84 BULLKTIN DE l'hERBIER BOISSIER (2^6 SÉR.). 1907 



Adanson's short stay in Gambia. — The following interesling excerpLs 

 are taken from Adanson's «Voyage lo Senegal, Ihe Isie of Goree, and Ihe 

 River Gambia » (1759), an anonymousEnglish translation of Michel Adan- 

 son's remarkable (and now scarce) work published at Paris in 17S7. 

 Adanson arrived at Albreda, Ihen a French enclave on Ihe north bank of 

 the mouth of the Gambia^ on 20 February 1750, and remained until 

 12 March. His few observations on the fauna, flora, and native customsof 

 the district occupy pp. 156 — 174 of the narrative in the English trans- 

 lation; and only the extracts more cogent to the présent paper are hère 

 given. On p. 158; « The banks of the river are lined with mangroves ». 

 On p. 166; « Rice is almost Ihe only grain sown at Gambia in the lands 

 « overilowed by rains of the high season. The negroes eut ail thèse lands 

 « wilh small causeys, which withhold the walers in such a manner that 

 « Iheir rice is always moislened. They had got in their crop by niy arri- 

 « val ; so that the rice flelds in the month of February were a sort of 

 « drained morasses, on which grew a few wild herbs. » On p. 165; « The 

 « black and moist clays are taken up with foresls of bananas, at the fect 

 « of which both pepper and ginger grow. » On p. 168; « There you be- 

 « hold a forest of lofty trees, bending under the weight of the Cissi (Cereo 

 « affinis scandens planta aphylla, Sloane Jam. vol. II, t. 224, fîg. 3 and 4), 

 « which would be called ivy in America, from the manner in which they 

 « fasten themselves, ascending and descending, intertwined wilh each 

 « olher, and seeming to bend downwards and lo submit their branches, 

 « just like the tackhng of a ship in regard to ils yards and masts. Il was 

 « in thèse fine fields I beheld those trees of such prodigious dimensions 

 « known as Plumier's Ceyba (Ceyba viticis, caudice glabro, folio ', which, 

 « as I hâve elsewhere observed, the negroes of Senegal call beuten; . . . 

 « there are some 110, and even 120 feet high, the trunk of which is from 

 « 8 lo 10 feet at the root in diameter and extremely erect; belween the 

 « root and branches il is 50 to 60 feet, and oftentimes more, in length. » 

 « On p. 170 ; « the farobier^ is another large tree also as common as the 

 « benteii, but quite a différent use, because of the hardness and weight of 

 « the wood. The negroes are very fond of ils fruit, which is a kind of cod 

 « or hiisk, like Ihatofa French bean, but above a foot in lenglh, con- 

 « taining a black flat seed. » 



Boivdich's Gambiau plants. — These are to be found in Bowdich's post- 

 humous work entitled « Excursions in Madeira and Porto Santo diiring the 

 autumn of 1823, » edited and published by his widow in 1825, in the form 

 of an appendix giving a list of 193 plants found at Banjole and in ils en- 

 virons. — l3anjole being the early name of Baihurst, the capilal of the 

 Golony of the Gambia, silualed on St. Mary's Island. Unfortunately the 

 whole collection was desLroyed by sea-waler during Lhe return journey to 

 England ; and we hâve only the bare list of names, wilhout any means of 

 lesling Iheir accuracy beyond an occasional foot-note. J hâve carefully 

 sifled the daims of thèse 193 plants to be included in lhe Gambian fiora ; 

 and froin Ihem hâve picked oui 51 species only, which are ail that I think 

 hâve any righl to be included in lhe following list. and which Iherefore 

 will be found in il. I Ihink, however, that even now the benefil of lhe 



i. e. Ceiba pentandra Gärtn. 



i. e. Plerocarpus erinaceus Poiret. 



