CU4P. I.] PAPAVERACEtE. 265 



Prickly Poppy (Argemone mexicana) has the 

 whole pla,nt covered with strong prickles ; the 

 leaves are wrinkled and curved up at the mar- 

 gin; the calyx has three sepals; and the cap- 

 sules are in four or five valves, the stigmas 

 forming a kind of cross at the top. The stem 

 and leaves when bruised give out a thick glu- 

 tinous juice, which, instead of being white like 

 that of the Poppy, is yellow. 



The Eschscholtzia is tlie last genus of the 

 order Papaveraceae that I shall mention here, 

 and it deserves a particular description, both 

 from its popularity and the beauty of its 

 flowers, and from the singularity of its botanical 

 construction. The bud when it first appears is 

 enfolded in a calyx, which is pointed at its 

 upper extremity, and appears to have a kind of 

 rim near its base. When the flower is ready to 

 expand, the calyx detaches itself all round 

 from the projecting rim, and rises gradually 

 without opening, till the flower actually pushes 

 it off". The detached calyx resembles an ex- 

 tinguisher, and hence it is called calyptrate, 

 which has that signification. The flower is 

 cup-shaped ; there are four petals and four 

 stigmas, two of which are much longer than the 

 others. The capsules are elongated like those 

 of the Horned Poppy, but they are distinguished 

 by the projection of the flat fleshy disk at their 



