Marchantia^ H E P A T I C M. 225 



they constitute the very remarkable genus which has been 

 described by Nees Von Esenbeck, in the Horee Berolinenses, 

 under the name of Fimbriaria. 



The essential character, given by Smith, is, to have " the 

 calyx of the female flowers hemisphaerical, with four clefts, and 

 four cells," which is by no means at variance with the common 

 appearance of M. hemisphcerica. The figures, too, are suffi- 

 ciently characteristic, and, in the form of the frond, more faith- 

 ful than in M. hemisphcerica, tab. 503. The upper left hand 

 plant has the appearance and purple edges of our Edgefield 

 variety. 



The name M, androgyny* originated with Linnaeus; but 

 his character, as given in the Sp. Plant, where it was first 

 noticed, is " M. calyce communi integro hemisphserico," adding 

 " monoica sen androgyna est haec species ;" he states it to be a 

 native of Italy and Jamaica, and refers to Micheli, t. 2. f. 3. 

 (the authority for the Italian plant) and to Dill. Muse. t. 75. f. 

 3. the authority for the Jamaica plant. Micheli's plant, as far 

 as we can judge from the magnified figure, may possibly be 

 that state of the plant with sessile male receptacles, which we 

 have noticed above, as found by Mr. Lyell ; and to which, if to 

 any, the name of M. androgyna may still be applied ; the female 

 receptacles are equally divided with our M. kemisphcerica ; 

 yet the fronds are much longer, narrower, and repeatedly 

 divided in a dichotomous manner. With regard to Dil- 

 lenius' plant from Jamaica, the fronds are still more unlike 

 ours, and, as is evident both by his description and figure, are 

 furnished with gemmiferous scyphi, and not with male recep- 

 tacles. Now it appears that Linnaeus' character of M. an- 

 drogyna was taken from a Siberian plant, described by Scopoli 

 and Smith, under the name of M. triandra, and hence, Smith 

 observes, our great naturalist erred in making its specific char- 

 acter " Calyx communis integer." To return again to the 

 figures in English Botany, there is no male fructification de- 



* We have seen in Ireland that the same peduncle has sometimes on its 

 summit the peltate disk, with one half of its summit having capsules pointing 

 downwards, the other half with its upper surface having anthers imbedded. Can 

 this have given origin to the name, M. androgyna ? 



P 



