Mr. Babington on the Teucrium regium of Schreber. 375 



points out the unsatisfactory nature of the present views of 

 botanists on this subject, and will, it is to be hoped, open the 

 way for further investigations on a very important branch of 

 inquiry. From Dr. Schleiden^s ^^ Contributions to Phytoge- 

 nesis^^ I am happy to make the following quotation in support 

 of the views I have advanced. ^^The spiral vessels/^ he says, and 

 the same remark would apply to woody fibre, " begin to be 

 visible in the newly formed parts, and also in the entire bud, 

 always in the immediate vicinity of old already formed spiral 

 vessels, and they proceed in this manner away from the stem 

 into the new parts. I do not understand therefore what is 

 meant when the fibres of the stem are regarded as proceeding 

 from the buds ; one might just as well consider the river as 

 running from the ocean to its source." (Taylor's Scientific Me- 

 moirs, vol. ii. p. 303.) I have also lately received Meyen's 

 Neues System der Pflanzen-Physiologie, and to those who are 

 interested in this subject, I would recommend the observations 

 made by that able and laborious botanist ^ on the formation 

 of the new wood and bark,' in the first volume of the work. 

 " The Theory" (of Du Petit Thouars), observes Meyen, ^^ on 

 the formation of the new w^ood is truly very intellectual, and 

 although many have given their word for its correctness, it is 

 yet nothing more than a pretty picture with many defects." 



XLIV. — On the Teucrium regium of Schreber. By Charles 

 C. Babington, Esq., M.A., F.L.S., F.G.S., &c. 



The determination of a doubtful species must always be a 

 subject of great satisfaction to botanists, and I am therefore 

 much pleased that it has fallen into my power to do a little 

 towards the elucidation of a plant considered as a " species 

 dubia." The plant to which I refer is the Teucrium regium 

 of Schreber, which is stated by that author to be a native of 

 Spain, and, by Morison, of Italy ; but of which Mr. Bentham 

 (Labiatae, p. 683) appears not to have seen a specimen. A 

 plant bearing that name has been in my possession for several 

 years, having been gathered by M. Fleischer for the Unio 

 Itineraria " in fruticetis Smyrnae ;" and upon comparing it 



