CHAP. CXU.

1096'

Taxa' cete.

P. elonghtus L’Herit, Richard Co-nif., p. 13.1.1. f. 2., andour.zJg-.1997.;T. clonghtus Ait Hart Hew., ed. 1.,3. p. 415., Thun. Prod., 117., Smithin Rees's Cycl., No. 3.; has theleaves scattered, linear-lanceolate. 'Branches somewhat whorled. Maleflowers cylindrical, with spirally im-bricated and very numerous anthers.These scale-like anthers of the maleflower are very like those of a fir. Anative of the Cape of Good Hope,sent to Kew in 1774. There areplants at Messrs. Loddiges’s.

P. chilinus Rich. Mem. Conif.,p. 11. 1 .1. f. 1., and our Jig. 19S6., is amiddle-sized tree, a native of Chili,

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1997

1999

where it is called Manigui, andwhence specimens of the male plantwere*sent,to Europe,by the collectorDombey.

P. coriciceus Rich. Conif., 1. 1. £ 3., and our fig. 1998., is a native ofthe Island of Montserrat, and resembles P. elong&.tus, but is smallerin all its parts.

P. taxifolius Kunth in Humb. and Bonp.

Nov. Gen., 2. p. 2. t. 97. ; Rich. Mem. Conif.,pi. 29. f. 1., and our Jigs. 1999, and 2000.; P.montHnus LodJ. Cat ., ed. 1836 ; Taxus mon-tana Willd. Sp. PI., 4. p. 857. This is a treewith the habit of Taxus bacckta, a native ofPeru, and of which only the female plant hashitherto been sent to Europe. Some curiousInformation respecting the anatomy of its fruit will be found in Richard’sMtmoire, p. 15. There are plants at Messrs. Loddiges’s.

Other Species . At Messrs. Loddiges’s, there are PodocSrpus excelsus,and P. ttcriif 61ius; and also 7’axusjapdnica: but whether they, and alsoseveral of the names above given, areapplied to plants sufficiently distinct,or whether they are synonymes, wehave no means of ascertaining. InLambert’s Pinus, 2d ed., vol. ii.,several species are mentioned, or ]99gshortly described, as natives of Chiliand New Holland, affording an ex»ample of coincidence in the vegetationof these countries, with that of the -f I

south of Africa. «

Dacrtfdium Solander. Sexes dioecious. Flowers minute.— Male. Catkin solitary, terminal, |oblong. Flowers imbri-cated, each consisting of a scale and two cases of pollen attach-ed to its lower part on the outside. — Female. Flowers ter-minal, solitary; eacli v borne upon the surface of the last leafof a shoot, and part of it embraced by that leaf, and by contiguous ones; andincluded within acupule-like or calyx-like involucre, which has a terminalorifice, that widens more and more; and the involucre eventually becomes acupule-like body, of a firm fleshy consistence, and situated at the lower part ofthe fruit. Calyx globosely turbinate, but contracted towards the tip, and thenexpanded into glandular, narrow, and spreading limbs. Pistil almost whollyfree, included. Fruit rather egg-shaped, tipped with a small point. Two spe-cies have been described, and are introduced.

D. cupressinum Sol. in Forst. Pi. Es., p. 80., Prod., p. 92., Lam. Pin., p. 93.t. 41. ed. 2., ii. t. 69., Rich. M£m. Conif., p. 127. t. 2., and our Jig. 2001. ; Thalt.mia cupressina Sprang. This is a tall evergreen tree, with pendent branches,and the small shoots covered with numerous dichotomous (2-rowed) scaly-lookingleaves, not unlike, at a distance, those of Lycopodium. The male catkins are sessile, oblong-ovate, im-bricate, with many flowers. The female flower, which is shown in Jig. 2001. a, is produced at the sum-mit of the leaf, and is included in an involucrum, which forms a sort of cup, and conceals the pistillumfrom the view. It is a native of New Zealand, where it was discovered by Dr. Solander, during Cook’sfirst voyage. In Cook’s second voyage, he made the shores of New Zealand, at a place which hehad previously named Dusky Bay, in March, 1773. “ The country at the back of this bay is describedas exceedingly mountainous, the hills forming part of that great chain which extends throughoutthe larger island from Cook’s Straits. These hills are said to wear an aspect, than which a morerude and craggy feature can rarely be seen; for the mountain summits are of stupendous height,and consist of rock, totally barren and naked, except where they are covered with snow. Skirtingthe sea shore, the land and all the islands in the bay are densely clothed with wood, nearly down tothe water’s edge. Except in the river Thames (a river of New Zealand), Captain Cook adds, “ I havenot seen finer timber in all New Zealand. The most considerable for size is the spruce tree (Dacrydiumcupressinum Sol., many individuals of which were observed from 6 ft. to 8 ft. or 10 ft. in girt, and from60 ft. or 80 ft. to even 100 ft. high, quite large enough to make a main mast for a fifty-four gun ship.”Of the leaves of this tree Cook made beer, which he gave to his ship’s company ; and which, whenwell prepared, and corrected from its extreme astringency by a decoction of philadelphus, or tea plant(Leptospermum scop&rium), proved a good antiscorbutic, and was acknowledged to be little inferiorto the American spruce beer, by those who had experience of both. {Comp, to the Bot. Mag., vol. ii.228.) Mr. George Bennett, in his Observations on the Conifera of New 7ealand, published inambert’s Pinus, says that he has seen the Dacrydium cupressinum growing to the height of 80 ft.or 90 ft., but with a trunk seldom exceeding in circumference, 15 ft. The timber is considered

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