158 NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



a short distance from the leaf an annular cicatrice. The true affinity 

 of the Euphorhiaceœ with many highly organised polypetalous 

 families, has been especially supported by E. Brown, and, after him, 

 by LiNDLET.^ The latter has placed them by the side of MaJvaceœ, 

 and is imitated in that by a large number of contemporary 

 botanists.^ " For myself," T said, in 1858, " I consider the 

 Euplwrbiaceœ as so closely allied to Malva^ that I look on them 

 as constituting two perfectly parallel series. In applying to each 

 this prolific principle of collateral development, I succeed, in fact, 

 if I am not mistaken, in establishing two series where each limit 

 is represented, always with the differences of numerical proportion 

 which have here only a secondary importance." In the first of 

 these series is found the Mcdvas as they are limited by Lindley. 

 In considering principally the plants with monospermous or 

 dispermous cells, we find the flowers generally hermaphrodite, more 

 rarely unisexual, often petalous, more often apetalous, albumen 

 scarce, more rarely in large quantity, and the anatropal ovule with 

 inferior micropyle. In the second, which represents the Euphorhiaceœ^ 

 according to us, hermaphrodite flowers are to be met with in only a 

 couple of types, usually unisexual, more often destitute of than pro- 

 vided with corolla, the perisperm in an always noticeable quantity, 

 and the anatropous ovule with the micropyle turned upwards. On 

 the other hand, the Gercmiaccoe and Linaceoe are also closely allied to 

 the Euphorhiaceœ? Linum does not differ from certain Euphorhiaceœ, 

 such as Jatropha, except in the hermaphrodite flowers, the organisa- 

 tion and consistence of the pericarp, and the large development 

 of the embryo in proportion to the inconsiderable albumen. The 

 Euphorhiuceœ affect also a more distant resemblance with the 

 RhamnacecB and Celestracece by medium of the Buxece, Quassieœ, the 

 Tariri (Picram^iia), and allied genera, the Burseracece^ and above all 

 the Ulmaceœ^ which would differ very little from Hymenocardia^ if 

 one of the ovary cells was not arrested in its development.* 



The Euphorhiaceœ present every possible variation in their organs 



1 Introd. ed. 2, 112 : Vt(j. Kitu/, 275. over, for the details of the question, refer to 



2 Ad. Br. Eiihm. (1843), 79, Fam. 140.— this passage. 



Endl. Gen. 1107, Ord. 2-13. •" See H. Bn. he. cit. 249-2.54.— J. G. Ag. 



' Et Gen. Euphorbiac. 247. We might, more- Theor. Si/sl. Fiant. 294. 



