the Brhijh Fuct\ with particular Defer iplions of each Species. 171 



To ftate all the varieties of this Proteus would be an endlefs 

 talk: we have only endeavoured to give an outline of the princi- 

 pal ones, to which the reft may more readily be reduced. 



There is prodigious confufion in ell modern authors about tin* 

 Fttcus. Having all of them taken it for granted that it is the Cerancl- 

 des of Linnaeus, they have brought together a ftrange mafs of plants, 

 no one agreeing with the Linnsan defcription, or confident with 

 its brethren. One could fcarcely imagine that fuch eminent writers 

 as Gmelin and Mr. Lightfoot would have joined crfpus, mamniillofus, 

 palmetta^ and membranifolius^ as one and the fame plant, or that Mr. 

 Hudfon fhould have feen a fimilarity in thofe above mentioned, 

 adding alfo that variety of veficulofus which we call itfiatuu 



Our firft variety ftands in the Linnsean herbarium marked cr^aj, 

 and it agrees with Linnasus's defcription. We have traced it regu- 

 larly through thofe varieties which we have defcribed, and can pro- 

 nounce that they all proceed from the fame origin. 



We call our third variety (which is alfo in the Linnsean herba- 

 rium along with the firft) flellatusy after Mr. Lightfoot ; but we 

 have reafon to think from the fynonyms in Buddie's hort. ficcus, 

 that our laft variety was meant by the defcription F. ceratioides albi- 

 dus ramulorum apicibusflellaiis. R, Syn. p. 44. 



The fourth variety has all its branches of the fame breadth 

 throughout, and the points are all obtufe. 



The fifth variety feems at firft fight fcarcely to belong to this 

 ^ecies ; but to aii attentive obferver fufficient proof will arife, it 

 being no difficult matter to trace the gradations from the firft va- 

 riety down to this. We have little doubt but that Mr. Hudfon 

 named this vztxety fliformis ; and, from its comprefled form, claffed 

 it in his divifion Fronde comprefd. If this be not Mr. Hudfon's 

 fliformis, we irtuft profefs ourfelves ignorant of it altogether, 



Z 2 having 



