BASKET HOUTUS JAiMAICENSIS. ' & 



bcrcent underneath. Between the branch and the leaf, a spine with four sharp rays 

 from the centre. Flowers sessiie in the axils. Calyxes acuininatc-spiny. Twoot'tiio 

 four siamens very siiiaii at the bottom of the corolla, with little anthers. Tiie capsule 

 has a longish solid point ; and bursts without sucii internal elastic points as are in the 

 jusiitia. It is a native of the East Indies, and was introduced into the botanic garden, 

 Liguanea, by Mr. East. Both species are propagated by seeds. 



BASIL. OCYMUM. 



Cl. 14, OR. 1. Didt^namia, gTjmnosperm>a. Nat. on. Verticillatte. 



Gen. char. Tlie upper lip of the calyx is orbicnlated, the inferior one quadrifid ; 

 the corolla is re-s'.ipinated, with one lip quadrifid, the other undivided ; the exte- 

 rior filament sends out a reflected process at the base. 



BASIUCUM. 



Leaves ovate, glabrous : calyx ciliate. 



The root of this plant is fibrous ; the stalk green and cjnadrangular, not above half a 

 foot high ; the leaves oblong and acute. The seeds i'n each cup are four, sniaii, naked, 

 and oval. The inflorescence a spike. The juice of the leaves is said to be good for 

 sore eyes, and the same given in toddy to women in laboi'.r, is said to help forward the 

 birth It grows every where in the lowlands and savannas. 



We have in Jamaica two or three sorts of basil ; but that which grows spontaneously, 

 and most common, is that sort which Sir Hans Sioane calls ocymurn rubrum medium. 

 There is another sort in South America, mentioned by Monsiear Frezier, called alva 

 haquillu ; a shrub, saith he, which has the scent of our sweet ba^ii, and contains a balm 

 of great use for sores ; whereof we saw a wonderful effect at Yrt-quin, in an Indian, 

 whose neck was deeply ulcerated. I also had the experience of it on myself. The 

 flower of it is long, growing up like an ear of (urn, of a whitish colour, inclining to a 

 violet, and is tribed amongst the legumina. Basils are spoken against by Dioscorides, 

 Galen, and Chrysippus ; but Pliu}' cdmmends them much, and saith they are good 

 against the sting of scorpions and other venomous serpents, and are accounted a very 

 great coruial, and good against pains of the head, &,c. Murham, p. 17. 



BASKET- WITHE. TOURNEFORTIA. 



Cl. S, or. 1. Pentav.dria monogynia. Nat. or. AsptvifoUie'. 



This was so named by Linneus, in memory of Joseph Pittun Tournelbrt, the famous 

 .author of an elegant arrangement of plants. 



Gen. char. Calyx a five-parted small perianthir.m, segments awl-shaped, perma- 

 nent ; corolla one-petalied, five-cleft, segments acuminate ; stamina awl-shapcd 

 filaments, length of the tube, and placed in the mouth; gerinen globose, style 

 simple, club-shaped, stigma circumcised ; the pericarp a globular berry, two-cell- 

 ed, perforated by two pores at top ; the seeds four, siibovate, seperated by the 

 pulp. Six species grow iu this island : 



1. Huiiius. 



