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 A HISTORY OF STAFFORDSHIRE The country around is broken by deep valleys, dales or gullies, watered by rivers and rivulets, in which are found the trailing stems of the water milfoil (Myriopbyllum spicatum) or streaming stems of water ranunculus (Ranunculus pseudo-Jiuitans), and on the marshy moorlands the golden saxifrage (Chrysosplenium alternifolium), the marsh violet (Viola palustris} and the beautiful grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) . In the beauti- ful Dove dale the limestone rocks have been rent by the geological convulsions of nature, and present their naked faces or escarpments in the form of perpendicular rocks rising high above the level of the stream, attaining an elevation of over 1,000 feet above sea level, to which many fanciful names have been given. These rocks, abound- ing in fissures, are the homes of many of the rarest plants of the district, as the hairy violet (Viola birta}, the barberry (Berberis -vul- garis}, the wall whitlow grass (Draba muralis}, the rare bitter cress (Cardamine impatient), the kidney vetch (Anthyllis Vulneraria} and the dwarf furze (Ulex nanus}. In the valleys of the Hamps and Manyfold are similar mountain limestone rocks, fantastic in appearance, one of the more notable being Beeston Tor. Here is found the wild pansy (Viola lutea}, the white beam (Pyrus Aria) and the mossy saxifrage (Saxifraga hypnoides}, and on Ecton Hill the vernal sandwort (Arenaria verna). South of this are the fine limestone eminences, the Weaver Hills, rising to some 1,150 feet above the sea, clothed with rich grass in spring, but very bare in the hotter months, and with abundant exposed rocky surfaces, affording a home for many of the limestone loving species, such as the rock rose (Helianthemum vu/gare), the dropwort (Spirtza Fili- pendtila), the sandwort (Arenaria tenuifolia}, the autumn gentian (Gentiana Amarella}, the field gentian (G. campestris] and the long-stalked crane's bill (Geranium columbiniim}. In the southern portion of the county, south-west of Rugeley, the country though richly undulating rarely rises to greater altitudes than from 600 to 800 feet above sea level. Here are a series of round topped hills, a portion of the extensive Cannock Chase. These are usually clothed with thin grass, abundant bracken (Pteris aquilina}, and grey with a rich clothing of ling (Calluna vulgaris}, heath (Erica cinerea and E. tetralix), with dark green bushes of crow- berry (Empetrum nigrum), the whortleberry (Vaccinium Vitis-Id<#},and here and there gay with the golden flowers of the broom (Cytisus scoparius}, but with furze and bramble really rare ; very well wooded in parts with oak, elm and pine, and with a rich undergrowth of bilberry and bracken and often bluebells (Scilla nutans). In the valleys between the hills are swampy grass lands, watered by small rapid streams and rich in marsh plants, as the forget-me-not (Myosotis palustris}, and here also the bog asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum), the grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palus- tris), the marsh violet (Viola palustris) and the trailing stems of the cranberry are abundant. South-west of this are the limestone hills of Dudley Castle and Sedgley Beacon. These are slight elevations, but appear more elevated by contrast with the low level of most of the country around. Dudley Castle is 730 feet above the sea, and its ruins 42