4 



272 LXix. PBiMULACE^: [SamoJus. 



Yar. ? amliguus. Erect and braiiclieJ, with scarcely any leaves besides the radical ones, 

 and a smaller plant with shorter peduncles than the var. pmwifolius, — S. ambiguus, "R. Bn 

 Prod. 429; Duby.in DC. Prod. viii. 73,— King George's Sound and Murchison river.— 

 The last two varieties connect the species with S.pcnceus, and might be almost equally well 

 regarded as a distinct intermediate species, as proposed by Brown. There are some 

 specimens, however, which might be equally well raul^ed with some of the common forms of 

 S. repens. S, parvijlorns, Nees iu PL Preiss. i. 337, from the Victoria district, "VV. Aus- 

 tralia, Preiss, n. 1239, may perhaps be reckoned among these ambiguous forms, but the 

 specimens are very imperfect, and may belong to the vdX.floribimdus. 



3. S. junceus, 11. Br. Frod. 429. A perennial, witli a shortly creep- 

 ing stock. Radical leaves few, petiolate, oblong, obtuse. Stems erect, rush*- 

 like, simple or slightly branched, 1 to 2 ft. high, leatless except a few minute 

 linear scales. Flowers few, distant, on short pedicels, in a terminal raceme, 

 otherwise entirely as in S. repens, of which this may possibly prove to be an 

 extreme form.— Duby in DC. Prod. viii. 73 ■ Nees in PI. Preiss. i. 338. 



W. Australia. King George's Sound and adjoining coasts, R. Broivn, Harvey , T)rum- 

 mond, n. 134, Oldfield; Cape le Grand and Esperance Bay, Maxwell; mouth of Swan 

 River, Preiss, n. 1238. 



Oeder LXX. MYRSINE^. 



Plowers regular. Calyx of 5 or rarely 4 divisions or teeth, free or rarely 

 the tube adnate to the ovary. Corolla regular, more or less divided into as 

 many lobes or teeth or rarely distinct petals as the divisions of the calyx, im- 

 bricate and often contorted in the bud. Stamens as many as divisions of the 

 corolla and opposite to them, inserted in the tube or at the base. Ovary 1- 

 celled, with several ovules, usually peltate, attached to or immersed in a 

 central placenta, usually quite free, thick, and globuhir. Style single, with a 

 terminal, capitate or small stigma. Fruit an iudehiscent berry or drupe, or 

 vcryrarely splitting lengthwise on one side. Seeds albuminous (except in 

 ^giceras) .—Tkqs or shrubs, the foliage and inflorescence usually marked 

 with resinous dots. Leaves alternate, simple, entire or toothed, without 

 stipules. Flowers small, in axiUary clusters, racemes or panicles, or rarely 

 ill terminal panicles. 



A considerable Order, widely distributed over the tropical and subtropical regions of tjie 

 globe Of the five Australian genera, three are common to the New and the Old \)oria, 

 the other two limited to the Old World. The Order only differs from Primulaceffi m the 

 woody stem and succulent iudehiscent fruit. From the SapotacefE, it is readily distinguislieJ 

 by the 1 -celled ovary. * 



Ovary wholly or partially inferior . . . . 1. M^sa. 



Ovary inferior. Petals free to the base . * . 2. Samara. 



Ovary superior. Petals united in a short tube with a deeplj^ lobed limb. 



flowers m axillai-y clusters / 3. MvBSiXE. 



Flowers in umbels usually pedunculate and sometimes fon^ing panicles! 

 Ovary and fruit obtuse, globular or ovoid. Anther cells not divided 



transversely , . 4. Abdisia. 



Ovary and fruit acuminate, lecominJlonE; Ind curved. 'Anther ceUs 



transversely divided into several pits 5. ^giCEKAS. 



1. M^SA, Forsk. 



(Bffiobotrys, Forst.) 



Calyx-tube adnate to the ovary, the limb B-lobed. Corolla 5 -lobed. Sta- 



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