ON THE ASCLEPIADEAS.
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tremely slight, and, like the body of the stigma, green; theantherae, however, were distinctly formed, easily separable [isfrom the stigma, and their cells, which were absolutely shut,were filled with a turbid fluid, the parts of which did notso cohere as to separate in a mass ; of the cuculli, which inthe expanded flower are so remarkable, and constitute theessential character of the genus, there was no appearance.
In the next stage submitted to examination, where thecorolla nearly equalled the calyx in length, the gland-likebodies of the stigma were become visible, and consisted oftwo nearly filiform, light brown, parallel, contiguous andmembranaceous substances, secreted by the sides of thefurrow, which was now somewhat deeper: instead of thefiliform processes, a gelatinous matter occupied an obliquelydescending depression proceeding from towards the base ofeach side of the angular furrow.
In a somewhat more advanced stage, the membraneswhich afterwards become the glands of the stigma werefound to be linear, closely approximated, and to adhere attheir upper extremity. At the same time the gelatinoussubstance in the oblique depression had acquired a nearlymembranaceous texture and a light brown colour, and onseparating the gland from its furrow, which was thenpracticable, this membrane followed it. At this period,too, the contents of each cell of the anthera had acquired acertain degree of solidity, a determinate form, and wereseparable from the cell in one mass; the cuculli werealso observable, but still very small and green, nearlyscutelliform, having a central papilla, the rudiment of thefuture horn-like process. Immediately previous to thebursting of the cells of the antherae, which takes place alittle before the expansion of the corolla, the cuculli arecompletely formed, and between each, a pair of minutelight green fleshy teeth are observable, the single teeth ofeach pair being divided from each other by the descendingalae of the antherae. The glands of the stigma have ac-quired a form between elliptical and rhomboidal, a carti-laginous texture, and a brownish-black colour; they areeasily separable from the secreting furrow, and on their