CLASS POLYANDRIA. 169 



Fig. 136. qualities of plants ; it i.s asserted tliat no i)lant 



witli tlie stamens on the calyx is poisonous ; we 

 know tliat many willi the stamens^upon the recep- 

 tacle are so. 



Order Monogynia. 



We find in the first order some flowers of a 

 curious ai)pearance, as the Mandrake, or May- 

 apple, (Podophyllum ;) the distinction between 

 this and the mandrake of the ancients, was re- 

 marked under the class Pentandria. This plant 

 is very common in moist, shadj^ places, wliere 

 you may often see great numbers growing toge- 

 ther ; each stem supports a large white tiower, 

 and two large, peltate, palmate leaves ; its yellow 

 fruit is eaten by many as a delicacy ; the root is medicinal. 



The Side-saddle flower (Sanrtcenia) is a curious and elegant 

 plant; it has large leaves proceeding direcfly from the root. These 

 leaves form a kind of cup, capable of containing a gill or more of 

 water, with which flquid they are usually filled. The stem is of that 

 kind called a scape, growing to the height of one or two feet, bearing 

 one large purple flower. This plant is found in swamps; its com- 

 mon name. Side-saddle flower, is given in reference to the form of 

 its leaf It is sometimes called Adam's cup, in reference also to the 

 shape of the leaf No foreign plant, as an object of curiosity, can 

 exceed this native of our own swamps ; it is well worth the trouble 

 of cultivation by those who are fond of collecting rare plants.* 



The white Pond lily {Nym.pluvxi)] is a splendid American plant, 

 very fragrant, and with a larger leaf than almost any other northern 

 plant. This flower closes at evening and sinks under the water ; at 

 the return of day, its blossoms rise above the surface and expand. 

 The yellow Pond lily, (Nuphar,) though less showy, is equally cu- 

 rious in its structure. 



In this artificial class and order is the Tea-tree, (Thea ;) of this 

 plant there are two species, the bohea tea, (bohea,) and the green 

 tea, (virulis.) It is a small evergr-een-tree or shrub, much branched, 

 and covered with a rough, dark -coloured bark. The flowers are 

 v.iiite ; the leaves are lanceolate and veined ; the capsule or seed 

 vessel is three-celled, opening; tlie seeds are three, oblong and 

 brown. This shrub is a native of China and Japan. Some suppose 

 that all the teas are token from the same species, and that the differ- 

 ent flavour and appearance of them depend upon the nature of the 

 soil and culture, and the method of preparing the leaves. On ac- 

 count of the secret and jealous policy of the Chinese, the natural his- 

 tory of the Tea plant is less known than might be expected from its 

 very general use. The Chinese begin in February to gather the tea 

 leaves, when they are young and j^et unexpanded. The second col- 

 lection is made in April, and the third in June. The first gathering, 

 which consists only of the young and tender leaves, is the Imperial 

 Tea; the other two kinds are less odorous : the last collected is the 

 coarsest and cheapest kind. Tea was introduced into Europe by 

 the Dutch East India Company, in the year 1666, when it sold for 



^- See Plate iii. Fis. 5. , , , • 



+ An extensive locality of this plant exists upon the Sarafosa lake. I have Fcen its 

 surface for a quarter of a mile whitened liy these lihe:^, occasionally intermixed with 

 the yellow lilies, and the rich blue of the Pontederia, another beautiful aquatic plant. 



OrderMonogynia— Podophyllum -Sarracenia— Pond lilies— Tea-tree. 

 15 



