the first
 place on negative evidence  and but    
little regarded by other authors1 has in
 recent years been  proved correct4 ,in 
#aijd a paper was read before the ,royal
 ,society  by ,professor ,oliver and ,dr
 ,scott7#dc7 in which evidence was      
brought  forward pointing to the        
conclusion that one of these generalised
 plants  bore true seeds4 ,subsequently 
,dr ,kidston published an account of    
some  specimens of another of these     
,palaeozoic plants in which was actually
  shown an organic connexion between    
undoubted seeds and pieces of a         
fern-like frond7#dd74 ,without entering 
into further details1 these and  similar
 discoveries may be summarised as       

follows3--,many of the supposed         
,fern-fronds of ,palaeozoic age1        
particularly those characteristic of    
the ,coal-measures1 are the leaves of   
plants which in their anatomical        
characters combined features now shared 
by true ,ferns and by the  ,cycads4 ,the
 reproductive organs of these           
,palaeozoic genera differed  widely from
 those of existing ferns2 the male      
organs1 while not unlike  the           
spore-capsules and spores of certain    
ferns1 recall the male organs  of living
 ,conifers and ,cycads1 and the female  
organs were represented  by seeds of a  
highly complex form4 ,these seed-bearing
 plants have  been called               
,pteridosperms1 a name which expresses  
the combination  of fern-like features  
with one of the distinguishing          
attributes of  the higher plants1 namely
 the possession of seeds4 ,the ancestors
 of  ,pteridosperms are as yet unknown2 
it is1 however1 reasonable to assume    
that there existed in some              

pre-,carboniferous epoch a group of     
simple  plants from which both ,ferns   
and ,pteridosperms were derived4 ,in the
  forests of the ,coal age true ,ferns  
probably occupied a subordinate         
position in relation to the             
,pteridosperms4    ,the question of the 
relationship between different families 
of recent  ferns and the older known    
fossil members of the group is beyond   
the  scope of this book4 ,evidence has  
been discovered in recent years which   
warrants the statement that1 although   
none of those ,carboniferous ferns  were
 generically identical with existing    
forms1 they very clearly  foreshadowed  
some of those structural features which 
characterise more  than one family of   
present-day ,ferns4 ,the records of the 
older ,mesozoic  formations afford      
abundant evidence of the existence of   
certain types  of ,ferns showing a very 
close resemblance to recent species4    
,illustration3 ,fig4 #i4 ,osmunda       
regalis ,linn4 ,fertile frond1 7#b_/e   

nat4  size47    ,an enquiry into the    
geographical distribution of living     
,ferns reveals  facts of special        
interest in connexion with the relative 
antiquity of  different genera and      
families4 ,the wide distribution of the 
,bracken  fern has already been referred
 to3 it is abundant in ,tasmania2 its   
vigour in the island is well illustrated
 by ,mr ,geoffrey ,smith's  statement   
that constant attention is necessary to 
keep it from invading  newly opened     
country7#de74 ,on ,mount ,ophir in the  
,malay ,peninsula the  cosmopolitan     
bracken occurs in association with the  
two genera ,matonia  and ,dipteris1     
ferns which are among the most striking 
examples of links  with a remote past   
and have a restricted geographical      
range4 ,with  ,osmunda regalis1 the     
,royal ,fern1 the ,bracken is           
conspicuous in the  marsh vegetation of 
the ,bermudas2 it flourishes on the     
,atlas ,mountains1  in the ,canary      
,islands1 in ,abyssinia1 on ,mt ,kenia1 

in ,british ,east  ,africa1 in the      
,himalayas1 and is in fact generally    
distributed in the  tropics in both the 
north and south temperate zones4    ,the
 ,royal ,fern 7,fig4 #i7 is another     
,british species with a wide            
distribution2 it occurs in ,northern    
,asia and in ,north ,america2 it is     
common in the ,siberian forests and     
lives in several tropical countries1    
extending to ,southern ,india and ,cape 
,colony1 and in ,south ,america it  is  
represented by a closely allied species4
 ,though at the present day  ,osmunda   
regalis is one of the rare ,english     
,ferns1 its occurrence in  the submerged
 forest-beds round our coasts and in    
pre-,glacial beds  points to its former 
abundance in the ,british area          
generally4 ,the ,royal  ,fern is a      
member of a family now represented by   
two genera1 ,osmunda and  ,todea4       
,with the exception of ,todea barbara1  
with its large spreading  fronds and a  
short root-covered stem1 which occurs in

 ,australia and  ,cape ,colony1 all the 
species of this genus are filmy ferns   
with  semitransparent fronds adapted to 
a moisture-laden atmosphere4 ,the       
maximum development of the genus is in  
,new ,zealand4    ,todea barbara affords
 an instance of discontinuous           
distribution2 it  was no doubt once     
widely spread in circumpolar regions and
 now survives  only in ,south ,africa   
and in ,australia4    ,there are        
satisfactory reasons for regarding the  
,bracken ,fern1 with  its world-wide    
range in present-day floras1 as a       
comparatively modern  species now in    
full vigour4 ,its anatomical and other  
features are  consistent with the view  
that it is a late product of evolution1 
and  as yet no indication has been given
 by the records of the rocks of an      
ancient lineage4 ,the ,osmunda family1  
on the other hand1 is undoubtedly  an   
extremely old branch of the fern group4 
,a comparison of the ,royal  ,fern with 
the ,bracken shows that their stems are 

constructed on  very different plans1   
and we have good reasons for speaking of
 the  structural peculiarities of the   
former as those of a more primitive     
type4 ,moreover1 the discontinuous      
geographical range of some members of   
the ,osmunda family is in itself an     
indication of antiquity4 ,there is      
another point which may have a bearing  
in this question of antiquity1  namely  
the fact that the spores of ,osmunda are
 green and do not possess  the powers of
 indurance inherent in the spores of the
 majority of  ferns which are not green4
 ,it has recently been contended by     
,professor  ,campbell of ,stanford      
,university that the delicate green     
spores of the  ,liverworts1 plants      
closely allied to the ,mosses1          
constitute an argument  in favour of the
 antiquity of these plants7#df74        
,certain ,liverworts are  cosmopolitan  
in their range1 e4g4 the genera ,riccia 
and ,marchantia4    ,if certain genera  
are widely distributed1 notwithstanding 

the fact  that their reproductive cells1
 by which dispersal is effected1 are    
ill-adapted to withstand unfavourable   
conditions or to endure prolonged       
desiccation1 it would seem reasonable to
 conclude that their emigration  has    
been accomplished slowly and with       
difficulty4 ,ferns such as  ,osmunda1   
with green and short-lived spores1 would
 thus be handicapped  in competition    
with other genera provided with more    
efficient means of  dispersal and better
 equipped for the vicissitudes of       
travel4    ,the inferences as to        
antiquity deduced from a study of the   
existing  species of ,osmunda and ,todea
 receive striking confirmation from the 
testimony of fossils4 ,some of the      
oldest known ,palaeozoic ferns1  though 
differing too widely from the existing  
,osmundas and ,todeas  to be included in
 the same family1 afford distinct       
glimmerings of  ,osmundaceous           
characters1 which at a later period     
became individualised  in the direct    

ancestors of the modern forms4 ,our     
knowledge of the  past history of the   
,osmunda family has recently been       
considerably  extended and placed on a  
firmer basis by the researches of ,dr   
,kidston  and ,professor                
,gwynne-,vaughan4 ,these authors have   
recognised in some  exceptionally       
well-preserved fern-stems from ,permian 
rocks in ,russia1  anatomical features  
which point unmistakably to close       
relationship with  the recent members of
 the family7#dg77dh74    ,passing higher
 up the geological series1 fertile fern 
fronds with  spore-capsules and spores  
practically identical with those of     
,osmunda  have been found in the        
,jurassic plant-beds of ,yorkshire and  
in rocks of  approximately the same age 
in many parts of the world4 ,from       
,jurassic  strata in ,new ,zealand a    
petrified fern-stem has been described  
7,osmundites ,dunlopi71 almost identical
 in structure with the  surviving       
species4 ,cretaceous and ,tertiary      

examples of similar ferns  might be     
quoted2 but enough has been said to     
establish the claim of the  ,royal ,fern
 and other members of the               
,osmunda-family to an ancestry which    
possibly extends even farther back than 
that of any other existing  family of   
,ferns4    ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aj4    
,gleichenia dicarpa ,br4 7#a_/b nat4    
size47    ,a brief reference may be made
 to another fern now represented by     
several species widely disseminated in  
tropical and sub-tropical  countries4   
,the genus ,gleichenia occurs abundantly
 in the warmer regions  of both the ,old
 and ,new ,world4 ,the fronds may       
usually be recognised  by their habit of
 growth 7,fig4 #aj72 in several species 
the main axis  is repeatedly forked and 
a small bud between the divergent       
branches  of the forks forms a          
characteristic feature4 ,the leaflets   
are either  long and narrow like the    
teeth of a comb or short and bluntly    
rounded4  ,moreover the anatomy of the  

creeping stem affords a ready means of  
identification4 ,we have satisfactory   
evidence of the occurrence of           
,gleichenia in ,european floras during  
both the ,jurassic and ,cretaceous      
periods4 ,numerous fragments of plants  
were obtained some years ago1  not far  
from ,brussels1 from the ,wealden strata
 in which the famous  skeletons of      
,iguanodon were discovered4 ,visitors to
 the ,natural  ,history ,museum in      
,brussels are no doubt familiar with the
 skeletons of  this enormous herbivorous
 animal3 in the same gallery are        
exhibited  the remains of the fossil    
plants from the ,iguanodon beds4 ,some  
of  these fragments are pieces of fern  
fronds identical in form with  those of 
existing ,gleichenias4 ,the             
microscopical examination of some       
exceptionally well preserved fragments  
of ,wealden stems discovered by  ,prof4 
,bommer of ,brussels enabled him to     
recognise the ,gleichenia type  of      
structure and thus to confirm the       

inconclusive evidence furnished  by     
fragmentary leaves4 ,the most           
interesting records in regard to the    
former occurrence of ,gleichenia in     
,northern ,europe we owe to the late    
,oswald ,heer of ,zurich1 who has       
described many examples of ,gleichenia  
fronds from rocks of ,lower ,cretaceous 
age in ,disco ,island on the west  coast
 of ,greenland in latitude #gj ,n4 ,the 
same type of fern is recorded  also from
 upper ,jurassic beds in the north-east 
of ,scotland1 in the  ,wealden rocks of 
,sussex1 as well as from other ,european
 localities4 ,it  is clear that the     
,gleichenia-family1 no longer           
represented in north  temperate floras1 
was in the ,jurassic period1 and        
especially in the  early days of the    
,cretaceous period1 widely spread in    
,europe1 extending  well within the     
,arctic circle4 ,it may be that the     
original home of  ,gleichenia was in the
 far ,north at a time when climatic     
conditions were  very different from    

those which now prevail4 ,gleichenia1   
like many  other northern plants1       
retreated to more southern regions      
where1 in  the warmer countries of the  
world1 many species still flourish      
widely  separated in space and time from
 the place of their birth4    ,the ferns
 so far mentioned have a more or less   
extended distribution  at the present   
day4 ,in the case of ,pteridium         
aquilinum1 the  cosmopolitan ,bracken   
,fern1 wide range would seem to be      
correlated  with comparatively recent   
origin2 on the other hand1 the facts of 
palaeobotany show that the wide         
distribution of ,osmunda1 a type of fern
  which differs in many important       
respects from members of the family     
7,polypodiaceae7 to which the ,bracken  
belongs1 is not inconsistent  with an   
exceptionally ancient family-history4   
,there are1 however1  certain genera of 
ferns which afford remarkable examples  
of restricted  geographical distribution
 associated with great antiquity4 ,the  

island  of ,juan ,fernandez1 #dbj miles 
off the coast of ,chili1 the home for   
four years of ,alexander ,selkirk 7to   
whose adventures we owe ,defoe's        
creation of ,robinson ,crusoe71 is      
interesting also from a botanical  point
 of view4 ,the vegetation of this       
oceanic island1 #bj square miles  in    
area with basaltic cliffs rising to a   
height of #cjjj ft4 above the  sea1     
includes more than #dj species of ferns1
 eight of which occur  nowhere else4    
,one of these endemic ferns is          
,thyrsopteris elegans1 the  only        
representative of the genus2 it is      
readily distinguished by its  large and 
graceful fertile fronds1 examples of    
which may occasionally  be seen on a    
plant of this species in the ,royal     
,gardens at ,kew3 the  sporangia are    
produced in circular cups which replace 
the ordinary  leaflets on the lower     
branches of the frond and hang from the 
short  axis like miniature clusters of  
grapes4 ,it is noteworthy that among    

the fragmentary remains of the fern     
vegetation of the ,jurassic flora  in   
,england and in other parts of ,europe  
specimens occur with fertile  segments  
practically identical with those of the 
,juan ,fernandez  species4 ,students of 
fossil plants are occasionally led away 
by the  temptation to identify imperfect
 specimens with rare existing species   
to which they exhibit a superficial     
resemblance1 and this is well           
illustrated by the frequent use of the  
generic name ,thyrsopteris for          
,jurassic and ,lower ,cretaceous ferns  
which are too imperfect to be           
determined with any degree of certainty 
,we have1 however1 satisfactory  grounds
 for the assertion that the ,juan       
,fernandez fern affords a  striking     
confirmation of the truth of ,darwin's  
dictum that ',rarity1  as geology tells 
us1 is the precursor to extinction4' ,in
 this remote  oceanic island1 for       
reasons which we cannot explain1 there  
lingers an  isolated type which belongs 

