22 The Waterlilies. 



of the West Indies in 1658, devotes considerable space to " Nymphaea 

 Indica flore purpureo"; the figure and description relate very clearly to 

 Nelumbo and may be omitted here. 



Another new feature is introduced by Flacourt (1661) in his " History 

 of the Great Island of Madagascar." He found there a blue waterlily, 

 which was considered a delicious food. It is called by the natives " Tan- 

 tamou." Instead of being anaphrodisiac like the European species, this 

 one provokes to excesses. The white waterlily, says Flacourt, is called in 

 this country " Laze-Laze," and the yellow flowered one " Talifouc." The 

 roots of all three are used for food. The identities of all of these are in 

 the highest degree uncertain. The blue is probably N capensis or N. 

 madagascariensis. The white may be N. lotus, or a mere variety of the 

 blue. The yellow one may be a Nuphar ; at any rate, no yellow Nym- 

 phaea is known at present from that island. 



Returning to the European flora, we may gather a few points from 

 J. Bauhin's " Histoire des Plantes " (1670). Curiously enough he quotes 

 the name Nymphaea alba minor, with the synonym N parva Matth. from 

 C. Bauhin, as signifying the European white waterlily, and adds a 

 number of -the common names given by Lobelius. The real identity of 

 the plant is rendered certain by a crude picture. The peculiar mixing of 

 the names remains unexplained. 



Chabraeus (1677) records five species of Nymphaea, viz.: N alba 

 vulgaris, N lutea, N minor lutea Lobelii, N. minor lutea flore fimbriato, 

 N. alba minor. The last four would not now be classed in the genus 

 Nymphaea at all. The figure of N. alba vulgaris, is an enlarged and 

 very slightly modified copy from Fuchsius. 



John Ray's "Catalogue of Plants of England" (1670) mentions 

 five Nymphaeas, of which only the first, "Nymphaea alba',' belongs in 

 the genus as now constituted. The only information given in addition 

 to the name is the words " In fluviis. Florem habet plenum!' The 

 " Methodus Plantarum" of the same author (1682) is especially interest- 

 ing for its freedom from slavery to the classic writers. The twenty-fifth 

 genus contains "Anomalous herbs and those of uncertain position"; 

 the first section of these is headed "Anomalae Aquaticae," and the first 

 of these is Nymphaea, plants with round to oblong, floating leaves, 

 differing in their flowers. Three varieties are mentioned, of which 

 " N. alba vulgaris " is the only true waterlily, the common white one 

 of Europe. The " Historia Plantarum" (1688) follows the classification 

 of the " Methodus " in general, but describes the European white water- 



