54 LORANTHACE^ CUCURBITACE^. 



biting Java, the mountains of the two Peninsulas of India, the Khassya 

 Mountains, and Nepal. A few only have been found in Lower Bengal, 

 Ceylon, and Luzon. Properties nearly unknown. 



Several species of Loranthus have been introduced into H. C. G. as well 

 as here, but they have not succeeded. 

 LoRANTHUs, L. {DC. pr. 4, p. 286 i—W. and A. pr. \, p. 381.) 



1. longiflorus, Desr. (DC. o. c. p. 304 ^ — W. and A. o. c.p. 384 ;— Wight 

 icon. 1, t. 302; — Roxb.Jl.ind. ed. Carey, 1,p. 217. — L. bicolor, Roxb. 

 Coram. 2, t. 139;—/. ind. 1, p. 548, and 2, p. 185; ed. Carey. 

 2, p. 205 ;—DC. o. c. p. 307 ;—Rheed. 10. t. 4.) ?^5Sr^ Euro- 

 munda. Parasitic. B Peninsula of India, Bengal, (Serampore.) &c. Fl. 

 large, greenish orange-scarlet, and fr. nearly throughout the year. 



2. globosus, Roxb. {Ji. ind. \,p. 550, and 2, p. 187; ed. Carey, 2, p. 

 206 ; — DC. pr. 4, p. 297. excl. syn. Rheed.) C^t^^T^ Chhoto-munda. 

 Parasitic. B. Bengal. (Serampore.) Fl. small, greenish-orange, and 

 fir. nearly the whole year. 



ORDER XXXI.— CUCURBITACE^,— Juss. Lindl. Nat. Syst. p. 51 ; 

 (partly) Wight, ill 2, p. 24—33. 



THE GOURD TRIBE. 



Annual or perennial, climbing or creeping herbs, rarely undershrubs, chief- 

 ly natives of hot countries in both hemispheres, ranged by Meisner under 

 35, by Endlicher under 28 genera. Of species, DC. (1828) assigns for S. 

 America, Mexico and the W. Indies 40 ; for N. America 5 ; Europe 4 ; 

 Egypt and Arabia 7 ; Senegal 2 ; Abyssinia 1 ; Tunis 1 ; Guinea 3 ; 

 Mozambique 1 ; Astrachan 1 ; Persia 1 ; Levant 2 ; Canaries 3 ; China and 

 Japan 5 ; and the Society Islands 1. The S. African forms amount to 15, 

 (^Harvey,) and those of unknown origin to as many. In the E. Indies have 

 been discovered about 130 species ; viz. 1 of Bryonopsis ; 4 of Achmandra ; 

 1 of Melothria ? 1 of Pilogyne ; 2 of Zehneria ; 2 oiKarivia ; 1-2 of Mukia ; 

 31 of Bryonia; 2 of Citrullus ; 12 of Momordica ; 16 of Luff a ; I of 

 Benincasa ; 1 of Lagenaria ; 25 of Trichosanthes ; 2 of Gymnopetalum ,-12 

 of Cucummis ; 4 oiCucurbita; 1 of Coccinia; 2 oi Sicyos ; 1 oi Erythropalum ; 

 and 1 of Herpetospermum. To these must, however, be added about 20 

 species (including common forms), enumerated by Blume since 1828. DC. 

 then assigned to this author 26, but Wight (///. 2, p. 26,) now informs us 

 that Blume in all, enumerates 46 Javanese species ; thus increasing the E. 

 Indian Cucurbitacea; to 160. The generic distribution of his additions we 

 are not acquainted with. 



" Acrimony and drastic tendency pervade many species, the fruit of some 

 of which" (f. ex. the Colocynth,) " afford cathartics of remarkable power, 

 acting, in even small doses, with great energy on nearly the whole line of 