to another age4    ,the following       
passage1 which forms a fitting          
introduction to an account  of two other
 genera of ancient ferns1 is taken from 
a description of  an ascent of ,mount   
,ophir in the ,malay ,peninsula by ,dr  
,a4 ,r4 ,wallace  in his well-known book
 on the ,malay ,archipelago3--',after   
passing a  little tangled jungle and    
swampy thickets1 we emerged into a fine 
lofty forest4444 ,we ascended steadily  
up a moderate slope for several  miles1 
having a deep ravine on the left4 ,we   
then had a level plateau or  shoulder to
 cross1 after which the ascent was      
steeper and the forest  denser till we  
came out upon the ,padang-,batu1 or     
stone-field4444 ,we  found it to be a   
steep slope of even rock1 extending     
along the mountain  side farther than we
 could see4 ,parts of it were quite     
bare1 but where  it was cracked and     
fissured there grew a most luxuriant    
vegetation1  among which the pitcher    
plants were the most remarkable4444 ,a  

few  coniferae of the genus ,dacrydium  
here first appeared1 and in the         
thickets1 just above the rocky surface1 
we walked through groves of  those      
splendid ferns1 ,dipteris ,horsfieldii  
and ,matonia pectinata1  which bear     
large spreading fronds on slender stems1
 #f or #h feet  high'7#di74             
,illustration3 ,fig4 #aa4 ,matonia      
pectinata4 ,a group of plants in a  wood
 on ,gunong ,tundok1 ,mount ,ophir4     
7,photograph by ,mr ,a4 ,g4 ,tansley47  
,the two genera ,matonia and ,dipteris  
afford exceptionally striking  examples 
of survivals from the past4 ,matonia is 
represented by two  species1 ,matonia   
pectinata 7,fig4 #aa71 which grows      
abundantly on the  upper slopes of      
,padang-,batu in dense thickets on the  
rock faces where1  as ,mr ,tansley      
states1 its associates are a species of 
,gleichenia1  ,dipteris1 and a little   
,pteridium aquilinum 7,bracken ,fern74  
,matonia  pectinata occurs also on      
,bornean mountains at an altitude of    

over  #cjjj ft4 and descends to the     
coast on some of the ,malay islands4    
,the  other species of the genus1       
,matonia sarmentosa1 has so far been    
found in one locality only1 ,niak1      
,sarawak1 where it was discovered by    
,mr ,charles ,hose4 ,matonia pectinata  
has a creeping stem covered with  a     
thick felt of brown hairs bearing tall  
fan-shaped fronds divided  into numerous
 comb-like branches thickly set with    
narrow linear  leaflets on which        
circular clusters of spore-capsules are 
sparsely  scattered4 ,in some respects  
,matonia is unlike other ferns2 the     
fronds  constitute a striking feature1  
and the anatomy of the stem is still    
more distinctive4 ,in the form1         
development1 and arrangement of the     
sporangia 7spore-capsules7--organs which
 from the constancy of their  characters
 have long been recognised as the most  
useful basis for                        
classification--,matonia exhibits       
distinctive features4    ,in order to   

emphasise the isolated position of the  
genus it has  recently been placed in a 
separate family1 the ,matonineae1 of    
which  it is the sole living            
representative4 ,the restricted         
geographical  range of ,matonia1        
considered in connexion with the clearly
 marked  peculiarities in structure and 
form1 leads us to expect other evidence 
in support of the natural inference that
 the genus is a survivor of  a once more
 vigorous and widely spread family4 ,if 
,matonia were a  recently evolved type  
which has not spread far from its       
original home1  we should expect it to  
conform more closely than it does to    
other  ferns in the ,malay region4 ,even
 assuming for the sake of argument  that
 variation may occur per saltum1 and new
 forms may be produced  differing in    
more than the finer shades of small     
variation from their  parents1 the      
peculiar features of ,matonia are too   
pronounced and its  individual          
characteristics too obvious to warrant  

the assumption of  recent production4   
,it is1 however1 from the testimony of  
the rocks that  we obtain confirmation  
of the opinion that these ,malayan      
species are  plants on the verge of     
extinction4 ,in shales of ,jurassic age 
exposed  on the ,yorkshire coast at     
,gristhorpe ,bay and in iron-stained    
rocks of  the same age between ,whitby  
and ,scarborough1 well preserved leaves 
have  been found agreeing in the shape  
of the frond1 as also in the form of    
the leaflets and of the groups of       
sporangia which they bare1 with those   
of ,matonia pectinata4    ,the exposure 
by a stroke of the hammer1 on the       
fractured surface of  a rock picked up  
on the beach at ,hayburn ,wyke 7a few   
miles south of  ,whitby71 of a piece of 
fern frond which is unmistakably closely
 allied  to the species described by    
,wallace on ,mount ,ophir1 establishes a
 link  between the ,jurassic and the    
present era and presents a fascinating  
problem in geographical distribution4   

,these fossil ,matonias are known  to   
students of ancient plants as species of
 the genus ,matonidium1 a  name adopted 
by a ,german botanist for specimens     
apparently identical  with those from   
the ,yorkshire coast discovered in      
slightly younger  rocks 7,wealden7 in   
,north ,germany4 ,the same type has been
 found also in  sediments of ,wealden   
age on the ,sussex coast4 ,other        
leaf-impressions  agreeing closely with 
those of ,matonidium have been obtained 
from  the ,yorkshire ,jurassic rocks and
 these are assigned to another genus    
,laccopteris1 an extinct member of the  
family ,matonineae4 ,it is not  merely  
in the habit of the fronds and in the   
shape and venation of the  leaflets that
 these fossil ferns resemble the        
existing species1 but  the more         
important features exhibited by the     
spore-capsules supply  additional       
evidence4 ,it has already been pointed  
out that the stems  of ,matonia are     
characterised by a type of structure    

unknown in an  identical form in any    
other recent fern4    ,a few years ago  
,prof4 ,bommer discovered fragments of  
leaves and  stems in ,wealden beds a few
 miles from ,brussels sufficiently well 
preserved to reveal the details of      
internal organisation4 ,some of  these  
fossils were found to possess structural
 features identical  with those of the  
,malayan species of ,matonia4 ,a full   
account of the  fossil representatives  
of the ,matonia family would be out of  
place in  a general essay on ,links with
 the ,past1 but brief reference may be  
made to some of the data which throw    
light on the geological history  of the 
family4 ,in strata classed by geologists
 as ,rhaetic1 a phase  of earth-history 
between the ,triassic and ,jurassic eras
 7see p4 #db71  species of ,laccopteris 
and allied forms have been described    
from  several other countries2 from     
,jurassic and ,wealden strata examples  
of  both ,laccopteris and ,matonia have 
been found in ,germany1 ,portugal1      

,belgium1 ,austria1 and elsewhere4 ,from
 rocks of ,cretaceous age1 higher  in   
the series than the ,wealden strata1    
well preserved impressions of a         
,matonidium have been discovered in     
,moravia4 ,the ,matonineae were widely  
distributed in ,europe during the       
,rhaetic and ,jurassic periods1 but1 so 
far as we know1 the family did not      
survive in the northern hemisphere      
beyond the limits of the ,cretaceous    
period4 ,it is noteworthy that1 in      
spite of the preservation of the remains
 of ,jurassic and ,cretaceous  floras in
 many extra-,european regions1 notably  
in ,india1 ,south ,africa1  ,australia1 
,china1 and ,tonkin1 no specimens have  
been found which can  with confidence be
 assigned to the ,matonineae4 ,a single 
fossil has1  however1 been described    
from ,queensland which may be a piece of
 a  ,laccopteris frond4    ,there is    
some evidence that ferns very similar to
 ,matonia existed  in ,north ,america   
during the ,mesozoic period4 ,it would  

be in the  highest degree rash to assume
 that the ,matonineae played no part in 
the ,jurassic vegetation of ,india1     
,south ,africa1 and other southern      
lands1 but there can be little doubt    
that the family was especially          
characteristic of ,european floras      
during a portion of the ,mesozoic era4  
,it would seem that subsequent to the   
,wealden period the ancestors of        
,matonia dwindled in numbers and their  
geographical range became much  more    
restricted4    ,the records of ,tertiary
 rocks have hitherto added nothing to   
our  knowledge of the distribution of   
the family subsequent to the            
,cretaceous period4 ,all we can say is  
that the existing species of  ,matonia  
are the last survivors of a family which
 in the ,jurassic period  overspread a  
wide area in ,europe and probably       
extended to the other  side of the      
,atlantic4 ,exposed to unfavourable     
climatic conditions and  possibly       
affected by the revolution in the plant 

world consequent  on the appearance of  
the ,flowering ,plants1 the ,matonineae 
gradually  retreated beyond the equator 
until the two surviving species found a 
last retreat in the ,malayan region4    
,illustration3 ,fig4 #ab4 ,dipteris     
conjugata ,rein4 and1 in the middle  of 
the upper part of the photograph1 a     
frond of ,matonia pectinata ,r4  ,brown4
 ,mount ,ophir4 7,photograph by ,mr ,a4 
,g4 ,tansley47    ,the fern spoken of by
 ,dr ,wallace as ,dipteris ,horsfieldii 
7perhaps  better known as ,dipteris     
conjugata 7,fig4 #ab771 which grows with
  ,matonia pectinata on ,mount ,ophir   
and in the ,malay region generally1  is 
one of seven species of a genus         
characterised by a somewhat wider       
geographical range than ,matonia4       
,dipteris conjugata extends to the      
,philippines1 ,samoa1 ,fiji1 ,new       
,caledonia1 ,new ,guinea and ,central   
,china2  its fronds1 like those of      
,matonia1 are borne on long slender     
stalks  attached to a creeping stem2    

they have a broad lamina divided by a   
deep  median sinus into two symmetrical 
halves and each half is cut up into     
segments with a saw-like edge4 ,several 
stout ribs spread through the  lamina   
from the apex of the long stalk like the
 open fingers of a hand2  from these    
ribs smaller veins are given off at a   
wide angle1 and these  in turn give rise
 to a reticulum of finer veins forming a
 skeletal  system like that in the      
leaves of an oak and many other         
flowering  plants4    ,numerous groups  
of spore-capsules are borne on the lower
 surface of  the broad lobed frond4 ,the
 leaves of other species of ,dipteris   
have  the same type of structure1 but in
 some the segmentation of the lamina  is
 carried further and the leaf consists  
of numerous long and narrow  segments   
with one or two main ribs4 ,dipteris is 
represented in the  flora of ,assam1 and
 it is interesting to find that a       
species recently  discovered in ,borneo 
is more closely connected with the      

,assam type  than with those of the     
,malay region4 ,until a few years ago   
the genus  ,dipteris was included in the
 large family ,polypodiaceae of which   
nearly all our ,british ferns are       
members1 but the discovery of certain   
distinguishing features in the structure
 of the sporangia showed that  these    
,eastern and ,southern species form a   
fairly well-defined group  worthy of    
family rank4    ,in the ,rhaetic        
plant-beds of ,northern and ,central    
,europe1 of ,north  ,america1 ,tonkin1  
and elsewhere1 numerous fossil leaves   
have been  discovered which in shape1   
venation1 and in the manner of          
occurrence of  the sporangia bear a     
close resemblance to species of         
,dipteris4 ,ferns  of this type were    
abundant in the ,jurassic floras of the 
northern  hemisphere1 and it is         
interesting to find impressions of      
,dipteris-like  leaves both in the      
,jurassic rocks of the ,yorkshire coast 
as well as in  slightly newer beds of   

the same geological period on the       
north-east  coast of ,sutherland4    ,it
 is impossible to say with confidence   
how nearly these ,rhaetic and  ,jurassic
 ferns were related to the existing     
species1 as our knowledge  of them is   
less complete than in the case of the   
fossil representatives  of the          
,matonineae1 but there can be no        
reasonable doubt that in  ,dipteris as  
in ,matonia we have a connecting link   
between the present  and a remote past4 
,,chapter ,,vi    ,,the ,,redwood ,,and 
,,mammoth ,,trees ,,of ,,california     
',your sense is sealed1 or you should   
hear them tell    ,the tale of their dim
 life1 with all    ,its compost of      
experience4444'                         
,w4 ,e4 ,henley4      ,since their      
introduction into ,england about the    
middle of the  nineteenth century1 the  
two ,californian species ,sequoia       
sempervirens  7the ,redwood7 and        
,sequoia gigantea 7the ,mammoth tree7   
have become  familiar as cultivated     

trees4 ,the name ,sequoia1 said to be   
taken  from ,sequoiah1 the inventor of  
the ,cherokee alphabet1 was instituted  
in #ahdg1 while the name ,wellingtonia1 
often used in horticulture  though      
discarded by botanists in favour of the 
older designation  ,sequoia1 was        
proposed in #ahec4 ,both species are now
 confined to a  comparatively small area
 in ,california3 their restricted       
geographical  range1 considered as an   
isolated fact1 might be regarded as a   
sign of  recent origin4 ,the records of 
the rocks1 however1 afford ample proof  
that rarity in this as in many other    
instances is the precursor of           
extinction4 ,the famous groves of       
,mariposa and ,calaveras represent the  
last resting-place of giant survivors of
 a race which formerly held its  own in 
,europe and in other parts of the world4
    ,the ,redwood1 ,sequoia             
sempervirens1 occupies a narrow belt of 
country1  rarely more than #bj or #cj   
miles from the coast1 three hundred     

miles  long from ,monterey in the south 
to the frontiers of ,oregon2 it has  a  
stronger hold on existence than ,sequoia
 gigantea4 ,in ,northern  ,california it
 still forms pure forests on the sides  
of ravines and on  the banks of streams4
 ,the tapering trunk1 rising from a     
broad base to  over #cjj ft41 gives off 
short horizontal branches thickly set   
with  narrow spirally disposed leaves   
#a_/d-a_/b inch in length arranged in   
two ranks like the similar leaves of the
 ,yew4 ,the lower edge of each  leaf is 
decurrent1 that is it runs a short      
distance down the axis of  the branch   
instead of terminating at the point of  
attachment4 ,it is by  paying attention 
to such details as this as well as to   
more important  features1 that we are   
able to connect fragmentary fossil twigs
 with  those of existing species4 ,the  
female 'flowers' have the form of oblong
  cones from #c_/d to #a inch long3 each
 consists of a central axis bearing     
crowded wedge-shaped1 woody appendages  

