128 Dr. Smith's Inquiry into the Genus 



copied from the publication of Clusius, for the following pas- 

 sages are interspersed that " he hopes another year to send 



Pona the flowers/' that " the fruit as above described was un- 

 ripe," and that " the wood is red." The particular place of 

 growth, and the reference to Theophrastus are omitted, but Pona 

 subjoins the following information. 



" The trunks of this tree have been, within a short time, 

 " brought to Italy, and bought by some persons, who sold them 

 " for Sandal-wood. It differs, however, from the genuine wood 

 " of that name, especially in being less heavy." 



From these writers the Abelicea found its way into Bauhin's 

 Pina.v, p. 393, by the name of Pseudosantalum Creticum, but 

 without any new observation. The account of it, extracted 

 from Clusius, occurs also in J. Bauhin's Historia Plantarum, 

 v. i. 490, without a figure, or any reference to Pona. In Ray's 

 Historia Plantarum, v. ii. 1805, we find merely a transcript of 

 J. Bauhin, with a reference to Parkinson, whose book I have 

 not at hand, but it can scarcely contain any further information 

 on this subject. 



On turning to Theophrastus I find no reason to consider it as 

 his »>Mhi*« or Mountain Elm, for the only characters given of 

 that tree, and which are quoted by Belli in the above ^extract 

 serve to prove them perfectly different plants. 



In Tournefort's herbarium specimens of the Abelicea, with a 

 reference to John Bauhin, are preserved, but I can find'no men- 

 tion of it either in his Voyage, his Institutiones, or his Corollarium. 

 He probably gathered it in Crete, but did not observe the fructi- 

 fication. 



Specimensgathered,eitherbythatgreatFrenchbotanistorothers 



of his time, are to be found in various collections. One of them 



was sent by Schrcber to Linnaeus, without fructification, marked 



4 with 



