148 



DEOANDRIA. 



Fig. 171. 



(TENTHS Quassia. It was so named by Linnaeus, in memory 

 of Quassi, a negro slave of Surinam, who had employed it 

 in curing a malignant fever which raged there. Bitter Quas 

 sia, (Quassia amara,) is well known as the purest of all tonic 

 bitters, and is universally employed in medicine. The Quas- 

 sia tree is lofty, and strongly branched, with bark and leaves 

 resembling those of common Ash. The flowers are in ter 

 minal racemes, and of a bright red color. All parts of the 

 tree, and root, are intensely bitter. It is a native of the hot- 

 test parts of America. 



GENUS Dionaa. Fig. 171. Venus' 

 Fly-trap, (Dionaea muscipula,) is a singu- 

 lar plant, having leaves which catch and 

 retain flies and other insects, and hence its 

 trivial name. The plant consists of a 

 single stalk, rising from the midst of radi- 

 cal leaves, about eight inches high, and 

 terminated by a corymb of white flowers. 

 The leaves have winged petioles, like 

 those of the Seville Orange. The ex- 

 treme part of the leaf proper, which is 

 nearly in the form of two oblong circles, 

 is the part that operates as the trap. See the figure. These 

 parts, or lobes, collapse, or fold themselves together, when 

 they are irritated or touched. Hence, when an insect crawls 

 between the lobes, it is entrapped, and detained. Linnaeus 

 says, that when the insect ceases to struggle, the leaf opens 

 and lets it escape. But Ellis says, the leaf never opens so 

 long as the insect remains there. A sweet liquor, which the 

 leaf secretes, tempts the insect to its destruction. This plant 

 is a native of Carolina, and is cultivated in the green houses 

 of our climate. 



GENUS Kalmia. Laurel. Calico bush. The generic 

 name is in honor of Peter Kalm, professor at Abo, in Swe- 

 den, and author of Travels in North America. The species 

 are well known and very beautiful evergreen shrubs, which, 

 says Loudon, deserve a place in every American ground. 

 The common Laurel, (Kalmia latifolia,) called also Ivy, is a 

 native of most parts of New England, though found only in 

 particular places, chiefly among rocks, and on barren soils. 



How did the genus Quassia obtain its name ? What is the peculiarity 

 of dionsea muscipula 1 How did the genus Kalmia obtain its name? 

 What are the common names of this genus ? 



