230 NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



ovulate; style inflexed, slightly flattened dorsally above, longi- 

 tudinally bearded with minute hairs on inner face ; apex minutely 

 capitate, stigmatiferous. Legume compressed, continuous within, 

 1-2-seeded, 2-valved. Seeds lenticular compressed ; funicle thin, 

 soon dilated into a thin arched aril covering long, ovate or oblong 

 hilum ; embryo thick ; cotyledons usually orbiculate ; radicle in- 

 flexed accumbent. — Erect or subscandent herbs ; leaves alternate 

 imparipinnate ; odd leaflet, or sometimes 2 or 3 highest, terminating 

 in a bristle or tendril ; stipels ; stipules scarcely adnate to petiole, 

 membranous acute, semisagittate at base ; flowers small, solitary or 

 in few-flowered racemes, pedunculate, spuriously axillary ; bracts 

 and bractlets or rudimentary 1 {Southern Europe, Western Asia, 

 Northern Africa 2 ). 



3. Lathyrus T. 3 — Eeceptacle widely cupuliform, slightly concave, 

 glandular within. Calyx gamosepalous, more or less oblique ; teeth 

 5, equal ; or superior teeth shorter and more obtuse, imbricated. 

 Petals very unequal ; standard broadly obovate or orbicular, emar- 

 ginate, narrowed at base into a broad claw ; wings falcate-oblong or 

 obovate, either adhering within at middle to keel or free, narrowly 

 unguiculate ; keel shorter than or nearly equal to wings, curved 

 obtuse pointed. Stamens 10 ; vexillary stamen free or more rarely 

 connate with remainder to a variable height; mouth of sheath 

 usually nearly even ; filaments at apex free inflexed filiform or 

 dilated; anthers uniform. Germen subsessile or stipitate ; ovules go 

 or more rarely few ; style inflexed, flattened and often hardened at 

 apex ; posterior face (often finally more or less lateral or anterior by 

 torsion) longitudinally bearded; apex minutely capitate or subglo- 

 bose, terminal stigmatiferous. Legume compressed or subterete, 

 continuous within, few or cc-seeded, 2-valved. Seeds globose or 

 angular, more rarely compressed ; funicle (as in Pimm) dilated along 

 hilum ; embryo thick ; radicle inflexed accumbent. — Herbs, low or 

 climbing by means of tendrils ; branches sometimes winged ; leaves 

 alternate pinnate 2- oo -jugate ; petiole terete or angular or more 



1 This genus, formerly united by Linn.ecs 2 Species 8, according to Ai.ef. (BovpIantJia 



with Cicer, by Visiajti (Fl. Dalmat., 324) [1861], 128), but to be reduced to 2 or 3 in the 



with Lathyrus, ought, we think, scarcely to be opinion of B£NTH.(Ge»., 526). — L.,/S/?ee.,1039.— 



separated generically from sestion Ervum of DC, Prodr., ii. 366, sect. 1. 



Vida. 3 g ee p# yji 



