HOW TO KNOW THE FERNS BY S. LEONARD BASTIN WITH THIRTY-THREE ILLUSTRATIONS METHUEN & CO. LTD. 36 ESSEX STREET W.C. LONDON _First Published in 1917_ CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE I. The Ferns and their Allies 1 II. Life Histories 13 III. Yesterday and To-day 23 IV. Three Dainty Ferns 33 V. The Bracken Fern and Two Interesting Species 38 VI. The Male Fern and its Relatives 46 VII. The Lady Fern and the Spleenworts 66 VIII. The Polypodies 86 IX. The Royal Fern 93 X. Four Curious Ferns 96 XI. The Club Mosses 101 XII. The Horsetails 112 XIII. Fern Collecting and Preserving 122 XIV. The Culture of Ferns 129 Index 133 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS