236 ESSAYS AND OBSERVATIONS 



from Theophraftus of the palm-tree, he 

 tfanfgrefles analogy as much as Diofco- 

 rides : His mercurialis mafculus being the 

 feed-bearing one ; and his other male and 

 female plants the fame with thofe of The- 

 ophraftus and Diofcorides. Hence it ap- 

 pears that the palm-tree is the only in- 

 llance, among the ancients, where fexes 

 dre attributed to particular plants, on ac- 

 count of fertility or barrennefs : Other 

 plants being called male or female, on va- 

 rious and very different accounts, and for 

 diftindlions fake only. 



6. In a word, from Theophraftus down 

 to Cccfalpinus, who died at Rome in 1603, 

 the analogy between plants [and animals, 

 with regard to fexes, feems to have been 

 entirely negledled. But Csefalpinus * fays 

 exprefsly, *' Frudum ferunt, non vero 

 ** florent oxycaedrus, taxus j in genere 

 " herbaceo mercurialis, urtica, cannabis : 

 " Quorum omnium fteriles mares vocant, 

 *^ foeminas autem frudioferas. In eo ta- 

 ** men genere foeminas melius provenire 



"et 



f De plantis, 1, 1 .c. 3, 



