230 Dr. Francis Hamilton's Commentary 



one and the same with the Friitex indicus baccifencs, Vitis Idace 

 secundiE Clusii foliis of Breynius. 



Plukenet in his P/n/tographia {t. 69. /. 3.) delineates a plant, 

 which he calls Vitis Idace species Maderaspatana, Nirnri forte 

 Malabarensibus dicta. Hart. Mai. 2., which would seem to imply 

 a doubt of its being the same with the ISSiruri : but for this doubt 

 I see no good reason, the two figures very strongly resembling 

 each other. He also in this work quotes Breynius with doubt, 

 although in the Almagestuin (391 •) this is not expressed, as he 

 was then probably satisfied of the plants being the same. 



The elder Burman {Tlics. Zeyl. 198. t. 88.) describes a plant, 

 very like the Nirnri, under the name of R/iammis zeylanicus, folio 

 subrotundo, glabro, cautibus hirsutis, spinis exiguis, ad ramorum et 

 foliorum ortum exasperatus, ftoscido spadiceo, bacca nigra ; but he 

 quotes neither the Nirnri, the plant of Breynius, nor that of 

 Plukenet above mentioned. On the contrary, he quotes, although 

 with uncertainty, the Acacia forte' cognatiis e Maderaspata7ia 

 frutex of Plukenet {Pliyt. t. 122. /. 4.), stating, however, that 

 as it had neither fruit nor flower, he could not be certain. Bur- 

 man adds as synonymous a plant of Sloane, probably from Ja- 

 maica. There is, however, notwithstanding the most striking 

 resemblance, an essential difference between the Rhamnus zey- 

 lanicus and Niruri : the former has flowers divided into four, 

 while those of the latter are divided into five, have probably five 

 stamina, and certainly only two styli ; but the quinque jiavi no- 

 duli ad orijiciumjloris, which I have interpreted antherae, may be 

 five glandular bodies in a female flower. 



Soon after Linnaeus, with his usual contempt for preceding 

 authors, chose to give the name Niruri to a plant totally diff"e- 

 rent from the Niruri of Rheede, and which Rheede had indeed 

 described under the name Kirganeli. 



The younger Burman called the Rhamnus zeylanicns of his 



father 



