Messrs Mellor and Leslie[581] have described and figured some large casts of roots exposed in Permo-Carboniferous rocks in the bed of the Vaal river at Vereeniging (Transvaal) which exhibit certain features suggesting comparison with _Stigmaria_. Some of these reach a length of 40–50 feet and, when complete, were probably not less than 100 feet long: in some of them the centre of the cast from which forked arms spread almost horizontally shows a depression in the form of a cross indicating a regular dichotomous branching like that of _Stigmaria_. The authors incline to the belief that the roots belong to _Noeggerathiopsis_ and not to a lycopodiaceous plant, though Lepidodendroid stems are abundant in the sandstone a few feet higher in the series. Despite the absence of any Stigmarian scars on the surface of the fossil it is probable that these fine specimens are the rhizomes of some lycopodiaceous plant, possibly _Bothrodendron_, which is not uncommon in the Vereeniging beds. Admitting that _Stigmaria_ is part of _Sigillaria_, the next question is, is _Stigmaria_ a root in the ordinary sense, the underground system formed on germination of the spore and of equal age with the shoot, or did it bear a different relation to the Sigillarian stems? To this question different answers would still be given. Goeppert[582] discussed evidence in favour of the view that aerial Sigillarian shoots were produced as vegetative buds on pre-existing Stigmarian axes, like young moss plants on a protonema. At a later date Renault[583] developed a similar view as regards _Sigillaria_; but we may pass on to consider the more recent and complete observations of Grand’Eury[584] and Solms-Laubach[585].