LANDMARKS OF BOTANICAL HISTORY GREENE 303 



''Let us, then, indicate three groups by their (morphologic) dif- 

 ferences. Let the first be the Tithymali, the second the Intybaceae. 

 Then we shall have a third group that is of neither the Tithymali 

 nor the Intybacese. We shall now proceed to demonstrate how 

 these two may be distinguished. Tithymalus is a genus of many 

 species every one of which has elongated leaves devoid of any kind 

 of indentation or division. All intybaceous herbs have their 

 leaves more or less erose or incised all around the edges. The 

 greater proportion of the tithymali have an umbellate inflorescence 

 and all of them, even those not umbellate have each flower and 

 fruit subtended by a pair of opposite leaves. But the flower 

 stalklets of the intybaceae bear each a flower composed of small 

 leaves compacted together, yellow as to color, Chondrilla minor and 

 Cichorium excepted, in which they are either blue or white. The 

 flowers of intybaceous plants resolve themselves into a kind of wool 

 called a pappus. Never so the tithymali, for all of them have a three- 

 celled fruit with a single seed in each cell. The seeds of intybaceae 

 with their pappus sail away on the breeze. The tithymali eject 

 their seeds forcibly and with a sound. The milk of the intybaceae 

 is bitter at first taste. That of the tithymali is at first taste mild, 

 even not so unlike that of cow's milk, but after that it begins to 

 burn the mouth and throat, and if applied to the skin may blister it ; 

 which the mild juices of the intybaceae never do. Now these herbs, 

 which I have thus distinguished by their proper marks from the 

 Intybaceae, are called the Tithymali and may be known by that 

 general [i. e. family] name. To the Intybaceae belong all the species 

 of Lactuca, both kinds of Chondrilla, Intybus sativus, and silvestris, 

 commonly known as Cichorium, also Hieracium, and whatever 

 other plants are like them [i. e. organologically], and have a milky 

 juice. 



"My third assemblage r f lactiferous plants can not be distributed 

 among these two groups, neither do they of themselves constitute 

 an alliance ; for they are not united by any resemblances which 

 they have in common. But they are not very numerous. Ficus, 

 Erinus, Scammonia, and Cissampelus are among them; each seeming 

 to belong to an alliance of its own. M1 



Cesalpino, of the end of the sixteenth century, will be praised 

 in future millenniums for having founded Systematic Botany. But 

 had Valerius Cordus lived to only twice his nine-and-twenty years, 

 it is easy to conceive that the great Italian might have missed his 

 laurels. 



1 Cordus, Annot. in'JDiosc., p. 74', of Cordus' works, edition of 1561. 



