170 



PHASEOLUS DIVERSIFOLIUS. KIDNEY-BEAN. 



the derivation of these ancient names to an undoubted source, 

 and this is true also in the case of the Kidney-Bean. Many- 

 authors therefore prefer to attempt no explanation, and rest 

 contented with informing their readers, as Dr. Gray does, that 

 Phaseolus is " the ancient Latin name." 



Theophrastus, a Greek writer of the fourth century B. C., also 

 mentions our plant, but calls it DolicJion, and from this word the 

 name of the genus Dolichos, which likewise belongs to the order 

 Fabacecs, has been derived. Botanists, however, are not quite 

 agreed as to the species which should be classed with this latter 

 genus, or with Phaseolus ; and several species, therefore, which 

 are placed in Dolichos by some authors, are relegated to Pha- 

 seolus by others, although the two genera can be distinguished 

 by various characteristics, one of these being that in Phaseolus 

 the keel of the flower, with its stamens, is curiously twisted, 

 while in Dolichos it is straight. Our own plant was held to 

 belong to Dolichos by Nuttall and some of his contemporaries. 

 To others, however, it seems to be distinct from both the genera 

 named, and it was therefore made into a new genus, and was 

 called Strophostyles augulosus by Elliott, a botanist of North 

 Carolina, who wrote in 1S16 and succeeding years. Ortega, a 

 Spanish botanist of the latter part of the last century, describes 

 it as Phaseolus augulosus, which name is still used in some 

 European works, and Michaux calls it P. trilobus. There are 

 still a number of other synonyms, but our readers are not likely 

 to meet with them, as P. diversifolius is the name generally 

 used by American botanists. 



The specific appellation, diversifolius, refers to the diverse 

 forms of leaves found on this plant, a peculiarity which is well 

 illustrated by the leaves shown on our plate. This curious 

 variability is prominently alluded to in all descriptions, and the 

 writer of this has had a good opportunity of noting it by observ- 

 ing a number of plants raised from seed kindly sent to him by 

 Mrs. Mary Treat, of Vineland, New Jersey. Some of these 

 plants had almost every leaf deeply lobed, others had some 



