276 Dr. Francis Hamilton's Commentary 



while those of the Batti Schorigenam, are ovate and shaped like 

 a wedge towards the footstalk. Neither does Linnaeus quote 

 for his plant the Katschambali, but the Watuhahambilya . 



Now the Watuhahambilya is the second plant of Burman, 

 quoted by Linnaeus for the Batti Schorigenam, that I shall 

 mention. By Hermann it is called Urtica zeylanica, hortensis, 

 urens, folds cannabinis {Thes. Zeyl. 233.). It is impossible that 

 so good a botanist as Hermann would compare to the leaves of 

 the Cannabis, either those of the Batti Schorigenam or of the 

 Urtica fatua Sec. of Burman ; and I have little doubt that Her- 

 mann meant the plant now called Tragia cannabina ; and this 

 the more especially, that Hermann, besides this garden plant, 

 describes another Watuhahambilya, which he calls Cannabina 

 indica, sylvestris, UrticcB foliis urentibus. Now these two plants 

 I take to be what Willdenow {Sp. PL iv. 326".) calls two varieties 

 of the Tragia cannabina, represented by Plukenet {Phyt. t. 220. 

 /". 2 ; and t. 120. f. 6.). These indeed have little or no resem- 

 blance to the Croton hastatum /3 of Burman (F/. Ind. 305. t. 63. 

 /.I.), although this also is quoted for the Tragia cannabina ; but 

 Burman by mistake added the figure to the plant of Plukenet, 

 which Linnaeus no doubt meant {foliis trilobo-hastatis lanceo- 

 latis dentatis). Linnaeus however was probably misled by Bur- 

 man's figure into the mistake of supposing the stem erect; for a 

 plant which I have no doubt is that of Plukenet, is certainly a 

 climber. The Croton hastatum (B is however the plant now 

 called Tragia cannabina in the Hortus Kewensis (v. 256.), al- 

 though I have no doubt that M. Lamarck is right in consider- 

 ing it as not a Tragia, but as a Croton very nearly allied to 

 the C tinctoriurn. Perhaps he rather erred in considering it 

 as a mere variety of this European plant ; and both Roxburgh 

 and Koenig were probably right in thinking it a distinct species, 

 which they called C. asperum ; although Dr. Roxburgh after- 

 wards 



