plant;e davidian;e. 98 



writer has shown to be reducible to C. heradeifoUa DC* 

 M. Franchet has followed M. Maximowicz iu this decision, which 

 he bases not only on the wild specimens brought home by Abbe 

 David, but upon his own study of the plants under cultivation in 

 Paris. 



Ranunculus ternatus Thbg. is a species about which there has 

 been some confusion. Thuuberg's original diagnosis (Fl. Jap., 

 p. 241) was very meagre, but DeCaudolle, in 1817 (Syst. i. p. 242), 

 carefully described the plant, apparently after an authentic 

 specimen in Delessert's herbarium. In 1824 Wallstrom (Dissert. 

 PL Jap.) figured a plant, presumably from Thunberg's herbarium 

 in Upsala, with the name of li. ternatus, but without description. 

 The name, as applied by DeCandolle, was adopted by Prof. Asa 

 Gray (Bot. of Japan), by Siebold and Zuccarini (Fl. Jap. Fam. 

 Nat.), by Miquel, who gave a detailed description (Prol. p. 192), 

 and by Franchet and Salvatier (Enum. pi. Jap. i. 7). The latter 

 authors further [I. c. ii. 268) suggested that Wallstrom's figure was 

 identical with R. Zuccarinii Miq., but M. Maximowicz (Fragmenta, 

 p. 3), while confirming this, claimed that the plate must be taken 

 to represent the true R. ternatus of Thunberg, and that DeCan- 

 doUe's description was referable to R. japonicus Langsdorff (non 

 Thbg.). M. Franchet now sums up the discussion in a way that 

 appears to me to set it at rest: — " Je ne puis partager I'avis de 

 M. Maximowicz : de Candolle a tres suffisamment decrit la plante 

 sur un specimen authentique, et il la compare au R. aconitifolius, dont 

 le jR. Zuccarinii est tres different : il n'est pas admissible de faire 

 prevaloir la figure de Wallstrom, assez mauvaise du reste et 

 donnee sans description, contre le texte precis de I'auteur du 

 ' Sy sterna.' " 



Mijosoton aquaticum Moench, is the name under which M. 

 Franchet presents to us our old friend Malachium. The genus 

 here taken up is noticed neither in the ' Prodromus ' nor in the 

 ' Genera Plantarum,' although quoted as a synonym by both 

 Endlicher and Steudel. As Moench's name (Methodus, p. 225) 

 dates from 1794, while Fries's Malachium was not established till 

 1817, it would seem that M. Franchet must be followed by those 

 who are not satisfied with the Steltaria aquatica sanctioned by 

 Bentham and Hooker. 



In adopting (,'tnncUia theifera Griff, as the name for Thea sinensis 

 Linn., 1 presume M. Franchet has followed the authors of the 

 ' Flora Indica ' (vol. i. p. 292), but I am at some loss to understand 

 why, in both works, Link's earlier and better name of Camellia 

 Thea should have been unnoticed and superseded.! 



The beautiful Xanthoceras sorhifulia Bge., which is commonly 

 cultivated about Peking, appears to have been found growing wild 

 only on the rocky ranges of Ourato, in Mongolia, not far from the 

 great northern bend of the Yellow Piiver. Although it was 

 reported to be wild near Jehol, Abbe David had only seen the tree 



* Journ. Bot. 1884, p. 263. 



t Camellia Thea Link, Enum. Part II. , p. 73 (1822). C. theifera Griff. 

 Notul. IV., p. 558 (1854). 



