318 MANUAL OF BOTANY 



Illustrative Genera ;— Chailletia, DC. ; Steplianopodiiini, P6i)p. 

 There are about 10 species. 



Pro;perties and ZJses.— Unimportant. The fruit of Chail- 

 letia toxicaria, a native of Sierra Leone, is commonly called 

 Katsbane on account of its poisonous nature. 



Cohort 2. — Olacales. 



Order 102. Olacace^, the Olax Order. — Character. — 

 Trees or shrubs, with alternate simple entire exstipulate leaves. 

 Flowers small, regular, axillary. Calyx minute, gamosepalous, 

 generally enlarging so as to cover the fruit ; cestivation imbri- 

 cate. Petals hypogynous, valvate in aestivation. Stamens 

 definite, partly sterile and partly fertile ; the latter opposite to 

 the petals, inserted upon or outside of a conspicuous disc ; 

 anthers 2-celled, bursting longitudinal^. Ovary free, often 

 imbedded in the disc; ovules suspended from a free central 

 placenta. Fruit drupaceous. Seed without integuments, soli- 

 tary ; emhryo minute ; albumen fleshy. 



Distribution and Numbers. — Natives of tropical or sub- 

 tropical regions. Illustrative Genera : — Olax, Linn. ; Liriosma, 

 Poiyp. The number of species is doubtful. 



Proj^erties and Uses. — Some have fragrant flowers. The 

 fruit of Ximenia americana is eaten in Senegal. The leaves of 

 Olax zeylanica are used by the Cingalese in their curries, &c., 

 and the wood in putrid fevers. The wood of Heisteria coccinea 

 is considered by some to furnish the Partridge-wood of cabinet- 

 makers. 



Order 103. Icacinace^e, the Icacina OvAer.— Diagnosis. — 

 This is an order of plants consisting of evergreen trees and shrubs, 

 and formerly included in the order Olacacese ; but, as shown 

 by Miers, they are clearly distinguished from that order, as 

 follows : ' They differ most essentially in the calyx being 

 always small, persistent, and unchanged, and never increasing 

 with the growth of the fruit ; the stamens being always alternate 

 with the petals, not opposite ; the j^etals and stamens are never 

 fixed on the margin of the conspicuous cup) -shaped disc ; the 

 ovary is normally plurilocular with axile placentation, and when 

 unilocular, this happens only from the abortion of the other 

 cells, the traces of which are always discernible, never com- 

 pletely unilocular at the summit, and plurilocular at base, with 

 free central placentation. Li Icacinaceae the ovules are sus- 

 pended below the summit of the cell in pairs superimposed by 



