63 



as the unfounded doctrine of the growth of true parasitical 

 root plants without actual seed, which I have already lamented 

 for many years as one of the errors of my youth. When I 

 examined Dr. Blume's Brugmansia, the specimen which was 

 said to have ripe seed was more than half decomposed ; hence 

 the hymenomycetous fungi in and near the seed in the figure 

 (fig. 17.) : probably too the embryo was also wanting, although 

 the change in form of the seed allowed of the conclusion of 

 a fecundated condition. On the young, yet unopened flowers, 

 I have observed the seed quite normal with its nucleus and 

 simple coat, and have figured them in fig. 16. PL II. of the 

 Flora Javae. It must however be remembered that these obser- 

 vations were made in February 1837 5 and consequently before 

 the appearance of the celebrated memoir on the ovule of plants; 

 but even if R. Brown had not already observed the embryo 

 in the seed of Rafflesia (of which M. Unger is ignorant), I 

 should now, from the mere appearance of the seed in compa- 

 rison with a non-fecundated ovule, no longer doubt the exist- 

 ence of the embryo. The Rhizanthea have therefore an em- 

 bryo in their seed, and its form and development indicate in the 

 most decided manner that they belong to the dicotyledons. 



It might be imagined, says M. Unger, that the parasitical 

 forms were only the shadows of types which presented them- 

 selves in a more noble independent and perfect form in another 

 direction of the vegetable kingdom ; but if he had arranged 

 the various parasites in the natural families represented by 

 those types, the organographical portion of this memoir, so 

 abundant in material, would have been of a much more per- 

 manent value for systematic purposes. 



The six lithographic quarto plates annexed to the memoir, 

 contain an abundance of beautiful and faithful representa- 

 tions. 



In the excellent monograph of the Riccia which Dr. Lin- 

 denberg* has published, there is a section which treats of the 

 structure, growth, and generation of the Ricciae } and contains 

 numerous and highly valuable additions to vegetable physio- 

 logy. The author states, that only those species of Riccice are 



* Nova Acta Acad. C. L. C. Nat. Curios, xviii. p. 1. Vratislaviae et Bonnse, 

 1837, p. 361504. c. Tab. XIX. 



