^OME GENERA OF RAFINESQUE. 125 



4 



Here is what he says of Douglas' Clintonia, in the Athmtic 

 Journal : 



"According to the practice of Do Candolle, this G.[enus] 

 Glmtonia of Lindley must be named anew, and mine prevail 

 as anterior by 12 years. I have called it protem in my 

 notes Bolelia, an anagram of Lohclia^ to which it is very akin ; 

 but Lindley may frame a better name for it, if ho likes, 

 provided he adopts my Clinionia of 1817.'' 



Fortunately for the synonymy of the genus, Lindley did not 



b — 



accept the invitation ; and again fortunately, Rafinesque's own 

 later alternative for Boleh'a, namely Oyncnnpsis^i^ only a syno- 

 nym, for we consider the former the more agreeable name. 



The plants when in flower very closely resemble certain 

 small Lobelias, and have been separated from that genus 

 chiefly on account of the elongated and very slender capsules, 

 which resemble pedicels and take the place of them, so that 

 the really spicate inflorescence appears as if it were loosely 

 racemose, or even in some species corymbose. But the 

 embryonic 'Structure is apparently quite different from that 

 of Lobelia- I have been unable to detect cotyledons; and 

 the young plants exhibit at first a considerable succession of 

 opposite and decussate leaves, this arrangement changing to 

 the alternate only after the plants have reached a maturer 

 stage of development.^ 



Each one of the species has its own peculiar floral structure ; 

 but the corolla being of very delicate texture does not well 

 exhibit its characters in the dried specimen. By somewhat 

 radical differences in the configuration of this organ, the 

 species fall into two natural groups. 



* Larger lip of corolla concave, undivided, S-ioofked or 



-lohed af apex. 



*Tbe plant on which Dr. Tcrrey founded the genus Porterella^ and 

 which was afterwards referred to Laureniia, agrees perfectly with BoMia 

 in all respects save that its capsules are not linear, but broad aud truly 



pedieellate. It differs from Lanreufia just as Bolelia from Lobelia, 



and ouglit to resume generic rank as Porfereiia, or else be included in 

 Bolelia. I incline to the latter alternative. 