or cone-scales1 which gradually         
increase in breadth towards the exposed 
distal end characterised by its  four   
sloping sides and by a median transverse
 groove4 ,several small  seeds are borne
 on the upper surface of the            
cone-scales4 ,the smaller  and          
short-lived male flowers need not be    
described4    ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ac1 
,sequoia gigantea4 ,king's ,co41        
,california4  7,from ,prof4 ,d4 ,h4     
,campbell7    ,the other and better     
known species ,sequoia gigantea 7,fig4  
#ac7 has an  even more restricted range 
and is confined to groves on the western
  slopes of the ,sierra ,nevada between 
#cjjj to #ijjj ft4 above sea-level4     
,this tree is at once distinguished from
 the ,redwood by its ovate1  sharply    
pointed and stiffer leaves which retain 
their spiral  disposition and closely   
surround the axis of the twigs like     
obliquely-set needles4 ,the cones are of
 the same type as those of  ,sequoia    
sempervirens1 but are broader and may   

attain a length of  #c-a_/b inches 7#ie 
cm47 7,fig4 #ad74    ,reference has     
already been made to ,sequoia as a      
striking illustration  of longevity4 ,it
 is also selected as an equally         
impressive example of  a type verging on
 extinction1 which played a prominent   
part in the  vegetation of both west and
 east during the ,cretaceous and        
,tertiary  periods4    ,illustration3   
,fig4 #ad4 ,sequoia gigantea ,torr4     
7#g_/h nat4 size47    ,scraps of        
branches with leaves hardly             
distinguishable from those of  the      
existing ,californian trees are         
frequently met with in ,tertiary  and   
,mesozoic sediments1 and with them      
occasionally occur cones too            
imperfectly preserved to afford         
satisfactory evidence of more than      
superficial agreement with those of the 
recent species4 ,the task of            
deciphering the past history of plants1 
particularly of the ,conifers1  is      
accompanied by many difficulties and    

insidious temptations4 ,it is  clear    
from a critical examination of many of  
the recorded instances  of fossil       
,sequoias that the generic name has been
 frequently used  by writers without    
adequate grounds4 ,the fragmentary      
specimens  available to the botanical   
historian cannot as a rule be subjected 
to microscopical investigation1 and even
 a partial acquaintance with  the       
similarity of the foliage of different  
types of living ,conifers  is sufficient
 to convince the student of the need of 
self-control in  the identification of  
the fossils4 ,it is1 however1 easy to   
point out  obvious pitfalls1 though     
difficult to maintain a judicial        
attitude in  the excitement of          
endeavouring to interpret documents     
which are too  incomplete to be         
identified with certainty4 ,if we put on
 one side all  records of supposed      
fossil ,sequoias not based on           
satisfactory data1  there remains a     
wealth of material testifying to the    

antiquity of the  surviving species4    
,it is by no means improbable that      
,conifers closely allied to the         
,redwoods and ,mammoth trees of         
,california were represented in         
,jurassic  floras2 but hitherto no proof
 has been obtained of the occurrence of 
a ,sequoia among the rich material      
afforded by the ,jurassic plant-beds  of
 ,yorkshire and by beds of the same age 
in other countries4 ,a small  cone has  
recently been described from strata near
 ,boulogne belonging  to the latest     
phase of the ,jurassic period1 which    
presents a strong  resemblance in shape 
and size and in the form of the         
cone-scales to  those of the recent     
species4 ,this specimen1 though not     
conclusive1  is the most satisfactory   
indication of a ,jurassic ,sequoia so   
far  discovered4 ,from ,lower ,jurassic 
rocks in ,madagascar similar cones  have
 been recorded in association with      
foliage-shoots like those of  ,sequoia  
gigantea1 but here too the evidence is  

not beyond suspicion4  ,in plant-bearing
 strata of ,wealden age1 such as are    
exposed in the  cliff near ,hastings and
 in deposits of the same age in ,north  
,germany1  ,portugal1 and elsewhere1    
twigs and cones have been found which   
may be  those of trees nearly allied to 
the genus ,sequoia4    ,illustration3   
,fig4 #ae4 ,sequoia ,couttsiae ,heer4   
,twigs 7,a7 and  cone-scales 7,b7 from  
,bovey ,tracey4 7 #c47 7,photographs by 
,mr and ,mrs  ,clement ,reid47    ,it   
is1 however1 in the sedimentary rocks of
 ,cretaceous age1 rather  higher in the 
series than those in the ,hastings      
cliffs1 and in the  succeeding ,tertiary
 rocks1 that undoubted ,sequoias are met
 with in  abundance4 ,at ,bovey ,tracey 
in ,devonshire there is a basin-shaped  
depression in the granitic rocks of     
,dartmoor filled with clay1 gravel  and 
sand--the flood-deposits of a ,tertiary 
lake containing waifs  and strays of the
 vegetation on the surrounding hills4   
,among the  commonest plants is one to  

which the late ,oswald ,heer gave the   
name  ,sequoia ,couttsiae1 and his      
reference of the specimens to the genus 
,sequoia has been confirmed by the      
recent researches of ,air and ,mrs      
,clement ,reid7#ej74 ,this ,tertiary    
7,oligocene7 species is represented by  
slender twigs almost identical with     
those of ,sequoia gigantea and by       
well-preserved cone-scales and seeds    
7,fig4 #ae74 ,moreover1 it has been     
possible to examine microscopically the 
structure of the carbonised  outer skin 
of the leaves and to demonstrate its    
agreement with that  of the superficial 
tissue in the leaves of the ,mammoth    
tree4 ,with the  ,bovey ,tracey ,sequoia
 are associated fragments of ,magnolia1 
,vitis1 and  ,taxodium distichum1 the   
swamp ,cypress of ,north ,america1      
together  with other types which have   
long ceased to exist in ,western        
,europe4  ,other ,british examples of   
,sequoia have been described from       
,tertiary  beds at ,bournemouth1 the    

,isle of ,wight1 ,sheppey1 and ,antrim1 
but the  material from these localities 
is inferior in preservation and cannot  
be identified with the same degree of   
certainty as in the case of the         
,devonshire specimens4 ,the occurrence  
of twigs and cones of several  species  
of ,sequoia in both ,cretaceous and     
,tertiary rocks in ,austria1  ,germany1 
,italy1 ,france1 and elsewhere1 shows   
that the ancestors of the  ,californian 
trees were common in the ,european      
region4    ,the exploration of          
,cretaceous and ,tertiary rocks in      
,arctic ,europe  has revealed the former
 existence in ,greenland1 ,spitzbergen1 
and  other more or less ice-covered     
lands of plants which clearly denote  a 
mild climate4 ,cones and branches of    
,sequoias have been found in  abundance 
in ,lower ,tertiary beds on ,disco      
,island off the west coast  of          
,greenland1 and similar evidence of the 
northern extension of the  genus has    
been obtained from ,spitzbergen4 ,dr    

,nathorst of ,stockholm  speaks of twigs
 of ,sequoia in the ,tertiary clays of  
,ellesmere ,land  almost as perfect as  
herbarium specimens4 ,in ,tertiary beds 
on the banks  of the ,mackenzie ,river1 
in ,alaska1 ,saghalien ,island and      
,vancouver  ,island1 and in ,upper      
,cretaceous rocks in the ,queen         
,charlotte ,islands1  remains of        
,sequoia have been discovered4 ,one of  
the most remarkable  instances of the   
preservation of trees of a bygone age is
 supplied  by the volcanic deposits of  
,lower ,tertiary age exposed on the     
slopes  of ,amethyst mountain in the    
,yellowstone ,park district4 ,at        
different  levels in the volcanic and   
sedimentary material1 which is piled up 
to  a height of over #bjjj ft4 above the
 valley1 as many as fifteen forests  are
 represented by erect and prostrate     
limbs of petrified trees 7,fig4  #f74   
,the microscopical examination of some  
of these trees has shown  that they bear
 a striking resemblance to ,sequoia     

sempervirens4 ,in a  photograph of these
 petrified forests by the ,u4,s4        
,geological ,survey  7#cf1 #b7 one sees 
living ,conifers side by side with the  
lichen-covered  and weathered trunks of 
the fossil species 7,sequoia magnifica71
  living and extinct being at a distance
 hardly distinguishable4                
7,frontispiece47    ,in concluding this 
brief survey of the fossil records of   
,sequoia1  reference may be made to the 
discovery of petrified wood in          
,cretaceous  rocks in ,south ,nevada1   
possessing the anatomical features of   
,sequoia  gigantea1 which shows that    
close to the present home of the big    
trees  their ancestors flourished during
 a period of the earth's history too    
remote to be measured by human          
reckoning4    ,the distribution of the  
,tertiary and ,cretaceous ,sequoias     
would appear  to have been mainly in the
 northern hemisphere1 extending well    
within  the ,arctic circle4 ,it is1     
however1 by no means improbable that the

  ancestors of ,sequoia flourished far  
south of the equator4 ,reference has    
been made to ,jurassic fossils from     
,madagascar which have been compared    
with the existing species1 and from     
,lower ,tertiary beds in ,new ,zealand  
the late ,baron ,ettingshausen described
 some cones and twigs as ,sequoia  novae
 zeelandicae which bear a close         
resemblance to the existing  type4 ,the 
available evidence would seem to point  
to a northern origin  of the genus1     
though allowance must be made for       
erroneous conclusions  based on negative
 evidence4 ,further research may well   
extend the past  distribution of        
,sequoia in southern lands1 but the data
 to hand point  to the conclusion that  
the ,californian trees represent the    
survivors  of a type which flourished in
 the ,cretaceous and ,tertiary periods  
over  a wide area in ,north ,america and
 in what we now call the ,continent of  
,europe4          ,,chapter ,,vii       
,,the ,,araucaria ,,family      ',and so

 the grandeur of the ,forest-tree       
,comes not by casting in a formal mould1
    ,but from its own divine vitality4' 
,wordsworth4    ,as an additional       
illustration of existing cone-bearing   
trees which form  links with the past we
 may briefly consider the genera        
,araucaria and  ,agathis1 the two       
members of the family ,araucarieae4 ,it 
is generally  agreed that the branches  
of the genealogical tree of this family 
extended farther back into the past than
 in the case of the majority  of        
,conifers4 ,by some authors the         
surviving representatives of the        
,araucarian stock are considered to have
 a strong claim to be regarded  as the  
most primitive as well as the oldest of 
cone-bearing trees1  though this        
opinion1 like many others1 is not held  
by botanists as  a whole4 ,this is not  
the place to discuss matters of         
controversy1  and ,i shall confine      
myself to a general consideration of    
,araucaria  and ,agathis from the point 

of view of their present distribution   
and the part they played in the         
vegetation of the ,mesozoic and         
,tertiary epochs4 ,in #agda a plant from
 ,amboyna1 one of the ,moluccas1  was   
described under the name ,dammara alba4 
,for this tree1 known  as the ,amboyna  
,fine1 the ,english botanist ,salisbury 
instituted the  generic name ,agathis1  
from a ,greek word 77 meaning a ball of 
string and probably suggested by the    
form of the cones1 which is the         
designation usually adopted in botanical
 literature instead of the  pre-,linnean
 term ,dammara4 ,the best known species 
of the genus is the  ,kauri ,pine1      
probably the finest forest tree in ,new 
,zealand where it  still flourishes from
 the ,north ,cape to latitude #ch ,s41  
though the  occurrence of sub-fossil    
trunks and pieces of buried resin shows 
that  the ,kauri forests are gradually  
dwindling4 ,the stems of this species1  
,agathis australis1 rise like massive   
grey columns to a height of #afj  ft41  

terminating in a succession of spreading
 branches given off in  tiers from the  
main trunk4 ,the thick narrow lanceolate
 leaves1 with  several parallel veins1  
reach a length of #b to #c inches4 ,the 
female  shoots have the form of small   
and almost spherical cones consisting of
  a central axis bearing overlapping    
spiral series of broadly triangular     
scales 7,fig4 #af74 ,each scale carries 
a single seed with a large  wing        
attached to one side which facilitates  
disposal by wind4 ,other  species of    
,agathis occur in the ,malay            
,archipelago1 the ,philippines1  in     
,queensland1 in the ,new ,hebrides1 ,new
 ,caledonia1 the ,fiji ,islands1  and   
elsewhere4 ,with the exception of the   
,australian ,kauri 7,agathis  robusta71 
with leaves larger and broader than     
those of the ,new ,zealand  ,kauri1 the 
genus is essentially an island type4    
,with the exception of  some species of 
the southern hemisphere genus           
,podocarpus1 there are no  ,conifers    

with foliage like that of ,agathis4 ,it 
is1 however1 the broad  and thin        
single-seeded scales and the spherical  
cones1 in some species  six inches in   
length1 which furnish the most          
trustworthy means of  identifying the   
genus4    ,illustration3 ,fig4 #af4 ,a4 
,agathis robusta ,muell4 7much reduced74
 ,b4  ,agathis ,moorei ,lind4 7#a_/b    
nat4 size74    ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ag4
 ,araucaria excelsa4 ,the upper part of 
a small  tree in the ,cambridge ,botanic
 ,garden4 7,much reduced47    ,the      
allied genus ,araucaria1 with the       
exception of two ,south ,american       
species1 the familiar ,monkey ,puzzle1  
,araucaria imbricata1 and  a ,brazilian 
tree1 ,araucaria brasiliana1 is confined
 within the  geographical area occupied 
by ,agathis4 ,the name ,araucaria was   
first  used by de ,jussieu in #aghi for 
a plant previously referred to the      
genus ,pinus and described as one of the
 most beautiful trees of ,chili4  ,this 
species1 ,a4 imbricata1 introduced into 

