on the Hortus Malabaricus, Part II. _ 249 
plenty of room for air, it runs up to be a small tree, is later of 
flowering, and produces fruit annually for many years. In short, 
what I have said concerning the variety of the Cotton plant in my 
commentary on the first part of the Hortus Malabaricus*, is almost 
entirely applicable to the Avanacoes, which, as Commeline ob- 
serves, are both varieties of the Ricinus vulgaris of C. Bauhin. 
Plukenet, however, was not satisfied with this, but considered 
the Cit (alba) Avanacu as different from the common kind, and 
as being the Ricinus Americanus major caule virescente (Alm.319.), 
while the Pandi Avanacu he calls Ricinus africanus maximus 
caule geniculato rutilante (l. c.). With respect to the last he may 
be right, in so far that the Pandi Avanacu may be the same with 
the plant he means; but he has not attended to what Rheede 
says respecting the Cit Avanacu, ** cujus duæ species sunt, una 
cortice viridi communi, altera rubro." If, therefore, the colour 
of the stem is to make a difference, both the species of Cit Ava- 
nacu cannot belong to the American plant, which Plukenet 
quotes. Although I call this an American plant, I have no 
doubt that India is the original country of the Ricinus, and that 
it has been carried to America as a plant highly useful: for I must 
here observe, that very few if any plants were originally common 
to the East and West Indies. Plukenet indeed (Alm. 111.) en- 
tertained a contrary opinion, ‘f Experientia enim nos docuit, 
quamplurimas Indiæ orientalis plantas etiam in America repe- 
riri ;" and this opinion has been followed by none more than by 
Linnzus: but I am confident, that the spontaneous vegetable 
productions of the two countries are totally different ; and daily 
experience is now showing, that the plants of Sloane and Rheede, 
which were at one time considered as the same, differ in some 
remarkable circumstance. 
The elder Burman (Thes. Zeyl. 206.) joins properly the Ava- 
* Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 492. 
nacoe 
