39 NEILGHERRY PLANTS. 
out this relationship, but being trammelled by the necessity of adhering to the artificial portion 
of his system, which groups families according to the more obvious structure of their flowers, 
had to place it among those with inferior or hypogynous flowers, though he saw that the true 
affinities connected it with perigenous orders. 
The generic characters employed to divide this family are very unsatisfactory ; and, 
as remarked by Mr. Brown, are hardly sufficient to supply sectional divisions. Cissus is 
separated from Ampelopsis, by having quaternary flowers, while 4mpelopsis has quinary, 
those two genera being in all other respects the same. Vitis again, which also has quinary 
flowers, is distinguished from Ampelopsis, partly by the habit of the plants, namely, the com- 
pound coriacious leaves of the latter, and partly by the dehiscence of the flowers. In Cissus and 
Ampelopsis they expand from the apex as in most other plants while in Vitis the petals adhere 
so firmly at theapex that they generally separate fromthe base and fall off as one, like an extin- 
guisher, so that a Vitis whose flowers by any chance open from above, becomes an .Ampelopsis” 
and an Ampelopsis by an opposite chance, becomesa Vitis. On these grounds, Dr. Wallich 
in his catalogue referred the whole there named to one genus, Vifis,a course in which we 
followed him in our Prodromus ; and for the same reasons, I refer the accompanying figure to 
the genus Vitis, adding the as a sectional name mpelopsis, on account of its quinary flowers 
dehiscing from the apex. Two other peninsular species are referrible tothe same section, 
namely, Vitis Comentosa and Vitis indica of our prodromus. 
VITIS. 
Calyx nearly entire. Petals 4-5, distinct and patent, or united at the apex, but distinct at the base, 
and falling offlike a calyptra. Torus elevated in the centre, and surrounding the lower part of the ovary, 
with which it is incorporated, girt at the base by a short ring (expansion of the torus) upon which the stamens 
are inserted, Ovary partly enclosed within the torus, 2-(or occasionally 3-) celled. Ovules 2 in each cell. 
Berry 1-2- (or occasionally 3-) celled, 1-4-seeded.—Peduncles usually changed, occasionally in whole or in 
part, into tendrils.— W. and A. Prod. p. 124. 
All the species of this genus are rambling shrubs growing among trees and bushes, and, aided by 
tendrils, generally ascend to the top of their supports before they begin properlyto flower. The Tendrils in 
this family consist of altered flower stalks, hence in the young plant they abound; when it has attained matu- 
rity they develop and become clust 
ers of flowers. In Cissus and some species of Ampelopsis they are either 
all tendril or wholly floriferous; in the true vine they are partly both, that is, each cluster has a tendril, which 
is not the case in Cissus or the accompanying Ampelopsis, though both the others abovenamed have cirriferous 
peduncles, 
Vitis (AMrgxopsis) NErcaerriensis (R.W.) are sometimes coloured = a ae crimson: those 
leaves coriacious, palmately trifoliolate, slightly mu- from which the draw wing was ma ae ben shes 
eronately dentate, middle one, broad oval acuminated, Dr 
lateral ones unequal sided, li Kee the ~~ one ending from the Him abide eat but w 
in a slender straight acumen: cymes terminal pedun- the leaflets, as well as their poi seats a an 
— than the leaves: flowers pentands rous, pee in having small, short peduncled, cy mes 
tals oe tin tion of the leaves also differs considerably ae ae wae 
ao ride I found at ago Soa and Nedda- at once they are distinct species. — —— 
wens, but at neither place have been so for:unate are drawn from compariscn of specimen 
as to find itin fruit. The under surface of the leaves 
