120 Historical Sketch of Imjn-ovements in [Aug. 



Cassini has also constituted several new genei'a in this nume- 

 rous family of plants, namely, fornicium ; facelis, whose type is 

 the gnaphalium retusum of Lamarck ; enalcida, which differs 

 from diglossum and tagetes by the pappus and corona ; and en- 

 doleuca. Bull. Philom. And he has also published his remarks 

 on the fourth volume of Kunth's work above-mentioned. 



Desfontaines has described a new genus, Gymnarhena, and 

 figured one species, G. micrantha. Mem. Mus. 



The president of Schlechtendal has also described a new genus, 

 Lasiocephalus, of which he gives the following essential charac- 

 ter: Receptacle naked; pappus pilose, sessile; corolla tubulose; 

 calyx imbricate, with a double series of leaflets. The genus con- 

 tains only two South American shrubs. Berl. Mag. Nat. Fr. 

 1818. 



Brunon'ice. — R. Brown has constituted this family, as inter- 

 mediate between compositae and goodenoviee : difi'ering from the 

 former in having the ovarium free or above ; in the want of a 

 glandular disk ; in the immediately hypogynous insertion of the 

 filaments; in the indusium of the stigma; and in the vascular 

 structure of the corolla, whose tube has only five nerves, conti- 

 nued through the axes of the laciniae, either terminating simply, 

 or dividing at top into two recurrent branches forming lateral 

 nerves, which hardly reach to the bottom of the laciniae: and 

 from goodenovias in having both calyx and corolla distinct from 

 the ovary; in the disposition of the vessels of the corolla; in 

 the filaments being jointed at top ; in the seed being without al- 

 bumen ; and in its remarkable inflorescence. Linn. Trans. 

 xii. 



Rhodoraceoe. — O. Swarz has amended the character of the 

 Fischeria thus : Calyx 5-parted ; corolla 5-petaled ; capsule 

 3-cclled, 3-valved, opening at the top, many-seeded. The genu* 

 should, he thinks, be placed between ledum and rhododcndrura, 

 and F. buxifolia, the ledum thymifoliuni Pers. Syn. considered 

 as the type. Mem. Mosq. 



Myrsineci'. — A. de St. Hilaire has given to the public observa- 

 tions on the plants of this family in the Mem. Mus. iii. 



Apocinece. — A new species of asclepias, A. lanceolata, has been 

 described by E. Ives, in Silliman's Journal. 



Professor Brotero, of Coimbra, has given a description of a 

 new and very curious genus of plants — Araujia; remarkable like 

 the orchides for its pollen, which is a single compact mass, ex- 

 serted from each cell of its five anthers, the extremities of which 

 are applied immediately, and enter into five pits in the single 

 stigma. Linn. Tr. xii. 



Rhiiiantliacece. — Lehman has described a new genus, Diplo- 

 phyllum, which he characterizes as having the calyx 2-leaved, 

 compressed-closed, leaflets heartshape ; corolla subrotund, 4-cut, 

 the two opposite lobes smaller ; capsule subrotund, compressed, 

 2-celled, 4-valved, 4-seeded. The type of the genus is D. vero- 



