Note 23 — Chapter IV

Another proof of the looseness of the texture of this ancient vegetable may be gathered from the almost invariable truncation of even the largest erect stems; they are snapped across at the height of a few feet from their base. The famous "Torbanehill Mineral" contains many such fragmentary stems, often of considerable thickness. Their interior consists of the same material as the surrounding bed, and displays many dissevered plants that may have been washed into the decaying trunks. For the internal structure of sigillaria see Dr Hooker's Memoir, and the authorities therein cited.