,england in #agif1 grows  on the        
southern slopes of the ,andes and1 as in
 the case of the ,kauri  forests of ,new
 ,zealand1 buried stems point to a wider
 extension of  the forests in earlier   
days4 ,the sharp and thick leaves of the
 ,monkey  ,puzzle distinguish it from   
all other ,conifers2 its large almost   
spherical seed-bearing cones1 more than 
half a foot in length1 which  may       
occasionally be seen on well-grown      
,british trees1 are unlike those  of    
other genera4 ,each of the deep and     
narrow scales bears a single  seed      
embedded in the substance of the scale  
and terminates distally  in a narrow    
upturned process4 ,some species of      
,araucaria1 differing  considerably in  
the form of the leaves and in the shape 
and structure  of the seed-scales from  
the ,chilian species1 are conveniently  
placed  in a distinct sub-division of   
the genus ,araucaria4 ,of this type the 
,norfolk ,island ,pine1 ,araucaria      
excelsa1 is the best-known example      

7,fig4 #ag74 ,it was introduced to ,kew 
by ,sir ,joseph ,banks in #agic1 soon   
after its discovery by ,captain ,cook1  
who describes the stems of the  ,norfolk
 ,island trees as resembling basaltic   
columns1 and relates how on  approaching
 the island everyone was satisfied that 
the columnar objects  were trees1       
'except our ,philosophers1 who still    
maintained they were  basaltes4' ,the   
leaves are short1 about half an inch    
long1 laterally  compressed and slightly
 spreading and sickle-shaped--sometimes 
shorter  and broader and                
overlapping--arranged in crowded        
spirals4 ,the scales  of the broadly    
oval cones are single-seeded1 but differ
 from those  of ,araucaria imbricata in 
having the seed exposed on the surface  
and in the greater breadth and thinner  
borders of the scales4 ,in both         
,araucaria and ,agathis the nature of   
the seed-scales constitutes a           
distinguishing feature4 ,the leaves of  
,araucaria imbricata differ in  form    

from those of other ,conifers4 ,the     
foliage shoots of ,araucaria  excelsa   
and other species1 e4g4 the very closely
 allied ,a4 ,cookii  of the ,new        
,hebrides and ,new ,caledonia1 though   
not unlike the branches  of a ,japanese 
,conifer 7,cryptomeria japonica71 often 
cultivated in  ,england1 afford fairly  
trustworthy characters for              
identification  purposes4    ,the minute
 structure of the wood of both          
,araucaria and ,agathis  constitutes an 
important distinguishing feature and    
enables us to  recognise on             
microscopical examination even a        
fragment of wood of  either of these    
genera4 ,the small elongated cells or   
water-conducting  elements of the wood  
of the ,araucarieae are characterised by
 one or  two1 and occasionally as many  
as three or four1 contiguous rows  of   
pits on their radial walls1 and these   
appear in surface view as  flattened    
circles or polygonal areas4    ,these   
details have been mentioned in order to 

show that ,araucaria and  ,agathis are  
sufficiently distinct in many respects  
from other ,conifers  to render their   
identification in a fossil state        
comparatively easy1 at  least much      
easier than the recognition of the      
majority of the members  of the         
,coniferae4 ,it would be going too far  
to state definitely that  ,araucarieae1 
as defined by reference to existing     
species1 existed  during the ,palaeozoic
 period2 on the other hand it would seem
 in a  high degree probable that the    
vegetation of the ,coal age and of the  
succeeding ,permian period included     
trees in which certain ,araucarian      
characters were clearly foreshadowed4   
,the name ,araucarioxylon was  formerly 
applied to petrified wood1 obtained from
 ,palaeozoic as well  as from later     
formations1 which agrees anatomically   
with that of  ,araucaria and ,agathis4  
,it has been shown in recent years that 
much of  the ,palaeozoic wood of this   
type of structure belongs to the extinct

  genus ,cordaites1 a tree which played 
a prominent part in the earlier  floras4
 ,cordaites affords a good example of a 
generalised type3 in its  wood-structure
 it resembles very closely the existing 
,araucarieae2  its long strap-like      
leaves are not unlike those of some     
species of  ,agathis2 its male flowers  
have often been compared with those of  
the  ,maiden ,hair tree1 ,ginkgo biloba1
 and certain anatomical features form   
connecting links between this           
,palaeozoic genus and the ,cycads4      
,it is noteworthy that in another       
,palaeozoic genus1 ,walchia1 the        
leaf-bearing branches are identical in  
appearance with those of the  ,norfolk  
,island ,pine 7,fig4 #ag7 and some other
 species of ,araucaria4  ,unfortunately 
our knowledge of the reproductive organs
 of ,walchia is  insufficient to warrant
 any definite statement as to the degree
 of  consanguinity between this ,permian
 and ,upper ,carboniferous plant and    
the ,araucarieae2 it is probable that in

 ,walchia we have a type not far        
removed from the line of evolution which
 led to ,araucaria4 ,petrified  wood1   
identified as that of ,walchia1 and     
exhibiting the ,araucarian type  of     
structure1 has been recorded from       
,permian rocks of the ,vosges4 ,other   
instances might be quoted in support of 
the view that the ,palaeozoic  floras   
included a few plants with which the    
surviving ,araucarieae may  fairly claim
 relationship4 ,professor ,zeiller of   
,paris has recently  described some     
fossil shoots from ,palaeozoic rocks in 
,india under the  name ,araucarites     
,oldhami on the ground of the similarity
 of the  leaves to those of ,araucaria  
imbricata4 ,similarly1 from ,triassic   
rocks several fossils have been         
described as closely allied to          
,araucaria1 in some cases because of    
anatomical resemblances and in  others  
on the less satisfactory evidence       
furnished by a similarity in  the       
foliage shoots4 ,professor ,jeffrey of  

,harvard has recently given an  account 
of a new type of stem 7,woodworthia7    
from the petrified ,triassic  forest of 
,arizona possessing some ,araucarian    
characters1 though  differing from      
existing species of ,araucaria in       
certain structural  features1 a         
combination of characters regarded by   
this ,author as an  indication of       
relationship with the family of         
,conifers1 which includes  the ,pines1  
,firs1 ,larches and other well-known    
northern genera4    ,it is1 however1    
from the records of ,jurassic rocks that
 we obtain  the most satisfactory       
information as to the great antiquity   
and the  very wide geographical range of
 the ancestors of the recent genus4     
,the plant-beds of the ,yorkshire coast 
afford clear evidence of the  occurrence
 of ,araucarian trees in the woodlands  
of the ,jurassic  period4 ,petrified    
wood has been found at ,whitby1         
associated with jet1  showing the minute
 structural characteristics of the      

surviving species  of ,araucarieae1 and 
it is not improbable that some at least 
of the  ,whitby jet has been formed from
 the wood of ,araucarian plants4 ,the   
carbonised remains of leafy shoots      
preserved in the ,jurassic shales  near 
,scarborough and on other parts of the  
,yorkshire coast include  twigs hardly  
distinguishable from those of ,araucaria
 excelsa1 though  the resemblance of    
external form alone1 especially in the  
case of  foliage shoots1 does not amount
 to proof of generic identity4 ,we have1
  however1 the much more trustworthy    
evidence of cones and seed-bearing      
scales in which the characteristic      
features of living species are  clearly 
shown4 ,seed-bearing scales almost      
identical with those of  ,araucaria     
excelsa and other recent species have   
long been known from  the ,jurassic     
rocks of ,yorkshire4    ,from other     
parts of ,england where samples of      
,jurassic floras are  preserved1 as at  
,stonesfield in ,oxfordshire1 in        

,northamptonshire and  elsewhere1       
equally striking examples of undoubted  
,araucarias have been  found4    ,fig4  
#ah represents part of a large cone     
described in #ahff by ,mr  ,carruthers  
from ,jurassic rocks at ,bruton in      
,somersetshire3 this  specimen1 now in  
the ,british ,museum1 consists of one   
side of a  spherical cone about #e      
inches long and #e inches broad2 in     
size1 as in  the form of the            
seed-scales1 it shows a striking        
likeness to the cones  of the           
,australian species ,araucaria          
,bidwillii1 the ,bunya ,bunya of        
,queensland4 ,other equally convincing  
examples of ,jurassic ,araucarian  cones
 and seeds may be seen in the museums of
 ,york and ,northampton4 ,on  the       
north-east coast of ,sutherland there is
 a narrow strip of ,jurassic  beds      
forming a low platform between the      
granitic and ,old ,red ,sandstone  hills
 and the sea4 ,from these rocks ,hugh   
,miller described several  fossil plants

 in his ,testimony of the ,rocks1 and an
 examination of a  large collection     
obtained from this district by the late 
,dr ,marcus ,gunn  shows that ,miller   
was justified in speaking of ,araucaria 
as a member of  this northern flora4    
,illustration3 ,fig4 #ah4 ,araucarites  
sphaerocarpus ,carr4 ,from ,jurassic    
rocks at ,bruton1 ,somersetshire4       
7,british ,museum1 #b_/c nat4 size47    
,there is abundant evidence pointing to 
the existence in ,britain during  the   
,jurassic period1 and in the early days 
of the ,cretaceous epoch1 of            
,araucarian trees which differed but    
slightly from the modern species        
confined to the southern hemisphere4 ,in
 several localities in ,france1         
,germany1 and other parts of the        
continent1 ,araucarian fossils have     
been recognised in ,jurassic rocks4 ,it 
is almost certain that some  foliage    
shoots and imperfectly preserved cones  
described by ,dr ,nathorst  from ,upper 
,jurassic rocks in ,spitzbergen were    

borne by a species of  ,araucaria4      
,cone-scales very similar to those from 
,yorkshire have been  discovered in     
,wealden beds in ,cape ,colony1 and     
,araucarian wood of  ,jurassic and      
,cretaceous age has been found in       
,madagascar4 ,from ,jurassic  strata in 
,india and ,victoria 7,australia71 as   
well as from ,upper  ,jurassic and      
,lower ,cretaceous rocks in ,virginia   
and elsewhere in the  eastern ,united   
,states1 well preserved ,araucarian     
fossils are recorded4  ,in a collection 
of ,jurassic plants1 obtained a few     
years ago by the  members of a ,swedish 
,antarctic ,expedition in ,graham's     
,land1 ,dr ,nathorst  has recognised    
some cone-scales of ,araucaria1 which   
demonstrate a  former extension of the  
family beyond the southern limits of    
,south  ,america4    ,it is interesting 
to find that when we ascend higher in   
the  geological series and pass beyond  
the ,wealden strata to the ,middle  and 
,upper sub-divisions of the ,cretaceous 

period1 evidence of the  wide           
geographical distribution of the        
,araucarieae is still abundant4         
,araucarian wood has been obtained in   
rocks classed as ,upper ,cretaceous  in 
,egypt1 in ,east ,africa1 in ,dakota1   
and elsewhere4 ,in the sedimentary      
rocks of the ,tertiary period undoubted 
examples of ,araucaria are less  common1
 though there can be no doubt that the  
genus was much more  widely spread then 
than it is at the present day4 ,the     
well-known  ,tertiary plant-beds of     
,bournemouth have afforded specimens of 
foliage  shoots which have been         
described as a species of ,araucaria1   
though in  the absence of well-preserved
 cones or petrified wood we must admit  
that the data are inconclusive4 ,it is1 
however1 legitimate to regard  the      
striking similarity of the ,bournemouth 
twigs to those of ,araucaria  excelsa   
and ,a4 ,cookii as constituting a fairly
 strong case in  favour of the          
persistence of ,araucaria in ,western   

,europe up to the  earlier stage of the 
,tertiary period4 ,araucarian wood of   
,tertiary age  is recorded from ,india1 
while branches with broad leaves like   
those  of ,araucaria imbricata have been
 found in ,seymour ,island and the      
,magellan ,straits1 and specimens of    
,tertiary wood are described from       
,patagonia4 ,at the other end of the    
world4 ,tertiary rocks on the west      
coast of ,greenland have yielded        
fragments which may be referred with    
some hesitation to the genus ,araucaria4
    ,a few words must be added in regard
 to the recent discovery by  ,professor 
,jeffrey and ,dr ,hollick of some very  
interesting ,cretaceous  specimens in   
,new ,jersey of well-preserved          
cone-scales and foliage  shoots of      
extinct plants closely related to the   
existing species of  ,agathis7#ea74 ,the
 ,american fossils are particularly     
valuable because  their preservation    
admits of microscopical examination of  
the tissues4  ,in ,cretaceous rocks of  

