CLASS GYNANDR1A. 177 



Of native examples we have only the genus Ele- 

 phantopus, or Elephants'-Foot, a low growing, hairy 

 leaved perennial, of the middle and southern states, in 

 dry soils, with a few, slender, divaricate, and almost 

 naked branches terminating in 3-sided, 3-leaved ca- 

 lyces, containing other partial ones, with 4, 5-cleft, 

 perfect ligulate purple florets in each. In these the 

 receptacle is naked ; and the pappus bristly. 



In gardens may sometimes be found the Globe 

 Thistle, or Echinops, which has only one perfect tubu- 

 lar (blue) floret to each partial calyx ; the seeds have 

 also an obscure pappus ; and the receptacle is bristly. 

 The leaves of the Globe Thistle (E. spharocephalus) 

 are sinuous and pubescent, the divisions ending in 

 spines ; the flowers are in globular heads. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



OF THE CLASS GVNANDRIA. 



The ostensible character of this class is to have 

 the stamens, one or more, inserted upon, or attached 

 to the style : but from the great dissimilarity of these 

 organs to those of all the other classes, except the 

 family of the Asclepiadeje, their total absence might 

 perhaps he imagined by the superficial observer, and 

 to render the subject more intelligible, it will be prop- 

 er, first to give a general view of the natural family of 

 the Okchideje, which forms the principal part of the 

 present class. Most of the genera and species are of 

 perennial duration, and grow in moist and shady places 

 where vegetable earth abounds ; indeed, some of them, 

 particularly in tropical climates, as the tribe of Epi- 

 dendrons exist only as parasites, attached to the bark 

 of trees by their fleshy fibred roots. The roots of 

 many are tuberous, and these pass by insensible grades 



