700 ORD. XL. Oleracce. MYRISTICA MOSCHATA. 
"generic name Myristica, was unable to assign its proper characters. 
Sonnerat’s account of the Muscadier is still more erroneous;* and 
the younger Linnzus was unfortunately misled by this author, 
placing the Myristicalin the class Polyandria, and describing the 
corolla as consisting of five petals... Thunburg, who examined the 
flower of the Nutmeg, places it in the class monoecia, and according 
to his description, the male flower has but one filament, surrounded 
at the upper‘part by the anthere;* and as the filaments are short 
and slender, and the anthere united, this mistake might easily 
arise.* Mr. De La Marck informs us, that he received several 
branches of the Myristica, both in flower and fruit, from the Isle 
of France, where a Nutmeg-tree, which was introdtced by Mons. 
Poivre, in 1770, is now very large, and continually producing 
flowers and fruit... From these branches, which were sent from 
Mons, Céré, Director of the king’s garden in that island, Mons. 
De La Marck has been enabled to describe and figure this and 
other species of the Myristica with great accuracy; and the an- 
-nexed plate will shew, that we have profited by his labours. 
The seeds or kernels, called Nutmegs, are well known, as they 
have been long used both for culinary and medical purposes. 
Distilled with water, they yield a large quantity of essential oil, 
resembling in flavour the spice itself; after the distillation an 
insipid sebacious matter is found swimming on the water; the 
decoction, inspissated, gives an extract of an unctious, very lightly’ 
bitterish taste, and-with little or no astringency. Rectified spirit 
extracts the whole virtue of Nutmegs by infusion, and elevates 
* Voyage a la Nouvelle Guinée, p. 194. ¢. 116, 
¢ Supp. Plant. p. 265. 
* Act. Stockholm. 1782. p. 46. 
* Since writing the above, Mr. Dryander informed me, that he had examined 
several specimens of these male flowers preserved in Spirit, in each of which he 
found only one columnar filament, and concludes that De La Marck must have 
been deceived by dividing the fibres of this organ: consequently the myristica 
Should in strictness be placed in the order monadelphia, 
a: 
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