,staten ,island and in other localities 
on the  eastern border of the northern  
,united ,states1 kite-shaped            
seed-bearing  scales almost identical in
 form with those of recent species of   
,agathis  are fairly common fossils4    
,similar specimens have long been known 
from ,tertiary rocks in western         
,greenland4 ,in the case of some of the 
,american examples each scale bore three
 seeds instead of a single seed  in     
living species3 on account of this      
difference ,prof4 ,jeffrey and ,dr      
,hollick have adopted a distinct generic
 name1 ,protodammara4    ,the foregoing 
sketch is necessarily far from complete1
 but it may serve  as an illustration of
 the light which is thrown on the past  
history of  recent plants by the        
investigation of the relics of ancient  
floras4  ,the family ,araucarieae now   
represented by a small number of species
  which1 with the exception of the      
,andian and ,brazilian ,araucarias1 are 
restricted to a small region in the     

southern hemisphere1 was one of  the    
most widely spread sections of the      
seed-bearing plants during the          
,mesozoic era4 ,ancestors of ,araucaria 
must have been common trees in the      
,european vegetation in ,jurassic and   
,lower ,cretaceous periods1 and even  as
 late as the ,tertiary period there is  
evidence that representatives  of the   
family still lingered in the north4 ,one
 conclusion which seems  almost         
unavoidable is that the species of      
,araucaria and ,agathis that  survive1  
in some cases only in one or two small  
islands in the ,south  ,pacific1 have in
 the course of successive ages wandered 
from the other  end of the world4 ,their
 migrations can be partially traced by  
the  fragments embedded in ,jurassic and
 later sediments1 but we can only       
speculate as to the causes which have   
contributed to the changes in the       
fortunes of the family2 how much        
influence may have been exerted by      
changes in physical conditions in the   

environment1 and to what extent  the    
production of more successful types may 
have been the dominant  cause of the    
decline1 it is impossible to say4 ,one  
thing at least is  certain1 that few    
existing plants are better entitled to  
veneration as  survivals from the past  
than are the living species of          
,araucaria4          ,,chapter ,,viii   
,,the ,,maiden ,,hair ,,tree            
'444the trees    ,that whisper round a  
temple become soon    ,dear as the      
temple's self4'                         
,keats4    ,the ,maiden ,hair tree of   
,china and ,japan1 which was introduced 
into  ,europe early in the eighteenth   
century1 has now become fairly well     
known4 ,though hardy in ,england1 it    
requires warmer summers for full        
development and regular flowering4 ,to  
botanists this ,eastern tree is of      
peculiar interest1 partly because of the
 isolated position it occupies  in the  
plant-kingdom and partly by reason of   
its great antiquity4 ,there  is probably

 no other existing tree which has so    
strong a claim to be  styled a 'living  
fossil1' to use a term applied by       
,darwin to survivals  from the past4 ,in
 #agab the traveller ,kaempfer proposed 
for this plant  the generic name        
,ginkgo1 and ,linnaeus adopted this     
designation1 adding  the specific name  
biloba to denote the bisection of the   
wedge-shaped  lamina of the leaf into   
two divergent segments4 ,in #aggg the   
,english  botanist ,sir ,j4 ,e4 ,smith  
expressed his disapproval of what he    
called  the uncouth name ,ginkgo by     
substituting for ,ginkgo biloba the     
title  ,salisburia adiantifolia1 but as 
it is customary to retain names adopted 
or proposed by ,linnaeus1 the founder of
 the binominal system of  nomenclature1 
the correct botanical designation of the
 maiden hair tree  is ,ginkgo biloba4   
,mere personal preference such as that  
of ,sir ,j4 ,e4  ,smith for ,salisburia 
is not an adequate reason for rejecting 
an older  name4    ,illustration3 ,fig4 

#ai4 ,ginkgo biloba ,linn4 7,slightly   
reduced47    ,in its pyramidal habit    
,ginkgo agrees generally with the larch 
and other  ,conifers4 ,like the larch   
and cedar it possesses two kinds of     
foliage  shoots1 the more rapidly       
growing long shoots with scattered      
leaves  and the much shorter            
dwarf-shoots which elongate slightly    
each year  and bear several leaves      
crowded round their apex4 ,the leaves   
7,fig4  #ai71 which are shed each year1 
are similar in the cuneate form of the  
lamina and in the fan-like distribution 
of the forked veins1 to the  large      
leaflets of some species of maiden hair 
ferns3 the thin lamina  carried by a    
slender leaf-stalk is usually about #c  
inches across1  though in exceptional   
cases it may reach a breadth of #h      
inches4 ,the  lamina is usually divided 
by a deep ,v-shaped sinus into two equal
  halves2 it may be entire with an      
irregularly crenulate margin1 or1 on    
seedlings and vigorous long shoots1 the 

lamina may be cut into several          
wedge-shaped segments4    ,the male and 
female flowers are borne on separate    
trees2 the male  consists of a central  
axis giving off slender branches1 each  
of which  ends in a small terminal knot 
and two elliptical capsules in which    
the pollen is produced4 ,the female     
flowers have a stouter axis which       
normally produces two seeds at the apex4
 ,the seed is encased in a  green fleshy
 substance and1 as in the fruit of a    
cherry or plum1 the  kernel is protected
 by a hard woody shell4 ,in the form of 
the leaves  and in the structure of the 
flowers ,ginkgo presents features which 
clearly distinguish it from the         
,conifers1 the class in which1 until    
recently1 it was included4 ,in #ahif the
 ,japanese botanist ,hirase made  the   
important discovery that the male       
reproductive cells of ,ginkgo are  large
 motile bodies provided with a spirally 
coiled band of minute  cilia--delicate  
hairs which by their rapid              

lashing-movement propel the  cell       
through water4 ,in all ,flowering       
,plants and in ,conifers the male       
reproductive cells have no independent  
means of locomotion2 they are  carried  
to the female cell by the formation of a
 slender tube--the                      
pollen-tube--produced by the            
pollen-grain4 ,in the ,ferns1 ,lycopods 
and  ,horsetails--in fact in all members
 of the ,pteridophyta--as also in the   
,mosses and ,liverworts as well as in   
many of the still lower plants1  the    
male cells swim to the egg by the       
lashing of cilia like those on  the male
 cells of ,ginkgo4 ,this difference in  
regard to the nature of  the male cells 
was considered to be a fundamental      
distinction between  the higher         
seed-bearing plants and all other groups
 of the vegetable  kingdom4 ,it was1    
therefore1 with no ordinary interest    
that ,hirase's  discovery was received1 
as it broke down a distinction between  
the two  great divisions of the         

plant-world which had been generally    
accepted  as fundamental2 though it is  
only fair to say that the ,german       
botanist  ,hofmeister1 a man of         
exceptional originality and power of    
grasping the  essential1 foresaw the    
possibility that this arbitrary barrier 
would  eventually be removed4 ,the      
,ferns and other plants in which the    
male  cells are motile1 represent       
earlier stages in the progress of plant 
development1 when the presence of water 
was essential for the act  of           
fertilisation1 a relic of earlier days  
when the whole plant-body  was fitted   
for a life in water4 ,as higher types   
were produced1 the  plant-machinery     
became less dependent on an aqueous     
habitat1 and the  loss of organs of     
locomotion in the male cells is an      
instance of the  kind of change         
accompanying the gradual adaptation to  
life on land4 ,the  idea of the gradual 
emancipation of plants from a watery    
environment is  expressed in a somewhat 

extreme form by the author of a book    
entitled  ,the ,lessons of              
,evolution7#eb71 who states that the    
ocean is the mother  of plant-life and  
that plants formed the army which       
conquered the land4  ,in ,ginkgo we have
 a type which1 though similar in most   
respects to  the ,conifers1 possesses in
 its motile reproductive cells a        
persistent  inheritance from the past4  
,the recognition of this special feature
  afforded a sound reason1 especially   
when other peculiarities are            
considered1 for removing ,ginkgo from   
the ,conifers and instituting a new     
class-name1 ,ginkgoales4    ,ginkgo is a
 generalised type1 linked by different  
characters both  with living members of 
the two classes of naked-seeded plants  
and  with certain existing ,palaeozoic  
genera4 ,it is a survivor of a race     
which has narrowly escaped extinction2  
the last of a long line that  has       
outlived its family and offers by its   
persistence an impressive  instance of  

the past in the present4 ,though ,mrs   
,bishop in her  ,untrodden ,paths in    
,japan speaks of forests of ,maiden     
,hair trees  apparently in a wild state1
 it is generally believed that they were
  cultivated specimens4 ,mr ,henry who  
has an exceptionally wide knowledge  of 
,chinese vegetation tells us that 'all  
scientific travellers in  ,japan and the
 leading ,japanese botanists and        
foresters deny its being  indigenous in 
any part of ,japan2 and botanical       
collectors have not  observed it truly  
wild in ,china4' ,moreover1 ,mr ,e4 ,h4 
,wilson1 after  traversing the whole of 
the district where ,ginkgo was supposed 
to occur  in a wild state1 says that he 
found only cultivated trees4 ,there is  
no  reason to doubt that ,china is the  
last stronghold of this ancient type    
which in an earlier period of the       
earth's history overspread the world4   
,a brief summary of the past history of 
,ginkgo and of the ,ginkgoales  supplies
 overwhelming testimony to the tenacity 

of life with which the  ,maiden ,hair   
tree has persisted through the ages4    
,it was pointed out in the account of   
the past history of ,araucaria that  the
 records obtained from ,palaeozoic      
rocks1 while affording evidence of  the 
existence of ,carboniferous and ,permian
 genera undoubtedly allied  to the      
living species1 do not enable us to     
speak with certainty as to  the precise 
degree of affinity4 ,similarly1         
,palaeozoic leaves have been  described 
as representatives of the class of which
 ,ginkgo is the sole  survivor1 but the 
evidence on which this relationship is  
assumed is by  no means conclusive4     
,the generic name ,psygmophyllum has    
been applied to some impressions  of    
,ginkgo-like leaves discovered in the   
,upper ,devonian rocks of  ,bear        
,island1 a small remnant of land in the 
,arctic circle1 which  has furnished    
valuable information as to the          
composition of one of  the oldest floras
 of which satisfactory remains have been

 found4  ,other examples of these lobed1
 wedge-shaped leaves are recorded from  
,carboniferous rocks in ,germany1       
,france1 and elsewhere2 from ,permian   
strata in the east of ,russia and from  
,palaeozoic beds in ,cape ,colony  and  
,kashmir4 ,a relationship between       
,psygmophyllum and ,ginkgo is1  however1
 by no means established and rests      
solely on a resemblance in  the form of 
the leaves4 ,the close correspondence in
 form and venation  between some leaves 
from ,permian rocks in the ,ural        
mountains and  from ,lower ,permian beds
 in ,france1 and those of the recent    
species1  is considered by some authors 
sufficiently striking to justify the    
reference of these fossils to the genus 
,ginkgo4 ,similar leaves of  ,permian   
age1 which may also be related to the   
existing species1 have  been described  
under the name ,ginkgophyllum4 ,other   
specimens of  ,palaeozoic age from      
,north ,america and elsewhere have been 
assigned to  the ,ginkgoales2 but in    

none of these cases1 despite the        
resemblance  in leaf-form1 is there     
sufficiently convincing evidence of     
close  relationship to warrant a        
definite assertion that the plants in   
question were members of the group of   
which ,ginkgo alone remains4    ,it is1 
however1 an undoubted fact that the     
,maiden ,hair tree is  connected by a   
long line of ancestors with the earliest
 phase of the  ,mesozoic era4 ,from many
 parts of the world large collections of
 fossil  plants have been obtained from 
strata referred to the ,rhaetic period1 
or to the upper division of the         
,triassic system4 ,a comparison of      
floras  from these geological horizons  
in different parts of the world points  
to a vegetation extending from          
,australia1 ,cape ,colony1 and ,south   
,america1 to ,tonkin1 the south of      
,sweden and ,north ,america1 which was  
characterised by a greater uniformity   
than is shown by widely separated       
floras at the present day4 ,one of the  

commonest genera in ,rhaetic  floras is 
that known as ,baiera2 this name is     
applied to wedge-shaped  leaves with a  
slender stalk similar in shape and      
venation to those of  ,ginkgo1 but      
differing in the greater number and     
smaller breadth of  the segments4       
,between the deeply dissected leaf of a 
typical ,baiera  with its narrow linear 
lobes and the entire or broadly lobed   
leaf of a  ,ginkgo there are many       
connecting links1 and to some specimens 
either  name might be applied with equal
 fitness4 ,examples of ,baiera leaves1  
in some cases associated with fragments 
of reproductive organs1 are  recorded   
from ,rhaetic rocks of ,france1 the     
south of ,sweden1 ,tonkin1  ,chili1 the 
,argentine1 ,north ,america1 ,south     
,africa1 and from other  regions4 ,there
 is abundant evidence pointing to the   
almost world-wide  distribution of the  
,ginkgoales1 as represented more        
especially by  ,baiera1 in the older    
,mesozoic floras4 ,in the later         

,jurassic rocks of  ,yorkshire true     
,ginkgo leaves as well as those of the  
,baiera type are  fairly common2 with   
the leaves have been found pieces of    
male and  female flowers4 ,ginkgo and   
,baiera have been described from        
,jurassic  rocks of ,germany1 ,france1  
,russia1 ,bornholm1 and elsewhere in    
,europe2  they occur abundantly in      
,middle ,jurassic rocks in northern     
,siberia1 and  are represented in the   
,jurassic floras of ,franz ,josef ,land1
 the ,east  ,coast of ,greenland1 and   
,spitzbergen 7,fig4 #bj74 ,the abundance
 of ,ginkgo  and ,baiera leaves         
associated with male flowers and seeds  
discovered in  ,jurassic rocks1         
approximately of the same geological age
 as those on  the ,yorkshire coast1 in  
,east ,siberia and in the ,amur         
district1 has led  to the suggestion    
that this region may have been a centre 
where the  ,ginkgoales reached their    
maximum development in the ,mesozoic    
period4    ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bj4    

