Paris.] BFTOMEvE. 2 87 



Paris.) Berry globose. Seed with a membranaceous (not 

 black nor crustaceous) testa. Albumen between fleshy and 

 cartilaginous. Embryo frequently remote from the hilum. — 

 Herbaceous plants or under-shrubs, often tvith a tendency to 

 climb. Leaves with parallel veins. 



1. Convallaria. Linn. Lily of the Valley. 



Perianth inferior, petaloid, deciduous, G-cleft, globose or cylin- 

 drical. Berry 3-celled. Seeds 1—2 in each cell. — Name; 

 convallis, a valley, from the locality of the species. 



Hexandria. Monogynia. 



1. C. majalis, Linn. Lily of the Valley. Scape semi- 

 cylindrical ; leaves two, ovato-lanceolate, radical ; flowers ra- 

 cemed, globoso-campanulate, drooping. Br. Fl. 1. p. 152. E. 

 Fl. v. ii. p. 154. E. Bot. t. 1035. 



Woods, scarcely indigenous. In a wood at Chaffpool, near Bally- 

 moate ,■ Mrs. Armstrong. Fl. May. % . — Flowers very pure white, 

 fragrant, segments curved back. Berries red, globose. 



2. Paris. Linn. Herb Paris. 



Calyx of four sepals. Petals four. Cells of the anthers fixed 

 one on each side the middle of a subulate filament. Berry 

 4-celled ; each cell with several seeds in two rows. — Named, it 

 is said, from par, paris, equal, on account of the regu- 

 larity of its leaves and flowers. 



Octandria. Tetragynia. 



1. P. quadrifolia, Linn. Common Herb Paris. Leaves 

 ovate, four in a whorl. Br. Fl. 1. p. 184. E. Fl. v. ii. p. 241. 

 E. Bot. t. 7. 



Moist and wet shady woods. Ross Island, Killarney, (" Smith's 

 Kerry:') Fl. May, June. 11..— Stem one foot high, with four, rarely 

 five, whorled, large, ovate, acute leaves at its summit, the rest leafless. 

 Flower single, terminal, on a foot-stalk about two inches long. Calyx 

 of six linear-lanceolate, green leaflets ; petals similar to these, but 

 narrower and more yellow. Moots purgative. Berry esteemed poi- 

 sonous, but it has been employed in curing inflammation in the eyes. 



Ord. 86. BUTOMETE. Rich. Flowering-rush Family. 



Perianth of six divisions, in two rows ; outer sometimes her- 

 baceous, inner petaloid. Stamens definite or indefinite. Ova- 

 ries three to six, or more, more or less free or united : styles 

 and stigmas of the same number. Follicles many-seeded, dis- 

 tinct and rostrate, or united into a single mass. Seeds very 



