262 Linnean Society. [Dec. 6, 



part of September in the present year. He added that he has 

 no recollection of having witnessed before such multitudes of these 

 black, or dark-coloured, flies with light wings ; and that they were 

 extremely troublesome by flying into the eyes and mouth. 



Read, further, a paper entitled " Remarks on Sarsaparillas." By 

 Berthold Seemann, Esq., Ph.D., F.L.S. &c. 



After quoting a remark of Sir W. Hooker, that those plants which 

 are most useful to mankind are frequently the least known botanically, 

 and the testimony of the late Dr. Pereira as to the unsatisfactory 

 nature of our knowledge of the botanical sources of the various sorts 

 of Sarsaparilla, Dr. Seemann proceeds to endeavour to elucidate the 

 facts connected with this perplexing subject. He refers first to 

 specimens collected by Dr. Warszewics, during his last visit to the 

 Volcano of Chiriqui in Veraguas, and transmitted by him to Mr. 

 Daniel Hanbury, and which Dr. Seemann pronounced to belong to 

 the Smilax officinalis of Humboldt and Bonpland ; a view which was 

 confirmed by a tracing made in Paris by Mr. Hanbury, from the 

 original imperfect specimens of that plant, and subsequently by 

 specimens collected by Dr. Warszewics at Bajorque in New Granada, 

 the locality where Humboldt and Bonpland obtained their Smilax 

 officinalis, and which are completely identical both with the plant of 

 the two distinguished travellers above named and with the specimens 

 collected by Dr. Warszewics at Chiriqui. The author then extended 

 his inquiry to other so-called species supposed to be allied to Smilax 

 officinalis, and states that having examined the specimens of Smilax 

 papyracea of Poiret, in the possession of Mr. Bentley, on which that 

 gentleman had published an able article in the Pharmaceutical 

 Journal for April 1853, he became convinced of the identity of that 

 plant also with Smilax officinalis. He next refers to Smilax medica 

 of Schlechtendal and Chamisso, well described and tolerably figured 

 by Nees von Esenbeck, which he believes to be also identical with 

 the plants previously examined ; the supposed differences having 

 originated in the extreme variableness in this genus of the roots, 

 stems, branches and leaves, from which the principal characters of 

 the three supposed species were derived. 



The following is the description given by Dr. Seemann of the plant 

 ■which unites under the name of Smilax officinalis the synonyms of 

 Sm. papyracea and Sm. medica. It grows in the lower coast region 

 as well as on the mountains at an elevation of 5000 feet above the 

 sea, and is confined (as far as at present known) to the continent of 

 America, where it is found between 20° N. and 6° S. latitude. 



