MARTIUS ON THE BOTANY OF BRAZIL. 15 



(iorffia ■= Xanthoxylum ; Spixia z= Pera or Peridium ; Mar^ 

 tias Augusta = Stiftia ; Raddisia = Salacia? [With few 

 exceptions, what more is pubhshed on the plants of Brazil, 

 has reference rather to the uses and advantajres to be derived 

 from them by mankind, than to descriptive or systematic 

 Botany. We shall therefore pass that over in silence, and 

 quote from Martins what foreigners have done to promote a 

 more correct knowledge of Brazilian vegetation.] 



As the southern parts of the Brazils, but particularly that 

 of Rio de Janeiro, afford excellent harbours and many advan- 

 tages to those who circumnavigate the globe, they have been 

 frequently visited since the time of Magelhaen, and on these 

 occasions their plants have been collected by the Naturalists of 

 the several expeditions. Cook, on his first voyage round the 

 world, in 1768, touched at the noble port of Rio, where 

 Banks and Solander botanized. Many interesting plants that 

 were discovered by these celebrated men were only published 

 after a lapse of seventy years : for example, Oxypetalum 

 Banksii, and Alsodeia physophora. In the year 1766, Bou- 

 gainville touched there, and his companion Commerson com- 

 memorated the name of the commander of the expedition in 

 the beautiful Bougainvillea spectabilis, which he gathered in 

 the hedges of the suburbs. Macartney visited Rio on his 

 voyage to China, in 1792, where his young companion. Sir 

 George Staunton, detected many valuable species of plants. 



The Russian navigator, Krusenstern, in 1803, and Kot- 

 zebue, in 1815, the first accompanied by Langsdorff and 

 Tilesius, the latter by Chamisso, landed on the fertile island 

 of St Catharine ; and to M. Langsdorff we are indebted for 

 the first charming description of the magnificence of Brazil- 

 ian vegetation. These have greatly contributed to direct the 

 attention of European naturalists to the tropical regions which 

 were before almost unknown. The Brazilian plants which 

 were found in these two Russian expeditions are particularly 

 described in the following works : — " Plantes recueillies pen- 

 dant le voyage des Russes autour du Monde, Prem. partie ; 

 Icones Filicum (auct, Fischer et Langsdorff; Stuttg. 1810." 



