19I4-] SOUTHEASTERN NORTH AMERICA. 221 



history entangled with the fossil forms referred to Laurus. It 

 occurs in the American Upper Cretaceous and the European and 

 South American Tertiary. There are at least five characteristic Wil- 

 cox species some of which were abundant along the Wilcox coasts 

 and some range from the base to the top of the deposits. Like 

 Oreodaphuc this genus appears to have been of American origin, be- 

 coming cosmopolitan in the Tertiary and restricted to its original 

 home during the Pleistocene, where it is still a vigorous and much 

 differentiated type. 



The tribes Eusideroxylese, Litseese, Apolloniese, Acrodiclidieae, 

 Laureae and Cassytheee do not appear to be represented in the Wilcox 

 flora although the Litseess are represented in the Upper Cretaceous 

 of the Mississippi embayment area and the Laureae are common in 

 the American Upper Cretaceous. 



The tribe Cryptocaryese, now largely American, is represented in 

 the Wilcox by a single well-marked species of Cryptocarya. The 

 existing species of Cryptocarya number about 40 of which Y\ are 

 South American and the balance Oriental. Only two or three fossil 

 species are known. These come from the Tertiary of Australia and 

 the Pleistocene of Java. 



The form genus Laurus which serves to render insecure the 

 discussion of the geologic history of the preceding genera includes a 

 very large number of fossil forms of which no less than 25 are 

 Cretaceous, the oldest being from theAlbianof France and Portugal. 

 Species of Laurus are abundant throughout North America in the 

 Cenomanian, ranging northward to Greenland and also occurring in 

 Europe and Australia. They have over a score of species in the 

 Eocene and with a similar wide range. The 30 or more Oligocene 

 species are confined to Europe. Over 30 Miocene species are con- 

 fined to Europe and America and the score of Pliocene species are 

 Mediterranean and largely Italian. 



J will mention only one other genus since it definitely shows a 

 past history that is probably typical of a large number of genera of 

 Lauracese. The genus Sassafras. 42 monotypic and confined to North 

 America in the existing flora, belongs to a large tribe — the Litseeae, 

 which today is chiefly Oriental, ranging from Asia through Malaysia 



42 See Berry, Bot. Gaz., Vol. 34, 1902, pp. 426-450, tf. 1-4, PI. 18. 



