250 Mr. J. Miers on Ephedra. 



remains sessile on the summit of the carpel, leaving the small 

 apical pervious aperture constantly found in the fruits of Wel- 

 ivitschia and its congeners. This depression of a pervious stigma 

 I have shown to exist in several other instances. The entire 

 development imparts a truly angiospermous character to the 

 Gnetacea, notwithstanding the pervious aperture in the carpel, 

 while the peculiar mode of fertilization, as Dr. Hooker seems to 

 indicate, is analogous to some instances in Santalacea and Lo- 

 ranihacea. I long ago pointed out the existence of vascular 

 threads in the viscous cap which crowns the seed in Loranthus 

 (Siruthanthus), the nature of which I did not then understand, 

 but which may perhaps be analogous to the development shown 

 in Welwitschia. 



The involucels in Ephedra, even in a young state, resemble 

 those of Welwitschia in this particular — that the margins are 

 simply reticulated and petaloid, while the central discoid portion 

 is formed of three easily separable laminae, the external plates 

 being simply reticulated and epidermoid, while the inner lamina 

 consists of numerous closely disposed spicular fibres shaped 

 like those shown in Welwitschia ; these are imbedded in paren- 

 chyma, as well as two conspicuous distant and parallel nervures 

 which consist of bundles of ordinary spiral vessels. 



The bilabiate perigonium in Ephedra is quite reticulated and 

 petaloid, and exhibits no trace of any similar fibres or vessels. 



Its achenium bears all the usual features resulting from the 

 growth of a regular carpel : it is thick and coriaceous, containing 

 within its somewhat fleshy mesoderm a number of long hair-like 

 threads of pellucid woody fibres, nearly of its entire length ; 

 there is no resemblance in this structure to the perianth of the 

 male flowers. Dr. Hooker, however, considers the similar peri- 

 carp of Welwitschia to be the growth of a perianth surrounding 

 a gymnospermous ovule deficient of any true carpellary covering 

 — a conclusion apparently formed upon hypothetical grounds. 



I have to make an essential correction in regard to the tubillus : 

 from recent examinations of the seeds of Ephedra dumosa (in 

 which the seminal integuments are somewhat thicker) and of 

 immature seeds of E. Americana, lately obtained, it is seen that 

 the tubillus is expanded below, like an inverted funnel, quite 

 free from the apical gland, which it surrounds, and is continuous 

 with the outer integument, of which it is a simple extension. 

 In the cases previously observed, this dilated portion was so ex- 

 tremely delicate, and adhered so closely to the gland, that the 

 tubillus seemed to rise out of it. The fact, as above stated, is 

 now beyond all doubt. 



I have again examined carefully the suspensor in Ephedra, 

 but can discover no trace of those embryo-sac-bearing filaments 



