BOTANY Ol' TERRA AUSTRAI.IS. 75 



EUDESMIA TETRAGONA. Tab. :3. 



In exposed barren places near the sliores, in the neighbourhood of Lucky 

 Bay, on the south coast of New Holland in :ii° S. lat. and 1-23' E. Ion.; 

 gathered both in flower and fruit in January, 18U2. 



DESC. Frutex 3-5 pedes altus, raniis patentibus, ramulis l-gonis angulis 

 marginatis. Folia opposita quandoque subopposita, petiolata, sa^pius aversa, 

 lanceolata vel oblonga, coriacea conipacta, integerrima marginata glauca resi- 

 noso-puuctata, venis vix emersis anastoniozantibus, 3-4 uncias longa, 14- IG 

 lincas lata. Umbellce laterales pauciflora\ pcdunciilo pcdiccUisque aucipitibus. 

 Cuh/x tiirbinatus obtuse 4-gonus cum ovario cohaerens, angnlis aj)ice productis 

 in dentes breves subiua^quales, duobus oppositis pauIo niajoribus. Operculum 

 depresso-hemispha3ricum muticuni glandulosum albicans, striis quatuor cruci- 

 atis paruni depressis dentibus calycis oppositis notatum, quasi e petalis quatuor 

 conflatum, caducum. Stamina plurima; Filamenta in phalanges quatuor petab's 

 oppositas approxiniata, capillana glabra alba, interiora sensiin breviora; An- 

 thet'(E ovato-subrotundse incunibentes ocliroleuca', loculis longitudin;iliter dehis- 

 ceutibus. Ovarium inclusum tubo adhereuti calycis, 4-loculare: Stylus l,cvlin- 

 draceus ; Sligma obtusuni. Capsula inclusa et connata tubo aucto turbinate 

 oblongo ligneo calycis, apice 4-fariam dehiscens. 



Obs. There can be no doubt respecting the affinity of 

 this genus, which belongs to ^Myrtaceae and differs from 

 Eucalyptus solely in having a striated operculum placed 

 within a distinctly toothed calyx, and in its filaments being 

 collected into bundles. The operculum in Eudesmia, 

 from the nature of its striae and their relation to the teeth 

 of the calyx, appears to be formed of the confluent petals 

 only ; whereas, that of Eucalyptus, which is neither stria- 

 ted nor placed within a distinct calyx, is more probably 

 composed, in several cases at least, of both floral envelopes 

 united. But in many species of Eucalyptus a double 

 operculum has been observed ; in these the outer oper- 

 culum, which generally separates at a nuich earlier stage, 

 may, perhaps, be considered as formed of the calyx, and [coo 

 the inner consequently of corolla alone, as in Eudesmia : 

 this view of the structure appears at least very probable 

 in contemplating Euxalyptas //lohulus, in which the cica- 

 trix caused by the separation of the outer operculum is 

 particularly obvious, and in which also the inner oper- 

 culum is of an evidently different form. 



Jussieu, in some observations which he has lately made 

 on this subject, (/// Aaiialea dn mm. 11). /;. 432,) seems 

 mclined to consider the operculum of Eucalyptus as 



