270". COTRIANDRIA DIGYNIA. Andropogon.” 
Root of many perennial, long, spongy, brown fibres.— Culms ma- 
~ ny, smooth, simple, rigidly erect, a little compressed at the base, jointed, 
smooth, inwardly spongy ;-from four to six feet high and as thick as 5 
a goose quill.—- Leaves near the base bifarious, narrow, erect, from: : 
two to three feet long, pretty smooth, rigid.— Panicle from six to 
twelve inches long, conical, composed of numerous spreading, short- 
peduncled, simple, linear, verticelled spiked-racemes. Rachis of the. 
spiked-racemes jointed, winding, naked.— Flowers paired, awnless, À 
one hermaphrodite, sessile; the other male, and pedicelled ; inser- — 
tion nearly naked. 
HERMAPHRODITE FLOWER.: Calyx two-valved, nearly equal, © 
muricated.— Corol three-valved, membranaceous.— Nectary, two ob- - : 
cordate scales embracing the germ and insertions of thefilaments.— — 
Stamens three.—Stigmas. feathery. 
Mate Frower. - Calyr as in the hermaphrodite Cre m 
valved. — Nectary as above, — Stamens three. : 
Obs. 'The roots, when dry, and then gently moistened, emità — 
pleasant kind of fragrance; they are employed to make large faus, 
commonly called Vissarees ; and also to make screens which are placed i 
before windows and doors, which being kept moist during the hot — 
winds render the air that passes through them, both cool and fra- : 
grant. See Observation on Aristida setacea. The grass is often 
employed for thatch. sig eet | 
. Dr. Kénig was too accurate a Botanist to describe this very con- 
. spicuous plant under two. names, viz. A. squarrosus. Linn. Sp. PL: 5 
. Willd. iv. 908, and A. muricatus; the former is evidently a very dif | 
ferent species, and found by bim in Ceylon, floating on pools of wa-- - 
ter; whereas A. muricatus (which I formerly called aromaticus)iS —— 
/always rigidly erect, whether growing in water, or on dry land. Its — 
' root is delightfully aromatic, as mentioned by Konig himself, and by — 
Sir William Jones, particularly when moistened with water. 4. 
I am inclined to think Konig’s Andropogon squarrosusis my Pa- 
nicum paludosum ; a species with thick spongy culms which is ge*- | 
uerally found swimming on pools of sweet water. Cui oma 
x 