,fossil ,ginkgo leaves4 7#a_/b nat4     
size47      ,a4 ,tertiary1 ,island of   
,mull4    ,b4 ,wealden1 ,north ,germany 
7after ,schenk74    ,c4 ,jurassic1      
,japan 7after ,yokoyama74    ,d4        
,jurassic1 ,australia 7after ,stirling74
    ,e4 ,jurassic1 ,siberia 7after      
,heer74    ,f4 ,jurassic1 ,turkestan4   
,g4 ,lower ,cretaceous1 ,greenland      
7after ,heer74    ,h4 ,jurassic1        
,california 7after ,fontaine74    ,i4   
,jurassic1 ,yorkshire4    ,j4 ,jurassic1
 ,n4,e4 ,scotland 7after ,stopes74      
,k4 ,wealden1 ,franz ,josef ,land 7after
 ,nathorst74    ,l4 ,rhaetic1 ,south    
,africa4    ,m4 ,jurassic1 ,spitzbergen 
7after ,heer74        ,it should be     
added that other genera of ,jurassic and
 ,rhaetic fossils  in addition to       
,ginkgo and ,baiera have been referred  
to the ,ginkgoales1  though evidence of 
such affinity is not convincing4 ,there 
is1 however1  good reason to believe    
that this widespread group was          
represented by  several genera in the   

older ,mesozoic floras4    ,the         
occurrence of the ,ginkgoales in        
,jurassic rocks in ,king ,charles  ,land
 and in the ,new ,siberian ,islands     
7lat4 #gh and #ge ,n471 in ,central     
,china1 ,japan1 ,turkestan1 ,california1
 ,oregon1 ,south ,africa1 ,australia1   
and ,graham's ,land demonstrates the    
cosmopolitan nature of the group4       
,during the later part of the ,jurassic 
period and in the ,wealden floras  both 
,baiera and ,ginkgo were abundant2      
leaves are recorded from ,jurassic      
strata in the north-east of ,scotland1  
from ,lower ,cretaceous or ,wealden     
rocks in ,north ,germany1 ,portugal1    
,vancouver ,island1 ,wyoming1 and       
,greenland4    ,during the ,tertiary    
period1 or probably in the earlier days 
of  that era4 ,ginkgo flourished in     
,north ,america1 in ,alaska and in the  
,mackenzie ,river district1 ,greenland1 
,saghalien ,island1 and in several      
,european regions4 ,in ,chapter ,,iii   
reference was made to the volcanic      

activity which characterised the        
north-west ,european area in the  early 
,tertiary period and resulted in the    
formation of the thick  sheets of basalt
 on the north-east coast of ,ireland and
 in the ,inner  ,hebrides4 ,there were  
occasional pauses in the volcanic       
activity1  during which vegetation      
established itself on the weathered     
surface  of the lava1 and left traces of
 its existence in the leaves and twigs  
preserved in the sedimentary material   
enclosed between successive             
lava-floras4 ,at ,ardtun ,head in the   
,isle of ,mull beautifully preserved    
leaves of ,ginkgo1 #b-d inches in       
breadth1 with the median sinus and  the 
venation characteristic of the leaves of
 the existing plant1  have been         
discovered in a bed of clay which marks 
the site of a  lake in a depression on  
the lava-plateau4 ,the resemblance of   
these  ,tertiary leaves from ,mull to   
those of the surviving ,maiden ,hair    
tree  is so close as to suggest specific

 identity4 ,mr ,starkie ,gardner and    
,baron ,ettingshausen have described    
some seeds from the ,london clay        
7,lower ,tertiary7 in the ,isle of      
,sheppey as those of ,ginkgo1 but this  
identification rests on data too        
insufficient to be accepted without     
hesitation4    ,the recent cultivation  
of ,ginkgo biloba in ,britain may       
therefore  be spoken of as the          
re-introduction of a plant which in the 
earlier  part or in the middle of the   
,tertiary period flourished in the west 
of  ,scotland1 and was abundant in      
,england in the earlier ,jurassic       
period4  ,it is impossible to say with  
any confidence where the ,ginkgoales    
first  made their appearance1 whether in
 the far north or in the south1 nor  are
 we able to explain the gradual decline 
of so venerable and vigorous  a race4   
,as we search among the fragmentary     
herbaria scattered through the          
sedimentary rocks in that comparatively 
small portion of the earth's  crust     

which is accessible to investigation1 we
 discover evidence of a  shifting of the
 balance of power among different       
classes of plants in  the course of our 
survey of successive floras4 ,plants now
 insignificant  and few in number are   
found to be descendants of a long line  
of  ancestors stretching back to a      
remote antiquity when they formed the   
dominant class4 ,others which flourished
 in a former period no longer  survive1 
either themselves or in direct          
descendants4 ',the extinction of        
species has been involved in the most   
gratuitous mystery4' ,we can only       
speculate vaguely as to the cause of    
success or failure4 ,certain types  were
 better armed for the struggle for life1
 and produced descendants  able to hold 
their own and to perpetuate the race    
through the ages in  an unbroken line4  
,others had a shorter life and fell out 
of the ranks  of the advancing and ever 
changing army4 ,to quote ,darwin's      
words3',we  need not marvel at          

extinction2 if we must marvel1 let it be
 at our  own presumption in imagining   
for a moment that we understand the many
  complex contingencies on which the    
existence of each species depends4'     
,,bibliography      ,many of the books  
and papers dealing with subjects touched
 upon in  this volume are not included  
in the following list4 ,for reference to
  a more complete bibliography the      
reader should consult more technical    
treatises4      #a4  ,holmes1 ,t4 ,rice4
 ,ancient ,britain and the invasions of 
,julius          ,caesar4 ,oxford1      
#aijg4      #b4  ,mitchell1 ,a4 ,the    
,past in the ,present2 what is          
,civilisation8          ,edinburgh1     
#ahhj4      #c4  ,weismann1 ,a4 ,essays 
upon ,heredity and ,kindred ,biological 
,problems1 7,i4 ,the ,duration of       
,life47 ,vol4 ,i4 ,edited by ,e4 ,b4    
,poulton1 ,s4 ,schnland1 and ,a4 ,e4    
,shipley4 7,second ,edition47           
,oxford1 #ahia4      #d4  ,the ,historie
 of the ,world1 commonly called the     

,naturall          ,historic of the ,c4 
,plinius ,secundus4 ,translated into    
,english by          ,philemon ,holland4
 ,london1 #afcd4      #e4  ,hooker1 ,j4 
,d4 ,on ,three ,oaks of ,palestine4     
,trans4 ,linnean          ,society1     
,vol4 ,,xxiii4 p4 #cha4 #ahfb4      #f4 
,holtermann1 ,carl4 ,der ,einfluss des  
,klimas auf den ,bau der                
,pflanzengewebe4 ,leipzig1 #aijg4       
#g4  ,atkinson1 ,a4 ,notes on an        
,ancient ,boat found at ,brigg4         
,archaeologia1 ,vol4 ,i4 p4 #cfa4 #ahhg4
      #h4  ,huxley1 ,t4 ,h4 ,man's      
,place in ,nature and other             
,anthropological          ,essays4      
,collected ,essays1 ,vol4 ,,vii4 7,on   
the methods and          results of     
,ethnology47 ,london1 #aija4      #i4   
,lewis1 ,f4 ,j4 ,the sequence of ,plant 
,remains in the ,british ,peat          
,mosses4 ,science ,progress1 ,no4 #f4   
,october1 #aijg4      #aj4 ,strahan1 ,a4
 ,on submerged ,land-surfaces at ,barry1
 ,glamorganshire4          ,with notes  

on the ,fauna and ,flora by ,clement    
,reid2 etc4 ,quart4          ,journ4    
,geological ,society1 ,vol4 ,,lii4 p4   
#dgd4 #ahif4      #aa4 ,the ,life and   
,letters of ,charles ,darwin4 ,edited by
 ,francis          ,darwin4 #c ,vols4   
,london1 #ahhg4      #ab4 ,more ,letters
 of ,charles ,darwin4 ,edited by        
,francis ,darwin and ,a4          ,c4   
,seward4 #b ,vols4 ,london1 #aijc4      
#ac4 ,ward1 ,lester ,f4 ,the ,course of 
,biologic ,evolution4 ,anniversary      
,address of the ,president of the       
,biological ,society4 ,washington1      
#ahij4      #ad4 ,marshall1 ,w4         
,anacharis alsinastrum1 a new water     
weed4          7,reprinted from the     
,cambridge ,independent ,press47        
,london1 #aheb4           ,bailey1 ,c4  
,notes on the structure1 the occurrence 
in           ,lancashire1 and the source
 of origin1 of ,naias gramineus         
,delile1 var4 ,delilei magnus4 ,journal 
of ,botany1           ,vol4 ,,xxii4 p4  
#cje4 #ahhd4    #ae4          ,weiss1   

,f4 ,h4 and ,h4 ,murray4 ,on the        
occurrence and           distribution of
 some alien aquatic plants in the       
,reddish           ,canal4 ,mem4 ,proc4 
,manchester ,lit4 and ,phil4 ,society1  
,vol4 ,,liii4 ,pt4 ,,ii4 #aiji4         
#af4 ,bennett1 ,a4 ,the ,halifax        
,potamogeton4 ,naturalist1 ,no4 #fba4   
,october1 #aijh4      #ag4 ,hooker1 ,j4 
,d4 ,outlines of the ,distribution of   
,arctic ,plants4          ,trans4 ,linn4
 ,soc4 ,vol4 ,,xxiii4 p4 #bea4 #ahfb4   
#ah4 ,engler1 ,a4 ,plants of the        
,northern ,temperate ,zone in their     
transition to the ,high ,mountains of   
,tropical ,africa4 ,annals of           
,botany1 ,vol4 ,,xviii4 p4 #ebc4 #aijd4 
#ai4 ,darwin1 ,c4 ,the ,origin of       
,species4 ,london1 #aijj4      #bj4     
,ridley1 ,h4 ,n4 ,on the dispersal of   
seeds by wind4 ,annals of               
,botany1 ,vol4 ,,xix4 p4 #cea4 #aije4   
#ba4 ,hooker1 ,j4 ,d4 ,on the ,cedars of
 ,lebanon1 ,taunus1 ,algeria1 and       
,india4 ,the ,natural ,history ,review1 

#ahfb1 p4 #aa4      #bb4 ,forbes1 ,e4   
,on the connection between the          
distribution of          the existing   
,fauna and ,flora of the ,british       
,isles1 and the          geological     
changes which have affected their       
area4444 ,memoirs1          ,geological 
,survey1 ,vol4 ,i4 p4 #ccf4 #ahdf4      
#bc4 ,praeger1 ,r4 ,l4 ,the ,wild       
,flowers of the ,west of ,ireland and   
their          history4 ,journ4 ,r4     
,hort4 ,soc4 ,vol4 ,,xxxvi4 p4 #bii4    
#aiaj4      #bd4 ,ernst1 ,a4 ,the ,new  
,flora of the ,volcanic ,island of      
,krakatau4          ,translated by ,a4  
,c4 ,seward4 ,cambridge1 #aijh4         
#be4 ,praeger1 ,r4 ,l4 ,a ,tourist's    
,flora of the ,west of ,ireland4        
,dublin1          #aiji4                
,rendle1 ,a4 ,b4 ,sisyrinchium          
californicum ,dryand4    #bf4           
,journal of ,botany1 ,vol ,,xxxiv4 p4   
#did4 #ahif4         ,marshall1 ,e4 ,s4 
,sisyrinchium californicum in ,ireland4 
,ibid4 p4 #cff4           ,reid1        

,clement4 ,the ,origin of the ,british  
,flora4 ,london1 #ahii4    #bg4  ,reid1 
,clement and ,eleanor ,m4 ,on the       
,pre-glacial           ,flora of        
,britain ,journ4 ,linn4 ,soc4 ,vol4     
,,xxviii4 p4 #bjf4           #aijh4     
#bh4 ,lankester1 ,sir ,edwin ,ray4      
,mature and ,man4 ,the ,romanes         
,lecture4          ,oxford1 #aije4      
#bi4 ,huxley1 ,t4 ,h4 ,on a ,piece of   
,chalk4 ,collected ,essays1 ,vol4       
,,viii4 ,london1 #ahif4      #cj4       
,jukes-,browne1 ,a4 ,j4 ,the ,building  
of the ,british ,isles4 ,london1        
#aiaa4      #ca4 ,ray1 ,j4 ,three       
,physico-,theological ,discourses1 etc4 
7#bnd          ,edition47 ,london1      
#afic4      #cb4 ,woodward1 ,j4 ,an     
,essay toward a ,natural ,history of the
 ,earth4          ,london1 #afie4       
#cc4 ,sollas1 ,w4 ,j4 ,the ,age of the  
,earth1 and other geological            
studies4 ,london1 #aije4      #cd4      
,ward1 ,l4 ,f4 ,status of the ,mesozoic 
,floras of the ,united ,states4         

,monograph #dh1 ,u4 ,s4 ,geol4 ,surv4   
#aije4      #ce4 ,arber1 ,e4 ,a4        
,newell4 ,cupressinoxylon ,hookeri sp4  
nov41 a large          silicified tree  
from ,tasmania4 ,geological ,magazine1  
,vol4 ,i4          ,v41 p4 #g4 #aijd4   
#a4 ,holmes1 ,w4 ,h4 ,fossil ,forests of
 the ,volcanic ,tertiary                
,formations of the ,yellowstone         
,national ,park4 ,ann4                  
,rep4 ,geol4 and ,geogr4 ,surv4         
7,u4,s4,a471 #ahgh1 ,pt4 ,,ii4 p4 #dg4  
#cf4  #b4 ,knowlton1 ,f4 ,h4 ,fossil    
,flora of the ,yellowstone              
,national ,park4 ,monograph #cb1 ,u4 ,s4
 ,geol4 ,survey1              ,pt4 ,,ii4
 #ahii4      #cg4 ,darwin1 ,c4 ,journal 
of ,researches into the ,natural        
,history and          ,geology of the   
countries visited during the voyage     
round the          world of ,h4,m4,s4   
',beagle4' ,london1 #aijb4      #ch4    
,dufferin1 ,lord4 ,letters from ,high   
,latitudes4 ,london4 ,n4,d4      #ci4   
,amundsen1 ,r4 ,the ,north-,west        

