266 Dr. R. Wight on the Fruit of the 



" Section 6 might Avith advantage be suppressed, and its 

 onl}^ genus referred to section 5. Sections 7 and 9 would be 

 better united, the anthers being the same in botli ; transfer- 

 ring, however, Cucurbita to section 8, on account of the an- 

 thers, which are similar to those of Trichosanthes, making the 

 insertion of the filaments a matter of secondary consideration 

 — a generic, not a sectional distinction. 



" The difference between sections 7 and 8 would then be, 

 not that in the former the anther is lobed and in the other 

 entire, but that in section 7 the back is traversed by an ele- 

 vated gyrose ridge, on the top of which the long gyrose anther 

 is placed ; while in section 8 there is no such elevation, the 

 anther-cell being sunk into the substance of the connectivum, 

 not elevated on a ridge v.ith a deep furrow between each bend. 

 To this may be added, that the connectiva in section 8 are 

 elongated ; hence, from the union of the three, a cylinder re- 

 sults, while in the other their union produces a sort of capi- 

 tulum. 



" Bryonia Garcini, doubtfully referred to Bryonia, is a new 

 species of Pilogyne : Bryonia leiosperma, I find, from the ex- 

 amination of dried specimens, is a second species of Mukia, 

 with which it agrees well in habit. 



" Notwithstanding these differences of opinion, it is not my 

 intention to alter the Conspectus, but print it simply as it 

 reached me, the few additions I have to make being included 

 within brackets — thus [ ] . Before proceeding further it may 

 be well to explain what is meant by the term tri-adelphous, as 

 applied to this family, which is of such fi-equent occurrence in 

 the following characters. The normal structure of Cucurbi- 

 tacece is to have five stamens, in place of which we usually 

 find only three ; but when these are carefully examined, it ap- 

 pears that two of them are twice the size of the third, and are 

 actually made up of two united : each set is then called an 

 adelphia or brotherhood, and the three together, tri-adelphous. 

 This structure is readily seen in the Pekunkei [Cucuniis acu- 

 tangulus, Ainsley), where the anthers do not cohere. In those 

 where they do cohere it is not so clearly seen, as they then 

 require to be separated artificially before it can be made out. 



" In some genera the anthers are described as being one^ or 

 two-celled : these characters require to be used with caution, 

 as being generally of very difficult application in practice. 

 Theoretically every anther is two-celled ; and here, in exami- 

 ning a numberof instances with particular care, under a high 

 magnifier, I have found most of them actually two-celled, 

 thovigh on less careful examination they a})peai'ed only one- 

 celled. If such is the case when examined with fresh speci- 



