136 On a New Species of MiuDia 



with imperfect indications of transverse strise. When treated 

 with potash under the microscope, they became very trans- 

 parent, and lost their granular appearance, and a drop of 

 solution of iodine coloured them uniformly blue ; thus indi- 

 cating starch as one of their constituents. The cup itself is 

 composed entirely of a mass of cells resembling starch-glo- 

 bules, .but so closely compacted together, that their chara.c- 

 ters can only with difficulty be made out. A thin slice, how- 

 ever, when macerated for some time in water, admitted of 

 disintegration, and though most of the cells were broken up, 

 a few could be distinguished in a pretty perfect state, and 

 agreed in their appearance with those of starch. The whole 

 cup is colom^ed blue by iodine. 



The taste of lerp is distinctly saccharine, but this is confined 

 entirely to the hairs ; the cup when completely separated 

 presenting only a slight mucilaginous taste. 



The chemical examination shewed that it differed' as re- 

 markably in constitution as it does in form, from all hitherto 

 examined species of manna. When boiled with alcohol, a 

 large proportion is dissolved ; but the solution deposits no 

 mannite on standing, and when evaporated on the water- 

 bath, yields a thick syrup, which cannot be brought to crys- 

 tallise. It is obvious, from this fact, that it contains neither 

 mannite nor the sugar obtained by Johnston from the manna 

 of Eucalyptus mannifera. The sugar separated from lerp 

 had all the characters of the uncrystallisable sugar obtained 

 fi'om fruits, and entered rapidly into fermentation when 

 mixed with yeast. The residue from which the sugar had 

 been extracted yielded to cold water a small portion of 

 gummy matter, and, when boiled with water, a considerable 

 part of it dissolved, and the filtered solution, on cooling, 

 deposited a large quantity of a white povvder, of sparing 

 solubility in cold water. The fluid from which this sub- 

 stance had separated gave, with iodine, a strong reaction of 

 starch. 



The substance which deposited from the hot solution, when 

 washed with hot water until it no longer gave the reaction 

 of starch, was found to agree, in all its characters, with 



