HEXANDRIA— MONOGYNIA. Juncus. 161 



Caps, acutely triangular, elliptiral, with a sharp point, scarcely 

 so long as the 3 shortest, internal, leaves of the calyx. 



Mr. Bicheno has adopted my suggestion in Engl. Bot., in taking the 

 supposed leaves, of this and its allies, for barren stems, which 

 can scarcely be disputed. In the last-mentioned work, p. 665. 

 I. 4 from the bottom, effiisus is misprinted for conglomeratiis. 



Many synonyms and figures of early authors, quoted by Linnaeus 

 for his J. injlexus, which I believe to be a nonentity, probably 

 belong to our glaucus ; but they give a wrong idea of its posi- 

 tion. I have in vain sought for any thing that could answer to 

 J. iriflexus, either in a state of nature, in gardens, or in old col- 

 lections. 



4. J. conglomeratus. Common Rush. 



Stem naked, straight. Panicle dense, globular, far below 

 the summit. Capsule abrupt. Stamens three. 



J. conglomeratus. Lmn.^p.VL\6\. JrUld. v. 2. 20^. Fl. Br.376. 

 Engl. Bot.v. 12. t. 835. Bicheno Tr. of L. Soc. v. 12. 302. Hook. 

 Scot.lOD. Ehrh.Calam.6b. Leers S6. t.\3.f.\. '' Fl. Dun. 

 t 1094." 



J. n. 1312. Hall. Hist V. 2. 167. 



J. laevis vulgaris, panicula compactiore. Raii Syn. 432. 



J. Isevis, panicula conglomerate. Scheuchz. Agr. 343. 



J. laevis, panicula non sparsa. Bauh, Pin. 12. Theair. 183. Moris. 

 v.3.23\.sect.S.t. \0.f.7. 



J. laevis. Dalech. Hist. 984./. 



J. Matthioli. Bauh. Hist. v. 2. 520. f. 



Juncus. Matth. Valgr. v. 2. 383./. Comer. Epit. 780./ 



In pastures, and by road-sides, in moist situations, common. 



Perennial. July. 



Root creeping, horizontal. Stems about 2 feet high, quite erect, 

 all generally fertile, grass-green, striated, acute, but not pun- 

 gent; sheathed at the bottom with close, brown, obtuse scales. 

 Panicle more than halfway u]) the stem, bursting from a small, 

 membranous-edged fissure, without a hractca, corymbose, very 

 dense, mostly globular. Calyx-leaves pointed ; the inner ones 

 most membranous, with 2 ribs. Stam. always 3 only. Caps. 

 ovate, strongly triangular, obtuse, with a small point, purplish- 

 brown, i)olished, about tlic length of the calyx. 



The stems are more soft and i)liant tlian any of the foregoing, full 

 of a snow-white highly comi)ressible pith, wiiich serves for rush- 

 lights, or watch-candles ; as the entire stems do for mats, chair- 

 bottoms, and manv similar uses, in common with the next spe- 

 cies. Thev both i)'rol)al)ly served for stri'wing floors in Kngland, 

 as mentioned by Shakspear and Sir Thomas More, about the 

 time of Edward -kh,and later ; till more refined manners wrought 

 Ihem into mats, and foreign commerce at length introduced car- 



VOL. II. »> 



