BK. M. T. MASTERS ON SOUTH-AFItlCAN RESTIACE^. 213 



into five primary regions, which I may broadly define as follows, 

 referring the reader for more exact details to the works just men- 

 tioned, Drege's first region, I., may be called the northern inland 

 district, from lat. 30|^ to 32° S., long. 22^ to 28'' E. ; the second 

 region, IL, is intermediate between the northern and southern 

 range of hills, extending from lat, 32'' to 34'', and from long. 22'' to 

 27° The third district, III., of Drege extends along the west 

 coast, from 29'' to 35° lat., long. 17" to 19^. The fourth region, IV., 

 intervenes between the southern hills and the sea — that is, from 

 about 33i° S. lat. to the sea, and from 19° to 26° long. The fifth 

 or east-coast division, V., ranges from 28° to 31° S. lat., and from 

 2G° to 32° long. Of 191 species collected by Drege, 2 were ga- 

 thered in region I., 10 in IL, 190 in III.,45 in IV., and 4 or 5 in V. 

 It will be observed that the same species occurs in more than one 

 region. Of 114 species collected by Burchcll, and of which I have 

 memoranda ; none were collected in Drege's region I., none in II,, 

 none in III., 110 in IV., and 4 in V. This account of the distri- 

 bution of Burchell's specimens is only to be considered approxi- 

 mately correct ; at any rate it is sufficiently so to show that the 

 vast majority of the species occur between lat. 32° S. and the sea, 

 and between long. 18° and 22.° E. In other words, the species 

 are most abundant between the mountain-ranges on the south- 

 west and south limits of the Cape Colony and the coast. They 

 are frequent on the southern and western slopes of the mountauis 

 from base to summit, but are very much more rare on the oppo- 

 site side. 



The Bestiac€<B thus form one of the most peculiar features of a 

 most peculiar flora; whether that is the remnant of an ancient 

 type of vegetation, or in what way the singularity is to be ac- 

 counted for, is a problem which aftbrds abundant scope for specula- 

 tion among geologists and biologists,but upon which point I will not 

 venture to express any opinion in this place ; I would merely point 

 out that the problem is rendered more complex from the unisexual 

 condition of the flowers ; and, as an addition to the facts tliat may 

 hereafter be useful in such speculations, I may stale that, though 

 some of the genera are common to Australia and South Africa, not 

 one of the species is found on both continents*. 



Leptocarpus. 



A genus establislied by Robert Brown, Prod. Flor. Nov. HolL 



* See Hooker, Fl. Aii8(ralia, Introd. E&sav, p. xlii. A. Murray, Geographic 

 cal Distrib. of Mammals, ht\ ciL 



