plants of the fame natural order, he will find that this is theo- 

 retically correct ; moft of the genera having feveral capfules 

 which are either quite diftinct, or more or lefs united. The 

 fruit of the prefent fpecies illuftrates this explanation exceed- 

 ingly well, the capfules being entirely diftinct, except at their 

 inner edge, where they are united from the bafe to about the 

 middle : in N. hifpanica, figured in the next plate, the capfules 

 are much more united, but are ftill diftincl at their backs ; in 

 N. iamajcena they are fo perfectly united, that there is no trace 

 left of diftinct. capfules, except at their very extremity, where 

 they open at the inner future to difcharge the feeds. The 

 ftudent may be Mill more perplexed by two apparent mifprints; 

 one is, that wherever the effential or abbreviated character 

 is prefixed to the genus the nectaries are uniformly faid to 

 be five, but in all the editions of the Genera Plantarum 

 that we have feen, where the characters are given at length, 

 the nectaries are faid to be eight, we conclude therefore that 

 the figure 5 was in the firft inftance a mifprint for &, The 

 other fuppofed miftake, is not fo certain ; but in the Genera 

 Plantarum, where it is faid ** germina convexa" we conclude 

 that connexa was the word intended, as the former word gives no 

 precife idea ; and we are confirmed in this opinion, by the 

 printer of Willdenow's edition of the Species Plantarum 

 having fallen into the very fame error, by changing capfulae 

 connex<e into convexa. 



According to Morison, the Nigella orientalis was in- 

 troduced into this country, from Aleppo, by the Reverend 

 Mr. Harrington, chaplain to the faftory there. It is a hardy 

 annual, requiring the fame treatment as laid down from 

 Miller, at No. 22, in the firft volume of this Work. Drawn 

 at Mr. Salisbury's Botanic Garden, Sloane-Street. Flowers 

 in July and Auguft. 



