Mr. J. Miers on the Affinities of the Olacacese. 167 



nosperince, as I suggested on a former occasion (huj. op. vol. vii. 

 p. 207), and in this group the anomalous genus Aptandra will 

 niturally find its place. On the other hand, the Sapotacece with 

 their truly axile placentation, the complete cells of their ovarium, 

 and their corolla more pleiopetalous than monopetalous, appear 

 more naturally allied to the Aquifoliacece, in which family the 

 petals are also generally combined at the base into a tube. The 

 Ebenacece, as before suggested, appear to belong to the neigh- 

 bourhood of the Anonacece rather than of the Aquifoliacece, with 

 which family they are strangely consociated by Dr. Lindley 

 (Veg. Kingd. p. 594) in the same alliance with the Gentianacece, 

 Apocynacece, &c. The affinity of the Symplocacece with the Hu- 

 miriacece has been already indicated. The Primulacece, together 

 with the Lentibulariacece, appear to have more relation with the 

 Plantaginacece and Hydrophyllacece„&n alliance that differs little 

 from that shown by Dr. Lindley (Veg. Kingd. p. 637). The 

 farther prosecution of these considerations would be foreign to 

 the present purpose, and they are now only indicated with the 

 view of assisting us in the determination of the true affinities of 

 the Olacacece. 



There is yet another family, to which the Olacacece, compre- 

 hending all the genera included in it by Mr. Bentham, will 

 be found to offer many points of approximation, — I mean the 

 Aquifoliacece of DeCandolle, the Ilicinece of Brongniart, Endlicher 

 and others ; but I am not aware that this affinity has been before 

 noticed. Many species of Ilex bear much the habit of the Ola- 

 cacece and differ little in the structure of the flower from the 

 tribe Icacinece, except in the aestivation of the corolla and the 

 unilocular apex of the ovarium. Leretia, indeed, bears a re- 

 markable resemblance in its habit and inflorescence, and in the 

 structure of its flowers, to a Brazilian species of Villaresia, dif- 

 fering principally in the aestivation of the corolla, and in the 

 want of an inner carinated midrib in the petals ; but in other 

 points of arrangement there is very little variance, agreeing even 

 in its unilocular ovarium, with two collateral ovules suspended 

 almost parietally from near the apex of the cell. The structure 

 of the fruit of Villaresia corresponds so far with that of the Ola- 

 cacece, in having a single seed, with copious albumen, containing 

 a small embryo* near its summit, with a superior radicle, and 

 small cotyledons. It may be well here to mention a fact, ap- 

 parently yet unknown, which may serve to throw some better 

 light upon the real affinities of the Aquifoliacece. I have found 

 that the suspension of the ovules in the ovarium of Villaresia 

 is- not really parietal, as generally stated, for it is sometimes 

 completely bilocular, with two ovules in each cell, collaterally 

 suspended from each side of the dissepiment by a cupshaped 