,passage4 #b ,vols4 ,london14 #aijh4    
#dj4 ,mac,dougal1 ,d4 ,t4 ,botanical    
,explorations in the ,south-west4       
,journ4 ,new ,york ,botanical ,garden1  
,vol4 ,v4 p4 #hi4 #aijd4                
,goeppert1 ,h4 ,r4 and ,a4 ,menge4 ,die 
,flora des ,bernsteins4    #da4         
,danzig1 #ahhc4         ,conwentz1 ,h4  
,monographie der baltischen             
,bernsteinbume4           ,danzig1      
#ahij4      #db4 ,hovelacque1 ,m4 ,sur  
la ,nature vgtale de l',aachenosaurus   
multidens4 ,bull4 ,soc4 ,belge de ,gol4 
etc4 ,tome ,,iv4 p4 #ei4          #ahij4
      #dc4 ,oliver1 ,f4 ,w4 and ,d4 ,h4 
,scott4 ,on the structure of the        
,palaeozoic seed ,lagenostoma ,lomaxi4  
,phil4 ,trans4 ,r4 ,soc4          ,vol4 
,,cxcvii4 p4 #aic4 #aijd4      #dd4     
,kidston1 ,r4 ,on the fructification of 
,neuropteris heterophylla4              
,phil4 ,trans4 ,royal ,soc4 ,london1    
,vol4 ,,cxcvii4 p4 #a4      #de4 ,smith1
 ,geoffrey4 ,a ,naturalist in ,tasmania4
 ,oxford1 #aiji4      #df4 ,campbell1   

,d4 ,h4 ,on the ,distribution of the    
,hepaticae1 and its                     
significance4 ,new ,phytologist1 ,vol4  
,,vi4 p4 #bjc4 #aijg4      #dg4         
,kidston1 ,r4 and ,d4 ,t4               
,gwynne-,vaughan4 ,on the ,fossil       
,osmundaceae4          ,phil4 ,trans4   
,r4 ,soc4 ,edinburgh1 ,vols4 ,,xlv41    
,,xlvi4 #aijg-ji4      #dh4 ,seward1 ,a4
 ,c4 ,fossil ,plants4 #b ,vols4         
,cambridge1 #ahih-aiaj4      #di4       
,wallace1 ,a4 ,r4 ,the ,malay           
,archipelago4 ,london1 #ahhf4      #ej4 
,reid1 ,c4 and ,eleanor ,m4 ,the        
,lignite of ,bovey ,tracey4 ,phil4      
,trans4 ,royal ,soc4 ,london1 ,vol4     
#bja1 p4 #afa4 #aiaj4      #ea4         
,hollick1 ,a4 and ,e4 ,c4 ,jeffrey4     
,studies of ,cretaceous ,coniferous     
remains from ,kreischerville1 ,new      
,york4 ,mem4 ,new ,york ,bot4           
,garden1 ,vol4 ,,iii4 #aiji4       #eb4 
,hutton1 ,f4 ,w4 ,the ,lessons of       
,evolution4 ,london1 #aijb4             
,,index          ,aachenosaurus         

multidens1 #fh      ,agathis australis1 
#ajg      ,a4 ,moorei1 #ajh      ,a4    
robusta1 #ajh1 #aji      ,amber1 #fe1   
#ff      ,amethyst ,mountain1 #ei1 #fj1 
#ajd      ,amundsen1 ,e41 #fb           
,anacharis alsinastrum1 #bj             
,angiosperms1 history of1 #af1 #ec1 #fi1
 #gj      ,annual rings1 #e-i           
,antarctic fossil plants1 #gj1 #aag     
,araucaria ,bidwillii1 #aae      ,a4    
brasiliana1 #aji      ,a4 ,cookii1 #aaa1
 #aah      ,a4 excelsa1 #aaj1 #aaa1     
#aad1 #aae1 #aah      ,a4 imbricata1    
#aji1 #aaa1 #aac1 #aah                  
,araucarieae1 #ajf-abj                  
,araucarioxylon1 #aab      ,araucarites 
,oldhami1 #aac      ,a4 sphaerocarpus1  
#aaf      ,arbutus ,unedo1 #ca-cc1 #cf  
,archaean rocks1 #dc      ,arctic       
plants1 #bb1 #bc1 #cj1 #fi1 #abg        
,arctic-,alpine plants1 #bb1 #bc        
,arizona1 fossil forests of1 #ei        
,artocarpus1 #bh1 #bi        ,baiera1   
#abi1 #aca      ,banks1 ,sir ,joseph1   
#aaj      ,barry1 forest beds at1 #ac   

,bennett1 ,a41 #ba      ,bidens         
tripartita1 #df1 #dg      ,bishop1 ,mrs1
 #abf      ,bommer1 ,c1 #gc1 #hb1 #hi   
,bovey ,tracey1 fossil plants from1     
#aja-ajc      ,bower1 ,prof41 #gc       
,bracken ,fern1 #ge1 #gg1 #hc1 #hg      
,brandon1 flint-knappers of1 #c         
,brigg1 dug-out boat from1 #aj1 #aa     
,british flora1 #ai-ch        ,caltha   
palustris1 #dg      ,campbell1 ,prof4   
,d4 ,h41 #gi      ,candolle1 ,a4 ,p4 de1
 #g1 #cc      ,canton1 ,w41 #cd         
,carboniferous plants1 #ff-fh1 #gb-ge1  
#abg      ,carruthers1 ,dr ,w41 #aae    
,cedars1 #bg      ,cheddar ,pink1 #bd   
,cinnamomum prototypum1 #fe1 #ff        
,climate1 fossil plants and1 #fh1 #fi   
,coal age1 plants of the1 #ai1 #ff1 #fg 
,connemara1 #cj1 #ca      ,cook1 ,capt41
 #aaa      ,coral polyps compared with  
plants1 #h      ,cordaites1 #aab        
,cornwall1 ,pyrenean ,heaths in1 #ca    
,cretaceous plants1 #af1 #ag1 #ec1 #hb1 
#aag      ,cromer ,forest bed1 #dh      
,cryptomeria japonica1 #aaa             

,cycads1 #aa1 #gb-gd        ,daboecia   
polifolia1 #cj      ,dacrydium1 #he     
,dakota group1 flora of1 #ag            
,dammara alba1 #ajg      ,darwin1 ,c1   
#af1 #bd1 #be1 #cc1 #ci1 #dj1 #fa1 #acc 
,devonshire1 ,pyrenean ,heaths in1 #ca  
,dianthus caesius1 #bd      ,dipteris1  
#gg1 #ib-id      ,d4 conjugata1 #ib1 #ic
      ,d4 ,horsfieldii1 #hf1 #ic        
,disco ,island1 ,fossil plants from1    
#bh1 #fi1 #hb1 #ajc      ,discontinuous 
distribution1 #bf      ,dispersal of    
plants1 rate of1 #be1 #bf               
,distribution of plants1 #ae-ch         
,drift-wood1 #fa-fc      ,dryas         
octopetala1 #bb      ,dufferin1 ,lord1  
#fa        ,elodea canadensis1 #bj1 #ba 
,engler1 ,prof41 #bc      ,erica        
ciliaris1 #ca      ,e4 ,mackaii1 #ca    
,e4 mediterranea1 #cj1 #ca      ,e4     
vagans1 #ca      ,eriocaulon            
septangulare1 #ce-ch                    
,ettingshausen1 ,baron1 #aje1 #acb      
,ferns1 #ga-id      ,flowering plants1  
see ,angiosperms      ,forbes1 ,e41     

#ca-cd1 #cg      ,fossil plants1 as     
thermometers1 #fh2        preservation  
of1 #ef-gj        ,gardner1 ,j4 ,s41    
#acb      ,geographical distribution of 
plants1 #ae-ch      ,geological         
evolution of ,britain1 #bi              
,geological record1 #ci-ee              
,geological table1 #db1 #dc             
,geological time1 #b1 #c1 #di           
,ginkgo biloba1 #aac1 #abj-acc          
,ginkgoales1 #ah1 #abj-acc              
,ginkgophyllum1 #abh      ,glacial      
period1 effect on vegetation of1 #bi-cb1
 #de1 #dg      ,gladiolus illyricus1 #ca
      ,gleichenia1 #ha-hc      ,graham's
 ,land1 #gj1 #aag      ,gunn1 ,dr       
,marcus1 #aag      ,gwynne-,vaughan1    
,prof41 #hj      ,gymnosperms1 #ag1 #ah 
,habenaria intacta1 #cg      ,halifax1  
plants from canal near1 #ba      ,heer1 
,o41#cc1 #hb1 #aja      ,henry1 ,a41    
#abf      ,hirase1 ,prof41 #abd1 #abe   
,hofmeister1 ,w4 ,f4 ,b41 #abe          
,hollick1 ,a41 #aai      ,holmes1 ,t4   
,rice1 #b      ,hooker1 ,sir ,j4 ,d41   

#d1 #ae1 #af1 #bb1 #bc1 #bg1 #dj        
,hose1 ,c1 #hg      ,huxley1 ,t4 ,h41   
#aa1 #eb        ,ireland1 ,mediterranean
 plants in1 #cj-ch        ,jeffrey1     
,prof4 ,e4 ,c1 #aad1 #aai      ,jet1    
#aad      ,juan ,fernandez1 #hd         
,jurassic flora1 #ec1 #ed1 #gj1 #aag    
,jussieu1 ,a4 de1 #aji        ,kaempfer1
 ,e41 #aba      ,kauri ,pine1 #ajg      
,kidston1 ,dr ,e41 #gd1 #hj             
,knaresborough1 petrifying spring at1   
#fd      ,krakatau1 new flora of1 #cc1  
#ca        ,laccopteris1 #ij1 #ia       
,lang1 ,dr ,a4 1 #bg      ,lankester1   
,sir ,edwin ,ray1 #di      ,lhwyd1 ,e41 
#eg      ,linnaeus1 ,c1 #aba1 #abc      
,liriodendron1 #bh1 #bi                 
,liverworts1 antiquity of1 #gi          
,london ,pride1 #ca      ,longevity of  
trees1 #a-aj      ,luzula racemosa1 #bc 
,l4 spicata1 #bc1 #bd                   
,mac,dougal1 ,prof41 #fb      ,maiden   
,hair ,tree1 #abj-acc      ,mammoth     
trees of ,california1 #ie-aje      ,man1
 first appearance of1 #di               

,marchantia1 #gi      ,market           
,harborough1 ,elodea discovered near1   
#bj      ,marshall1 ,e4 ,s41 #ch        
,matonia1 #gg1 #hf-id      ,m4          
pectinata1 #hf-hh1 #ib1 #ic      ,m4    
sarmentosa1 #hg      ,matonidium1 #hi   
,mediterranean plants in ,ireland1      
#cj-ch      ,miller1 ,hugh1 #ei1 #aae1  
#aag      ,milligan1 ,dr1 #b      ,moss1
 ,dr ,c4 ,e41 #bc      ,mull1 ,fossil   
plants in ,isle of1 #acb        ,naias  
graminea1 #ba      ,nathorst1 ,a4 ,g41  
#fd1 #ajc1 #aag      ,native plants1 #bj
      ,new forest1 #ca      ,nipa       
fruticans1 #ej-eb      ,nipadites1 #ej1 
#eb      ,norfolk ,island ,pine1 see    
,araucaria excelsa        ,oaks1        
longevity of1 #d      ,oliver1 ,prof4   
,f4 ,w41 #gd      ,osmunda regalis1     
#gf-gi1 #hc      ,osmundites ,dunlopi1  
#hj        ,palaeozoic plants1 #ee1     
#ff-fh1 #ga1 #abg1 #abh      ,peat1     
trees in1 #ab1 #ac      ,permian floras1
 #ee      ,petrifaction1 #fd-fg         
,picea excelsa1 #df1 #dh      ,pines1   

,tertiary1 #fe1 #ff      ,pinus         
sylvestris1 #aa-ac1 #dg      ,pipewort1 
#cf-ch      ,pliny's ,natural ,history1 
#d      ,podocarpus1 #aji               
,potamogeton pennsylvanicus1 #ba        
,praeger1 ,e4 ,l41 #cb1 #cf1 #cg        
,pre-,glacial plants1 #bb1 #de-dh       
,primula elatior1 #bd                   
,protodammara1 #aai      ,psygmophyllum1
 #abg      ,pteridium aquilinum1 #ge1   
#gg1 #hc1 #hg      ,pteridophyta1 #ah1  
#abd      ,pteridosperms1 #gd1 #ge      
,pyrenean plants in ,ireland1 #ca-ch    
,ray1 ,john1 #ef      ,reddish ,canal1  
plants from the1 #ba      ,redwoods of  
,california1 #ie-aje      ,reid1        
,clement1 #ac1 #bb1 #de1 #ajb           
,reid1 ,mrs1 #bb1 #ajb      ,rhaetic    
plants1 #ed1 #id      ,riccia1 #gi      
,ridley1 ,h4 ,n41 #be      ,royal ,fern1
 #gf-gi1 #hc      ,rubus chamaemorus1   
#bb        ,st ,dabeoc's ,heath1 #cj1   
#cb1 #cg      ,salisburia adiantifolia1 
#abb      ,saporta1 the ,marquis of1 #gj
      ,saxifraga oppositifolia1 #bb     

