1-32 A CONTRIBUTION TO, ETC. 



on the Castlereagh and the Darling. Pittosporum phillyrceoides, a 

 graceful tree with seed vessels containing red seeds, occurs pretty 

 generally in the interior ; but the two plants which seemed to 

 please my friend more than any others, were Pimelea hamatos- 

 tacliya, and Cardiospermum Halicacabum. The former of these I 

 was disposed to think identical with Mitchell's P. trichostachya, 

 which that distinguished explorer found on the Maranoa. Dr. P. 

 Mueller, however, who has carefully studied the new species of 

 the genus, assures me that this is not the case. The Pimelea of 

 the Dawson is certainly the prettiest of the genus, and attains the 

 height of two feet. The flowers are in dense spikes, of a cylin- 

 drical form, and of a reddish colour. (See Frag., vol. 1, p. 84). 

 It is said to flourish in basaltic plains, from the Newcastle range 

 to the Burnett. This plant differs so much in appearance from 

 the species of Pimelea common in New South Wales, (P, linifolia, 

 P. curviflora, and P. gpicata), that at first sight one would scarcely 

 be inclined to associate it with them. The Cardiospermum (so 

 called from the heart-like spot on the seeds) is a straggling or climb- 

 ing plant, and resembles Cissus clematidea in its leaves and habit. 

 The flowers are white and inconspicuous, but the seed vessel is an 

 inflated membranous capsule, from which circumstance the plant 

 is sometimes called "balloon vine." As the seed vessels hang 

 from the vine, they have the appearance of small silken bags. 

 The species is not peculiar to Australia, being found in the East, 

 and also West, Indies. Mr. Eoss reports that the blacks at the 

 fruit of a Jasminum, and probably also the tender parts of the 

 stem, and the base of the leaves of Cijmbid'mm caniculatum, which, 

 according to Dr. P. Mueller, is " the only orchid of the interior 

 of tropical Australia" which affords mucilaginous food. The 

 climbing plants Btephania kernandifolia, Lyonsia straminea, and 

 two species of Marsdenia, seem to be widely diffused, and it is 

 said that the blacks eat the unripe pods of some species of ascle- 

 piad. One of the most interesting plants from the Darling 

 Downs is Stenochilus maculatus, or the native fuchsia. The name 

 designates the narrowness of the lip in the corolla, by which pe- 

 culiarity it is distinguished from some allied genera ; but I be- 

 lieve that Dr. Mueller proposes to unite the genus with that of 

 Eremophila. A good idea of these flowers may be formed from 

 Dr. Mueller's elegant lithogram of E. lirjnoniflora (PL 55), and 



