28-2 



DILLWYNIA DION^EA. 



either at the base or apex ; anthers adnate, two- 

 celled, the cells generally opening longitudinally and 

 internally ; ovaries definite, more or less distinct, with 

 a terminal stj'le and simple stigma ; fruit consisting 

 either of from two to five distinct unilocular carpels, 

 or of a similar number cohering together, the carpels 

 being either berried or two-celled ; seeds ovate, 

 arranged in a double series at the angle of the carpels 

 or cells, two or many, sometimes solitary, surrounded 

 by a pulpy arillus ; testa hard ; embryo minute, lying 

 at the base of fleshy albumen. 



The plants belonging to this order are : trees, 

 shrubs, or under-shrubs. Their leaves are almost 

 always without stipules, alternate, rarely opposite, 

 commonly coriaceous, with strong veins running 

 straight from the mid-rib to the margin. Their 

 flowers are solitary, in terminal racemes or panicles, 

 and often of a yellow colour. The greater part of 

 these plants are found in New Holland. Some of 

 them grow in India and in the southern parts of 

 America and Africa. 



In general they possess astringent properties. 

 The order has been divided into two distinct sec- 

 tions : I . Delimacetc, or Delimete, including the genera 

 Delima, Tetracera, Davilla, &c., in which the filaments 

 are filiform, dilated at the apex, and bear on each side 

 a round distinct cell of the anther. 2. Dillcnas, com- 

 prehending the genera Dillenia, Hibbcrtia, Pleurandra, 

 Candollea, Culbertia, &c., in which the filaments are 

 not dilated at the apex, and the anthers are elongate 

 and adnate. 



The genus Dillenia, whence the name of the order 

 is derived, furnishes six known species, some of which 

 are applied to useful purposes. DWenia speciosa is a 

 splendid tree, forty or fifty feet high, found in the 

 forests of Malabar and Java, which bears beautiful 

 yellow flowers, larger than those of the water lily, and 

 yields a pulpy acid fruit, the size of a large apple. 



The tree has a thick stem and rugged bark, and 

 when wounded discharges an astringent watery fluid. 

 The calyx of this species, as well as that of Dillenia 

 scabrella, when in a young state, has an agreeable acid 

 taste, and is used in curries by the inhabitants of some 

 parts of India. 



Hibbcrtia volubUis is a green-house plant, well 

 known for the beauty of its flowers and the peculiar 

 fetid odour which they emit. Hibbertia dentata is a 

 very ornamental green-house plant, and is admirably 

 adapted for trellis ; when supported with a stake, it 

 will reach the height of six or eight feet, and has a 

 beautiful appearance with its rich yellow flowers, 

 which continue to expand during all the summer 

 months. 



Decoctions of the leaves and bark of Davilla rugosa 

 and elliptica are used in Brazil as astringent washes 

 for wounds and ulcers, and are applied to swellings of 

 the legs which often occur in warm countries. 



The leaves of Delima sarmentosa and several other 

 pecies of that genus are so covered with asperities, 

 that they are employed in China in place of a file, and 

 are used for polishing furniture. 



The fruit of many plants of this order when mixed 

 with water is used in India as an acidulated drink in 

 fevers. 



DILLWYNIA (Smith). A genus of Australian 

 evergreen shrubs, consisting of above eleven species, 

 all introduced since 1794. They are decandrious 

 plants, and belong to Lcgimrinosce. Generic character : 

 calyx of two lips, and five-cleft ; corolla standard 



broad, unequally two-lobed ; petals and stamens in- 

 serted in the middle of the calyx ; style crooked ; 

 pod bellied, two-seeded ; seeds like a string of beads. 

 These plants thrive in moor-earth, and require well 

 drained pots. Cuttings root freely in sand. 



DILUVIUM. A term employed by geologists to 

 describe one of the principal deposits which is found 

 on the surface of our globe. A diluvial soil owes its 

 existence to the violent action of water, or some other 

 powerful agent operating for a considerable length of 

 time on masses of the hardest bodies. Thus we find 

 the most compact rocks, such as basalt, worn away 

 and converted into an impalpable powder by natunil 

 processes, and at other times great blocks of granite 

 removed from their earth-bound sites, and carried to 

 distant plains, where such masses could not originally 

 have been placed. 



DlMEKA(Latreille). In the first edition of the 

 Regne Animal, the curious little family of coleop- 

 terous insects PsclapMdec, was raised to the rank of 

 a section under this name, from the incorrect observa- 

 tion of the tarsi, which were supposed to be only two- 

 jointed. As, however, the observations of more recent 

 authors proved themtobe at least three-jointed, thesec- 

 tion has been suppressed in the late works of Latreille. 



D1NETUS (Sweet). A genus of climbing plants, 

 annuals, and perennials- They are pentandrious, and 

 belong to the natural order Convolmdacece. Generic 

 character : calyx in five parts ; corolla bell-shaped, in 

 five equal erect segments ; stamens as long as the 

 corolla, filaments joined to the tube ; anthers roundish ; 

 style bifid ; stigma headed ; seed-vessel two-celled, 

 four-seeded. The perennial species are increased by 

 cuttings ; the annual species are either greenhouse or 

 open air plants, climbing quickly and producing flowers 

 in autumn. This genus was formerly called Parana 

 by Burmann, but separated by the late Mr. Sweet. 



DIOCTRIA (Meigen). A genus of dipterous in- 

 sects belonging to the family Asilidce. (See this article 

 under that of BOMBYLID^:.) The antennae are placed 

 upon a peduncle with the terminal style minute, and 

 the basal joint longer than the following. The body is 

 also long and narrow. They fly with great strength, 

 and some of the British species have the wings black, 

 and glossed with blue, which gives them a very exotic 

 appearance. Their habits are similar to those of the 

 AsilL 



DIODON globe fish. Agenus of fishes belonging 

 to the order Plectognathes, and family Gymnodontet, 

 an account of which will be found under the last of 

 these words. 



DIOMEDIA (Cassini). A West Indian genus of 

 evergreen shrubs, bearing yellow compound flowers, 

 formerly ranked among the Bnphalmums by Linnaeus. 

 These plants have silvery leaves, grow in light com- 

 post, and are propagated by cuttings. 



DION^EA (Linnaeus). This genus of plants con- 

 sisting of only one species, is found in Carolina in North 

 America. It belongs to Decandria Monogynia, and to 

 the natural order Droseriaccce. The flowers are by no 

 means striking, but the foliage is most remarkable, not 

 only in form, but for its irritable properties, and con- 

 sequent spontaneous motion. Each leaf is composed 

 of three parts ; a lower principal leaf, with two leaflets 

 at its end. The leaflets are somewhat semicircular, 

 and articulated close together upon a gland-like body 

 at the point of the principal, as already stated. The 

 articulations act like hinges, permitting the leaflets to 

 fall back from each other, and remain in a nearly hori- 



