NEILGHERRY PLANTS. 37 
aceous longer than the radicle. Trees with alternate entire leaves : flowers axillary, aggregated ; petiols short 
or wanting. The stamens of this genus being all perfect, and these opposite the petals more developed than 
those alternate, show clearly that the scales found in their place in other genera, are indeed abortive stamens, 
The dissections of this plate are not good, the relative sizes of parts not being properly preserved—the fila- 
ments are much too long—and the ovary is represented with five, in place of four cells, an error which escaped 
me when sending the original drawing to the Lithographer, and which I could not prevent at the time of 
making, as I was absent when the drawing was made. 
This is a small genus all the published species, except one, being peninsular plants. Six have been 
published, and my collection contains two more, one of them from Ceylon. Two species are found on the 
Neilgherries, one in the woods between Pycarrah and Nediwuttum, and about the Avalanche, the othernearly 
half way down the Sisparah pass. In regard to properties, nothing, so far as Tam aware, is yet known, beyond 
the single fact that it has recently been ascertained that the famous Gutta Percha is the produce of a species 
of this genus. 
1219. IsonanpRa PerrotreTiAna (Al. D. C.) Arboreous, the remuli clothed with rusty coloured 
leaves elliptic narrowing at both ends, apex obtuse, silky hairs, leaves from 3 to 4 inches long, shining 
base acute, glabrous above, slightly pilose beneath: above, dull or silky beneath, flowers small, sessile, 
lowers sessile, lobes of the caly ovato rotundate, silky; i ches, ; 
corolla deeply 4 cleft.---D. C. Prod. 8—188. 
Neilgherries, in jungles, about Sisparah and the 
Avalanche, flowering February and March. 
STYRACACEA—Srorax-Trise. 
This is a small order as regards genera, but not so as regards species, there being upwards 
of 120 distributed among six genera. It is rare that Botanists have to complain of there 
being too few genera for the species of an order, but on the present occasion, it would 
appear such is the case, the genus Symplocos, apparently including two if not three good 
genera. Linnaeus was acquainted with five species, which he made the types of 4 genera. 
Three of these are still retained, the fourth, Hopea, which, if kept up, would have received 
the four accompanying species, and many other Indian ones, was long ago reduced and 
united with Symplocos, from which, judging from a species I possess (See Icones, No. 
1237) properly referable to it, they seem generically distinct, it having long tubular flowers 
and many series of stamens all united at the base into a tube, in place of, as in ours, having 
the Corolla cleft nearly to the base, and the filaments free throughout. That obstacle to their 
union, is partly removed by grouping all the species in which it occurs into distinct sections 
of the combined genus, a proceeding which would have been unnecessary, had both the origi- 
nal Linnean genera been allowed to remain. In that case, as already remarked, the whole 
section would have been referable to his genus Lfopea, which would then have had the con- 
venience of structural distinction as well as geographical distribution in its favour : all the 
Indian species, with the solitary exception above noted, belonging to it, while the tee Lin- 
hean Symploci appertain to the American Flora. A solitary Hopea, claims America as 1ts 
native country, in like manner as a solitary Symplocos claims India for its place of abode. 
The relationship between this order and Ebenacee is certainly very close, so close 
indeed that I doubt, whether technical characters can be found to separate them, though _ 
parently distinct in nature. The character on which most reliance is placed, is the relative 
position of the ovary and flower, Hypogynous in Ebenacee, Perigynous in Styracatee, but I 
think Mr. Bentham has shown, most satisfactorily, that in this instance these cannot calry 
much weight. : 
