VOL. XXI.l PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 363 



epitlendra by others ; which grow not on the ground, on rocks, or in waters, 

 &c. but on the bodies or arms of trees, after the manner of misseltoe, similar 

 to which they bring forth roots, leaves, stalks, flowers, and seed. Tiiere 

 being none other but misseltoe in Europe so remarkable for these particulars, 

 I was constrained, to convey the clearest idea of the thing to be described, to 

 give the name viscum to all the several families of them, though they differed 

 very much from it, and almost as much among themselves ; by that name de- 

 signing only a plant like it in growing on trees, and bringing forth roots, leaves, 

 stalks, flowers, and seeds on them, as other plants do on the ground, or in the 

 soils they grow. 



The particular family of these I now intend to speak of is that kind I have 

 called viscum caryophylloides, from having its seed vessel somewhat like that 

 of clove-gillyflowers ; and the one, which I shall here describe, is what I name 

 in my catalogue of Jamaica plants, p. 76, viscum caryophylloides maximum flore 

 tripetalo pallide luteo semine filamentoso,* and wliich is commonly in that 

 island called, wild pine ; a great many brown fibrils encompass the arms, or take 

 firm hold of the bark of the trunk of the trees whereon they grow; not like 

 misseltoe, which enters the bark or wood to suck nourishment, but only 

 weaving and matting themselves together to afford the plant a firm and strong 

 foundation, from hence rise several leaves on every side, as fig. 14, pi. 7, aa, 

 after the maimer of leeks or ananas, hence the name of wild pine, or aloes, 

 being folded or enclosed one within another, each of which is 24- feet long, and 

 about 3 inches broad at the base, ending in a point, having a very hollow or 

 concave inward side, and a round or convex outward one ; so that by all of their 

 hollow sides is made within a very large reservatory, or basin, b, fit to contain 

 a quantity of water ; which in the rainy season falls upon the uppermost parts 

 of the spreading leaves, that have channels in them, conveying it down to the 

 cistern, where it is kept, as in a bottle ; the leaves, after they are swelled out 

 like a bulbous root, to form the bottle bending inwards, or coming again close 

 to the stalk, by that means hindering the evaporation of the water by the heat 

 of the sun. They are of a light green colour below, and like leeks above ; 

 from the middle of these rises a round, smooth, straight green stalk, 3 or 4 

 feet long, c, having many branches, which when wounded yields a clear, white, 

 mucilaginous gum ; the flowers come out here and there on the branches ; they 

 consist of three long, yellowish, white, or herbaceous petals, and some purple 

 ended stamina, standing in a long calix or tubulus, made up of three green 

 viscid leaves, with purple edges, to which follows a long triangular capsule, d, 



* Tillandsia utricuhta. Linn. 

 3 A 2 



