174 Dr. Francis Hamitton’s Commentary 
tion which my esteemed friend Mr. R. Brown has bestowed on 
the vegetable kingdom. It is only by extending such examina- 
tion much further, that the real value of each distinctive cha- 
racter can be ascertained ; but, until this has been accomplished, 
I doubt the propriety of introducing so many new natural orders 
as has been done of late. I could rather indeed wish to see se- 
veral of Jussieu's orders united into one, than to have each torn 
into portions that deserve only to be called genera. 
Having thus premised what appears to me necessary for ex- 
plaining this genus called Kaida by Rheede, I must now pro- 
ceed to examine his four species, all of which his commentator 
Commeline considered as having been previously unknown to 
botanists. Perhaps he was so far right, that the accounts pre- 
viously given were so incomplete, that the notices contained in 
former writers could only be considered as belonging to the ge- 
nus, and not sufficient to ascertain the species which had been 
seen. 
The Kaida however of Rheede is justly entitled to be consi- 
dered the prototype of the genus, and therefore, as usual among 
the Hindus, is not marked by a specific name. It is entitled to 
this pre-eminence by the great fragrance of its male flowers, 
which renders it always in request with the natives of India ; and 
it is likely to have been shown by them to the curious from 
Europe, as one of their most interesting vegetables. On this 
account I should suspect that this is probably the Ananas bravo 
of Acosta, the Arbor fructu Ananas ex caudice emergente, nucleis 
turgente of C. Dauhin, and the Ananas sylvestris, folio aloes, 
fructu cupressino of J. Bauhin, and almost certainly the Frutex 
indicus fructu aggregato conoideo Kaida dicta of Ray ; although, 
not being able to consult these authors at present, I do not 
know what objections there may be to this opinion. 
Plukenet, having received from southern Arabia a species of 
this 
