978 



the lists of the British Flora ; but it is now very properly omitted, as 

 having no claim to be considered native. An infusion of the flowers 

 and leaves possessed an astringent, bitter flavour, and a strong, some- 

 * what aromatic odour. It certainly appeared to produce a slight nar- 

 cotic eflfect, which is not surprising, when its alliance to the Rhodo- 

 dendrons, Kalmnia, Azalea, &c., all possessing poisonous narcotic 

 qualities, is considered. The leaves are stated to be used in the pre- 

 paration of beer, which they render extremely heady. Two other 

 plants of the same natural order, Gualtheria procumbens and Rho- 

 dodendron Lapponicum, are in use in North America as substitutes 

 for tea. 



Pemican, an article of Arctic diet, composed of bufialo-meat mixed 

 with marrow and the fruit of some tree, was introduced on account of 

 the latter ingredient. This fruit is a small, black pome, nearly agree- 

 ing with the Zante currant in size and flavour. Sir J. Richardson, in 

 his ' Journal of a Boat Voyage through Rupert's Land,' states that 

 two fruits are used for mixing with pemican, viz., choke-berry {Cerasus 

 Virginiana) and shad-berry, or service-berry {Amelanchier Canaden- 

 sis). The fruits, then, under consideration, were evidently derived 

 from the last-named. 



Medicinal Lobelia, from Peru. 



Mr. D. Hanbury read the following paper, ' On a Variety of Lobelia, 

 from Peru, having Medicinal Properties,' by Mr. Penney, who was 

 unavoidably absent : — 



" A few weeks since, Mr. Daniel Hanbur}' handed me a specimen 

 of Lobelia, which he had received from Mr. A. J. de Warszewicz, a 

 German botanist, travelling in South America. It was found near the 

 village of Jarobamba, five leagues from Arequipa, in the district of 

 Canchumia, Peru. It is evidently a Lobelia, agreeing in its charac- 

 ters with that genus. A monopetalous, epigynous exogen, with a 

 two-celled ovary, syngenesious anthers, stigma surrounded by hairs, 

 and valvate, irregular corolla, it is at once recognized as belonging to 

 the family Lobeliacese. I have carefully examined it, and compared 

 its characters with De Candolle's description of the Lobelia;, and 

 have no doubt of its being the Lobelia decurrens, var. &., of that 

 author, described in his * Prodromus,' part vii. p. 384. The L. 

 decurrens is described and figured by Cavanilles, in his ' I cones et 

 Descriptiones Plantarum qua; aut sponte in Hispania crescunt aiit in 

 hortis hospitantur,' torn. vi. p. 13, t. 521 ; also in the Bot. Reg. vol. 

 xxii. tab. 1842. 



