SAXIFRAGACEsE. 



383 



the splitting of the interlocular septum into two valves, each bearing 

 a cleft of variable breadth on the ventral face. Through this escapes 

 the seed, 1 containing a fleshy albumen with a little embryo near its 

 apex. JBrunia comprises half a score of species, 2 which, like all the 

 plants of this group, are natives of South Africa, especially the Cape. 

 They are little undershrubs, with the habit and persistent foliage of 

 many Heaths. The leaves are alternate, linear or acicular, imbricated 

 when young, with two very small glandular lateral stipules 3 at the 

 base, often terminated, like the leaves, by a little glandular point. The 

 flowers, grouped in globular terminal capitula, are each axillary to a 

 bract and often accompanied by two lateral bractlets resembling the 

 sepals. More rarely they form simple or ramified spikes. 



The name Raspalia* has been given to species of Brunia, with 

 usually uniovulate ovary-cells, a calyx wrongly held inferior, 5 and a 

 perigynous corolla and androceum. 



Berardia? which we can only make a section of the genus 

 Brmiia, has the same flowers, with uniovulate cells and a dicoccous 

 fruit. But the axillant bracts are longer than the flowers, instead 

 of being equal or shorter, and form a sort of coloured involucre. 

 This section contains three or four species. 7 



JStaavia, 8 comprising half a dozen species, has the foliage of Brimia, 

 and approaches it very nearly, especially the section Berardia, of 

 which it has the coloured involucre. But the ovary is inferior, with 

 two uniovulate cells, and surmounted by a style, scarcely notched at 

 the stigmatiferous apex, and traversed on either side by a longitu- 

 dinal groove continuous with the interlocular septum. The fruit is 

 dicoccous ; and below the apex of the seed is an annular frilled 

 aril. Six species have been described, 9 all natives of South Africa. 



1 Unless the septum thickens and invades the 

 cells with a spongy or suherous mass, the seeds 

 then disappearing. 



2 Beetn., Cent., t. 10.— TnrNB., Fl. Cap., 

 202— Bebg., Cap., 54.— Wendl., Collect., t. 

 35.— Haev. & Sond., Fl. Cap., ii. 313.— Oliy., 

 in Joum. Linn. Soc., ix. 333. 



3 See Adansonia, v. 299. 



4 Ad. Be., in Ann. Sc. Nat., ser. 1, viii. 377, 

 t. 37, fig. 1.— Endl., Gen., n. 4598.— B. H., 

 Gen., 672, n. 5. — Berardia (part.). — Haev. & 

 Sond., Fl. Cap., ii. 320 (nee Ad. Be.). 



5 See Adansonia, iii. 320. In S. niicropht/lla 

 the calyx is superior, not inferior. The mistake 

 has arisen from detaching the superficial layer of 



the inferior ovary right down to the hase together 

 with the sepals in softened herharium flowers, 

 while the corolla and androceum retained their 

 normal epigyny. 



6 Ad. Be., in Ann. Sc. Nat., se'r. 1, viii. 380, 

 t. 37, fig. 2.— Ende., Gen., n. 4600.— H. Bn., 

 in Adansonia, iii. 325. — B. H., Gen., 672, n. 6. 



7 Haev. & Sond., Fl. Cap., ii. 318 (part.). 



8 Thunb., Prodr. Fl. Cap., 41.— Endl., Gen., 

 n. 4599. — B. Bn., in Adansonia, iii. 325. — B. H., 

 Gen., 672, 1006, n. 7. — Levisanus Scheeb., 

 Gen., n. 377. — Astrocoma Neck., Flem., n. 196. 



9 Wendl., Collect., t. 22, 82. — Haev. & 

 Sond., Fl. Cap., ii. 321. 



