Mr. J. Miers on the Winteracese. 37 



and placing the Canellacea at the head of the Rheeades, to which 

 class, from their carpellary structure, they must belong, we thus 

 maintain uniformity in the systematic arrangement, without 

 disturbing the chain of linear gradation that naturally exists 

 between these families. 



The genera of the Winter a cea have a wide geographical range. 

 Drimys is distributed over all equinoctial South America, Mexico, 

 the more temperate regions of Chile, the Strait of Magellan, and 

 New Zealand. Tasmannia is met with in Australasia and Borneo, 

 while Illicium is found in tropical Asia, Japan, and North Ame- 

 rica; and the coincidence may be remarked, that the Schizan- 

 dracece exist only in the last-mentioned three distant regions. 

 Canella has hitherto been met with only in the Antilles and the 

 northernmost point of the South American continent, while Cin- 

 namodendron is found on the very margin of the southern tropic 

 of Brazil, as well as in the West Indies. The Magnoliacece are 

 natives of many parts of India, of tropical South America, and 

 the United States ; and I believe there is no instance of the 

 occurrence of any of the above-mentioned families in the conti- 

 nents of Europe and Africa. The Lardizabalacea, however, are 

 found in the tropical parts of Africa and Asia, and also in extra- 

 tropical South America, while the Menispermacea have a general 

 cosmopolitan distribution. 



I will now proceed to offer a few remarks upon the several 

 genera of the Winteracece, and give an amended character of 

 each, as far as my own observations extend. 



1. Drimys. 



This genus has been described by several botanists, more 

 particularly by St. Hilaire, who enters into many details of its 

 structure*. One of its peculiar features is in its calyx, which, 

 in the bud, forms one entire valveless covering, and at length 

 bursts into two concave segments, more by a laceration of the 

 tegument than by any distinguishable commissure : it is deci- 

 duous. Its lanceolate petals are distinct to the base, and are 

 variable in number, being sometimes only five to eight, when 

 they are uniserial ; in other cases they vary from ten to sixteen, 

 when they are biserial ; and not unfrequently they are as many 

 as twenty-four, when they are in three whorls : they are white, 

 and also deciduous. The stamens likewise vary in number, 

 being generally very numerous, and arranged in one to seven 

 whorls, of five to eight in each whorl, somewhat increasing in 

 length, the inner series being longest : they are all short, less 

 than one-sixth the length of the petals, and seated, together with 



* PI. Usuelles, 5. pi. 26-28. 



