20 



NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



group in turn was called Menispermoidea? and Menispermece? while De 

 Candolle in 1824 3 gave it the name Menispermacea. In this order 

 he ranged the then known Lardizabalete, Burasaia and Spirospermum 

 of Dupetit-Thouars, 4 Cocculus, 5 Pselium* Cissampelos, Menispermum, 

 Abuta, Trichoa, and Aydestis, 1 besides Schizandra which is a Magno- 

 liad ; thus he only knew six of the genera that we now consider as 

 distinct undoubted members of this order. When Endlicher wrote 

 his Genera* he added Stejohania of Loureiro, 9 Coscinium and Anamirta 



Stephania hernandifolia. 



Fig. 31. 

 Young male flower (^). 



Fig. 32. 

 Longitudinal section of male flower. 



of Colebrooke, 10 besides three genera of Phytocrenea, and Meniscota 

 which is a Sabiad. It is to Miers that we owe the most important 

 and conscientious studies on this order of plants, which he has 

 investigated so deeply during twenty-five years," and wherein he has 

 created so many new genera. Among those that we deem it right 

 to retain the following ten are due to this observer : Tiliacora, Anomo- 

 spermum, P achy gone, Hamatocarpiis,Pleogyne,Sciadotania, Tinomiscium, 

 Odontocarya, Parabtena, and Pycnarrhena ; while he shed new light 

 on the genera Chondodendron of Euiz & Pavon, 12 Calycocarpum of 

 Nuttall, 13 and Cyciea of Arnott. 14 Hochstetter had published the 

 genus Chasmanthera in 1844 ; J. Hooker & Thomson published 

 Aspidocarya in 1855. Sarcopetalum is due to E. Mueller, 15 Synclisia 

 and Triclisia to Bentham, 16 Sychnosepalum to Eichler. 17 We demon- 



1 Vent., Tall, iii. 78. 



- Jeaume, Expos. Fam., ii. 82, t. 86. 



3 Prodr., i. 95. 



4 Nov. Gen. Madag., 18, 19 (1806). 



5 Batjh., Pinax (1596), 511. 



6 Lotje., Fl. Cochinch. (1790), 621. 

 1 "Phytolaccacea" (B. H.). 



8 825, Ord. CLXXI1. (1836). 



9 Fl. Cochinch. (1790), 608. 



10 In Trans. Linn. Soc, xiii. 65, 66 (1821). 



11 In Lindl. Yeg. Kingd. (1846) ; in Ann. Nat. 

 Hist.,ser.2,\n. (1851), 38; ser. 3, xiii. xiv. 

 xvii.-xix. (1864-68). 



12 Prodr. Fl. Per. (1794). 



13 Ex Toee. & Ge., Fl. N. Amer., i. (1838). 



14 In Wight III., 22 (1831). 



15 PI. Indig. Col. Tict., i. (1860-62). 



16 Gen,, 36, 39 (1862). 



V In Mart. Fl. Pros., Menisp. (1864). 



