Sir J. E. Smith's English Flora. 165 



accommodated, in one instance or other, to almost every climate, soil, and 

 situation, affords to nature her most welcome clothing, and to the cultiva- 

 tor of the soil his chief riches. Nothing poisonous or injurious is found 

 among them, if we except the intoxicating quality attributed to the seeds of 

 Lolium ; but many are gratefully aromatic. Their farinaceous albumen sup- 

 plies man with the staff of life, in Wheat, Rye, Barley, Rice, and Maize,* 

 and makes a great part of the food ef many birds and small quadrupeds. 

 As man cannot live on tasteless unmixed flour alone, so neither can cat- 

 tle, in general, be supported by mere grass, without the addition of various 

 plants, in themselves too acid, bitter, salt, or narcotic, to be eaten unmixed. 

 Spices, and a portion of animal food, supply us with the requisite stimulus 

 or additional nutriment ; as the Ranunculus tribe, and many others, sea- 

 son the pasturage and fodder of cattle." 



Several of the recently formed genera are adopted among the grasses. 

 An important division is also made of the genus Poa, by separating P. 

 aquatica, distans, maritima, procumbens, and rigida, and uniting them 

 with the Glyceria Jluitans (the old Festuca or Poa of that name.) They 

 agree in the linear oblong spikelets, and the shape of the corolla, which is 

 cylindrical, not compressed, furrowed, ribbed, and not keeled. Mr Brown 

 founded his character of Glyceria principally upon the compound stigmata, 

 and the single fleshy, half-scutellate hypogynous scale. These marks do 

 not hold good with all the present Glyceria. The Poa procumbens had been 

 removed to Sclerocldoa by P. de Beauvois, and P. rigida to Megastachya, 

 by the same author. 



Poa decumbens is made a Triodia, Br. ; Dactylis stricta is referred to 

 Spartina ; Avena planiculmis of Engl. Bot., is, we think, correctly deter- 

 mined to be different from the original A. planiculmis of Schrader, and 

 the name of alpina, which Smith had previously assigned to it in the 

 Linn. Trans, v. 10., is inserted. 



Under the genus Galium, G. Witheringii is preserved ; — G. diffusum of 

 Don, in Hooker's Fl. Scot., is ascertained to be the G. cinereum of Allioni. 

 G. aristatum of Linn., Sp. PL, is added, a species new to Britain, detected 

 in Scotland by the late Mr G. Don. 



Another Potamogeton is introduced, the P. cuspidatum of Schrader. 



Two new Myosotides are given ; M. cwspitosa of Schultz, and M. inter' 

 media of Link. Seven species of this genus are now enumerated. 



Under Primula Scotica, Smith quotes, but with a mark of doubt, the P. 

 stricta of Fl. Dan. t. 1385. We are well acquainted with this species, hav- 

 ing received it from Professor Hornemann, and we can answer for its be- 

 ing totally distinct. With regard to the specific names, which are derived 

 from particular countries, we must confess that we do not see the objection 

 to these which our excellent friend has expressed. It may be thought, 

 perhaps, that we are anxious to exonerate ourselves from blame for having 

 applied the name in question ; but really we have always considered that 

 appellations, taken from particular countries, had much to recommend 



" To which we arc authorized in adding Outs. 



