172 Trans. Acad. Sci. of St. Louis. 



under the name Othake. As Rafinesque's New Flora is an 

 exceedingly rare book, I append his original description. 



" Othake Raf. diff. Stevia, perianthe turbinate sub 8 flos, segments about 

 8-nervose, florets with slender tube, limb as long, 5-parted, anthers sub- 

 sessile, style elongate, hispid, stigmas revolute, seeds elongate, as long as 

 perianth, obverse pyramidal, 4-gone, awned by 8 teeth, or short scariose 

 scales, annuals, leaves alternate and callose, flowers paniculate, incarnate. 

 This G. is perfectly distinct by the perianthe, deep cut florets, scaly crown, 

 leaves, &c. The name means warty apex, the leaves ending in obtuse 

 callosity. 



" 923. Othake tenuifolium Raf. Stevia callosa Nutt. Stem terete, fur- 

 furescent, glandular above, leaves narrow linear, thickish, with appressed 

 hairs, panicle dichotome multiflore lax divaricate —in Arkansas: pedal 

 leaves uncial often with fascicles at the axils, flowers on long naked 

 peduncles; the segments of the florets narrow, long linear, acute, seg- 

 ments of perianthe cuneate, acuminate." 



Ratinesque in the above clearly refers Nuttall's Stevia 

 callosa to his new genus, but unfortunately replaces Nuttall's 

 name by one of his own, which cannot be retained for the 

 species. Rafinesque also describes a second species of Othake 

 under No. 924, which he says was collected in Arkansas also 

 by Nuttall, but I have been unable to identify it from his 

 meager description. The only points, in the description of 

 this second species, which are significant, are the broader and 

 longer leaves, the lower of which are often opposite. 



After a very careful study of all the species that are com- 

 monly included in the genus Polypteris, I unhesitatingly 

 offer the following arrangement : — 



n 



Perennial; bracts of the involucre more imbricated and scarious, gla- 

 brous; corolla with the base of 5-parted limb forming a short campan- 

 ulate throat: Southeastern United States. 1. Polypteris Nuttall. 



Annual; bracts of the involucre few-imbricated, herbaceous up to the 

 sphacelate colored tips, pubescent or glandular; corolla 5-parted 

 nearly down to the slender tube: Southwestern United States and 

 Mexico. 2. Othake Rafinesque. 



1. Polypteris Nutt. Gen. 2: 139 (1818). 



One species only, P. integrifolia Nuttall, 1. c. of the South- 

 eastern United States. 



