— «48 LAURACE. 
small, regular, 2- or 1-sexual, in axillary cymes clusters panicles or 
racemes : bracts deciduous, often involucrate or none. Perianth 
usually inferior ; tube short, sometimes enlarged in fruit; lobes of 
limb small, usually 6, rarely 4, in two series, usually all similar and 
equal, imbricate, rarely sub-valvate, herbaceous or petaloid. 
Stamens usually a multiple of the perianth -lobes, in 2-4 series on 
the tube ; filaments flattened, inner orsome or all often 2-glandular 
at the base; anthers erect, 2-or 4-celled, rarely 1-celled, cells 
dehiscing by up-curved at length deciduous valve-like lids. Ovary 
sessile at the base of the perianth-tube, 1-celled, style terminal, 
stigma simple or discoid or dilated ; ovule solitary, pendulous from 
the apex of the cell, anatropous. Fruita dry or fleshy berry on an 
often thickened peduncle, naked or rarely enclosed in or adnate to 
the perianth-tube. Seed pendulous, testa membranous, albumen 
none ; cotyledons plano-convex, fleshy ; radicle superior, minute.— 
Species about 1,000, chiefly in the warmer regions of Asia, 
Australia, America and the Pacific Islands. 
Trees or shrubs :— 
Anthers of the two outermost rows of stamens 
opening inwards, those of the third row open- 
ing outwards ; flowers hermaphrodite, usually 
panicled :— 
Anthers all 2-celled ; perianth deciduous . 1. BEILSCHMIEDIA. 
Anthers all 4-celled ; perianth peristent :— 
Perianth-lobes reflexed in fruit ; . 2. MacHILus. 
Perianth-lobes erect in fruit; flowers 
often polygamous. - : . 3. PH@BE. 
Anthers of each row of stamens opening in- 
wards, 4-celled ; flowers dicecious, in um- 
bels, each umbel supported by an in- 
volucre of bracts :— 
Leaves penninerved ; stamens 9 or more, 
glands of the inner row sessile. . 4. Livsea. 
Leaves 3-nerved above the base ; stamens 
usually 6, glands of inner row stalked . 5. NEOLITSEA. 
Leafless parasitic twining herbs é ; . 6. CASSYTHA. 
