254 Dr. TuUy on Datura. 



of violence are every where visible in the large collections of 

 logs and brushwood, and even of whole trees, accumulated in 

 various places, and in the transportation of ponderous quartzy 

 stones for many miles, and in the heaving of them up, on high 

 masses of chlorite and mica-slate, to which they have no re- 

 lationship. 



Should you, sir, ever find it convenient to cross the Green 

 Mountain from Windsor to Middlebury, I hope you will 

 take the trouble to view this admirable specimen of nature's 

 workmanship. The labor will, I assure you, be richly re- 

 warded. Your very obedient 



F. HALL. 



BOTANY. 



Art. VII. — Diversity of the two sorts of Datura found in 

 the United States. 



Two sorts of Datura, which present considerable differ- 

 ences to the eye, are well known to be common in many 

 parts of the United States. One of these has been general- 

 ly supposed by botanists to be the Datura- Tattda, and the 

 other the Datura-Stramonium of Linne. Their specific di- 

 versity, as far as I am informed, remained unquestioned till 

 Dr. Bigelow advanced the opinion that they are mere varie- 

 ties, and stated the concurrence of Sir James Edward Smith, 

 who, it seems, made his decision from an examination of 

 the specimens in the Linnasan Herbarium. Mr. Elliott has 

 since expressed his doubts upon the same subject. 



Although most of the principal authorities, such as Linne, 

 Gmelin, Willdenow, Persoon, Turton and many others in 

 Europe, and likewise Muhlenburg and Pursh, in America, 

 are in opposition to the opinion under consideration, yet, as 

 there can be no question that the decisions of the gentle- 

 men above mentioned are entitled to the highest respect, I 

 should not at this time venture to suggest any doubts of 

 their correctness in the present instance, had not long-con- 

 tinued and close observation convinced me, that they are, 

 in fact, perfectly distinct. 