,s4 umbrosa1 #ca      ,scandinavian     
plants in ,britain1 #ba-bc1 #cj         
,scots ,pine1 see ,pinus sylvestris     
,scott1 ,dr ,d4 ,h41 #gd      ,sequoia1 
#e1 #ie-aje      ,sequoia ,couttsiae1   
#aja      ,s4 gigantea1 #e1 #ie1 #if1   
#ih-ajd      ,s4 magnifica1 #ajd        
,s4 novae zeelandicae1 #aje      ,s4    
sempervirens1 #de1 #if1 #ih1 #ajd       
,sheppey1 fossil plants from1 #ej1 #acb 
,shorea leprosula1 #be      ,silene     
acaulis1 #bb      ,sisyrinchium         
angustifolium1 #ch      ,s4             
californicum1 #ch      ,smith1 ,g41 #ge 
,smith1 ,sir ,j4 ,e41 #abb1 #abc        
,smith1 ,w41 #da      ,sollas1 ,prof41  
#eh      ,spiranthes romanzoffiana1 #ch 
,stellaria holostea1 #df1 #dg           
,steno1 #eg      ,strahan1 ,a41 #ac     
,strawberry tree1 #ca1 #cb              
,tansley1 ,a4 ,g41 #ab1 #ac1 #hg        
,taxodium distichum1 #ajc      ,tertiary
 plants1 #ca-cc1 #cg1 #di1 #ej1 #ajc    
,theobroma cacao1 #g      ,thyrsopteris 
elegans1 #hd      ,todea barbara1 #aa1  

#gh      ,t4 radicans1 #gh      ,trapa  
natans1 #dg1 #dh      ,triassic period1 
#ed1 #ee      ,tulip tree1 #bh          
,walchia1 #aac      ,wallace1 ,dr ,a4   
,r41 #he      ,wealden flora1 #ag1 #ec  
,weismann1 ,a41 #c      ,wexford1       
,american plant from1 #ch               
,williamson1 ,prof4 ,w4 ,c1 #gb         
,wilson1 ,e4 ,h41 #abj      ,winchester 
,cathedral1 wood from foundations of1   
#aj      ,woodward1 ,dr ,j41 #eg        
,woodworthia1 #aad        ,yellowstone  
,park1 fossil trees in the1 #ei-fa1 #ajd
        ,zeiller1 ,r41 #aac             
,,cambridge3 ,,printed ,,by ,,john      
,,clay1 ,m4,a4 ,,at ,,the ,,university  
,,press                  ,,the          
,,cambridge ,,manuals ,,of ,,science    
,,and ,,literature                      
,published by the ,cambridge ,university
 ,press                          ,price 
#as net each in cloth                   
#bs #f;d net in lambskin                
,,general ,,editors               ,p4   
,,giles1 ,litt4,d4 ,master of ,emmanuel 

,college                                
and                        ,a4 ,c4      
,,seward1 ,m4,a41 ,f4,r4,s4             
,professor of ,botany in the ,university
 of ,cambridge      ,,volumes ,,now     
,,ready      ,the ,coming of ,evolution4
 ,by ,prof4 ,j4 ,w4 ,judd1 ,c4,b41      
,f4,r4,s4    ,heredity in the ,light of 
,recent ,research4 ,by ,l4 ,doncaster1  
,m4,a4    ,the ,english ,puritans4 ,by  
the ,rev4 ,john ,brown1 ,d4,d4    ,the  
,idea of ,god in ,early ,religions4 ,by 
,dr ,f4 ,b4 ,jevons4    ,plant-,animals3
 a ,study in ,symbiosis4 ,by ,prof4 ,f4 
,w4 ,keeble1 ,sc4,d4    ,cash and       
,credit4 ,by ,d4 ,a4 ,barker1 ,i4,c4,s4 
,the ,natural ,history of ,coal4 ,by ,e4
 ,a4 ,newell ,arber1 ,m4,a4    ,the     
,early ,religious ,poetry of the        
,hebrews4 ,by the ,rev4 ,e4 ,g4 ,king1  
,d4,d4    ,the ,history of the ,english 
,bible4 ,by the ,rev4 ,john ,brown1     
,d4,d4    ,plant-,life on ,land4 ,by    
,prof4 ,f4 ,o4 ,bower1 ,sc4,d41         
,f4,r4,s4    ,an ,historical ,account of

 the ,rise and ,development of          
,presbyterianism      in ,scotland4 ,by 
the ,rt ,hon4 the ,lord ,balfour of     
,burleigh1 ,k4,t41      ,g4,c4,m4,g4    
,english ,dialects from the ,eighth     
,century to the ,present ,day4 ,by the  
,rev4 ,prof4 ,w4 ,w4 ,skeat1 ,litt4,d41 
,d4,c4,l41 ,f4,b4,a4    ,the            
,administration of ,justice in ,criminal
 ,matters 7in ,england and      ,wales74
 ,by ,g4 ,glover ,alexander1 ,m4,a41    
,,ll4,m4    ,an ,introduction to        
,experimental ,psychology4 ,by ,dr ,c4  
,s4 ,myers4    ,the ,ground ,plan of the
 ,english ,parish ,church4 ,by ,a4      
,hamilton      ,thompson1 ,m4,a41       
,f4,s4,a4    ,the ,historical ,growth of
 the ,english ,parish ,church4 ,by ,a4  
,hamilton      ,thompson1 ,m4,a41       
,f4,s4,a4    ,aerial ,locomotion4 ,by   
,e4 ,h4 ,harper1 ,m4,a41 and ,allan ,e4 
,ferguson1 ,b4,sc4    ,electricity in   
,locomotion4 ,by ,a4 ,g4 ,whyte1 ,b4,sc4
    ,new ,zealand4 ,by the ,hon4 ,sir   
,robert ,stout1 ,k4,c4,m4,g41 ,,ll4,d41 

and ,j4      ,logan ,stout1 ,,ll4,b4    
7,n4,z474    ,king ,arthur in ,history  
and ,legend4 ,by ,prof4 ,w4 ,lewis      
,jones1 ,m4,a4    ,the ,early ,religious
 ,poetry of ,persia4 ,by the ,rev4      
,prof4 ,j4 ,hope      ,moulton1 ,d4,d41 
,d4,theol4 7,berlin74    ,greek         
,tragedy4 ,by ,j4 ,t4 ,sheppard1 ,m4,a4 
,the ,wanderings of ,peoples4 ,by ,dr   
,a4 ,c4 ,haddon1 ,f4,r4,s4    ,links    
with the ,past in the ,plant-,world4 ,by
 ,prof4 ,a4 ,c4 ,seward1 ,f4,r4,s4      
,primitive ,animals4 ,by ,geoffrey      
,smith1 ,m4,a4    ,life in the ,sea4 ,by
 ,james ,johnstone1 ,b4,sc4    ,the     
,moral ,life and ,moral ,worth4 ,by     
,prof4 ,sorley1 ,litt4,d41 ,f4,b4,a4    
,the ,migration of ,birds4 ,by ,t4 ,a4  
,coward4    ,earthworms and their       
,allies4 ,by ,f4 ,e4 ,beddard1 ,m4,a41  
,f4,r4,s4    ,prehistoric ,man4 ,by ,dr 
,w4 ,l4 ,h4 ,duckworth4    ,the ,modern 
,locomotive4 ,by ,c4 ,edgar ,allen1     
,a4,m4,i4,mech4,e4    ,the ,natural     
,history of ,clay4 ,by ,alfred ,b4      

,searle4        ,,volumes ,,in          
,,preparation        ,ancient ,assyria4 
,by ,rev4 ,c4 ,h4 ,w4 ,johns1 ,litt4,d4 
,the ,civilisation of ,ancient ,mexico4 
,by ,lewis ,spence4    ,clouds4 ,by ,c4 
,t4 ,r4 ,wilson4 ,f4,r4,s4    ,the ,work
 of ,rain and ,rivers4 ,by the ,rev4    
,prof4 ,t4 ,g4 ,bonney1 ,,ll4,d41       
,sc4,d41 ,f4,r4,s4    ,rocks and their  
,origin4 ,by ,prof4 ,grenville ,a4 ,j4  
,cole4    ,the ,measurement of ,time1   
,by the ,astronomer ,royal4    ,st ,paul
 and ,christianity4 ,by the ,rev4       
,principal ,headlam1 ,d4,d4    ,the     
,development of ,coinage4 ,by ,george   
,macdonald1 ,,ll4,d4    ,the ,origin of 
,earthquakes4 ,by ,dr ,c4 ,davison4     
,a ,history of ,civilisation in         
,palestine4 ,by ,prof4 ,r4 ,a4 ,s4      
,macalister1      ,m4,a41 ,f4,s4,a4     
,glaciers and ,ice ,sheets4 ,by ,prof4  
,garwood1 ,m4,a41 ,sec4,g4,s4    ,goethe
 in the ,twentieth ,century4 ,by ,prof4 
,j4 ,g4 ,robertson1 ,m4,a41 ,ph4,d4     
,the ,psychology of ,insanity4 ,by ,dr  

,bernard ,hart4    ,the ,new ,field     
,botany4 ,by ,dr ,c4 ,e4 ,moss4         
,spiders4 ,by ,c4 ,warburton1 ,m4,a4    
,flies4 ,by ,dr ,gordon ,hewitt4    ,the
 ,green ,leaf4 ,by ,dr ,f4 ,f4          
,blackman1 ,f4,r4,s4    ,the            
,phoenicians4 ,by ,prof4 ,j4 ,l4 ,myres1
 ,f4,s4,a4    ,the ,physical ,basis of  
,music4 ,by ,a4 ,wood1 ,m4,a4    ,the   
,meteorology of the ,globe4 ,by ,dr ,w4 
,n4 ,shaw1 ,f4,r4,s4    ,brewing4 ,by   
,a4 ,chaston ,chapman1 ,f4,i4,c4    ,the
 ,talmud4 ,by ,i4 ,abrahams1 ,m4,a4     
,growth and ,form4 ,by ,prof4 ,d',arcy  
,w4 ,thompson1 ,c4,b41 ,m4,a4    ,beyond
 the ,atom4 ,by ,prof4 ,j4 ,cox4    ,the
 ,early ,history of ,india4 ,by ,e4 ,j4 
,rapson1 ,m4,a4    ,methodism4 ,by ,rev4
 ,h4 ,b4 ,workman1 ,d4,lit4    ,the     
,ballad in ,literature4 ,by ,t4 ,f4     
,henderson4    ,life in the ,medieval   
,university4 ,by ,r4 ,s4 ,rait1 ,m4,a4  
,the ,icelandic ,sagas4 ,by ,w4 ,a4     
,craigie1 ,,ll ,d4    ,mysticism in     
,modern ,english ,literature4 ,by ,miss 

,c4 ,f4 ,e4 ,spurgeon4    ,the ,early   
,religious ,poetry of ,india4 ,by ,a4   
,a4 ,macdonell4    ,german ,school      
,education4 ,by ,k4 ,h4 ,breul1         
,litt4,d4    ,the ,moral and ,political 
,ideas of ,plato4 ,by ,a4 ,m4 ,adam1    
,m4,a4    ,the ,growth of               
,municipalities4 ,by ,h4 ,d4 ,hazeltine1
 ,m4,a    ,ancient ,babylonia4 ,by ,rev4
 ,c4 ,h4 ,w4 ,johns1 ,litt4,d4    ,early
 ,christian ,poetry4 ,by ,f4 ,c4        
,burkitt1 ,m4,a44 ,f4,b4,a4             
,discovery in ,greek ,lands4 ,by ,f4 ,h4
 ,marshall1 ,m4,a4    ,the ,poetry of   
,burns4 ,by ,h4 ,j4 ,c4 ,grierson1      
,m4,a4    ,the ,crusades4 ,by ,rev4     
,prof4 ,j4 ,p4 ,whitney1 ,b4,d4         
,,press ,,notices    ,for those who have
 neither the time nor the preliminary   
training to  study great subjects on a  
grand scale these excellent handbooks   
seem  specially designed4 ,they have    
been written by scholars of eminence1   
and give in small compass an admirable  
epitome of the subjects with  which they

 deal ,these little volumes represent   
the essence that the  specialism of     
to-day can give to the people in popular
 form on the  subjects dealt with4      
,scotsman      ,the ,cambridge ,manuals 
of ,science and ,literature have already
 conquered  a wide audience amongst     
cultured people4 ,they are short studies
 of  great subjects1 and are published  
by the ,university ,press at one        
shilling ,the ,cambridge ,press is      
casting its literary net widely4        
,standard      ,on scientific subjects  
we must have the latest word from the   
expert1  and these ,cambridge ,manuals  
are easily the best primers on the      
market4  ,they are for the mature reader
 who wishes to find in as short a       
compass  as possible a semi-popular and 
broad treatment of recent discoveries   
and modern tendencies4 ,an excellent    
prospectus has been issued1  in which is
 given a wonderful list of subjects and 
authors ,every  conceivable aspect of   
modern knowledge is represented in the  

scope  of the series1 which is truly one
 of the most important publishing       
enterprises of recent years4            
,glasgow ,news      ,no such            
masterpieces of concentrated excellence 
as these ,cambridge  ,manuals have been 
published since the ,literature and     
,science ,primers  of about thirty years
 ago1 in which the leading men of that  
day made  complete expositions in       
miniature of their respective subjects  
,the  increase of specialisation which  
is steadily going on enormously         
enhances the value of manuals such as   
these1 in which an expert who has  every
 detail of a particular subject at his  
finger ends makes a pithy  and luminous 
summary of it for the enlightenment of  
the general reader1  and enables him to 
grasp easily the fruit of the work of   
many minds4                             
,nottingham ,guardian      ,among the   
excellent series of cheap monographs    
which are being issued  at the present  
time to lovers of solid reading1 none is

 more scholarly  in workmanship or more 
attractive in form than this published  
by the  ,cambridge ,university ,press   
,each volume is the work of an author   
who is  a master of the subject with    
which he deals4                         
,western ,daily ,press                  
,cambridge ,university ,press           
,london3 ,fetter ,lane1 ,e4,c4          
,c4 ,f4 ,clay1 ,manager             99  
99       99       99       99           
,transcriber ,note    ,illustrations    
were repositioned to avoid splitting    
paragraphs4 ,the  errata note was       
applied to the text4