- ferous flowers, invariably one-ovulated in 
_ the apetalons; funicles ascendent, capil- 
- lary, inserted (in two superposed pairs, the 
~ placenta being four-ovulated) a little below 
: the middle of the placenta, and reaching 
nearly to its summit; ovules orthotropous, 
. inverted, presenting the exostoma to the 
placenta. Style overtopped by the stamens, 
_ filiform, rectilinear, erect, deciduous. Stig- 
. ma deeply cloven in three fimbriolated 
. crests. Capsule minute (generally about 
E the size of a cabbage-seed, or double that 
_ Size when originating from the dichoto- 
.. mary flowers), enveloped by the three in- 
terior sepals, and somewhat shorter, testa- 
Sous, brown, smooth and shining, subglo- 
bular, trigonous, obtuse, tapering ‘at the 
r base into a sort of stipes, one-celled, three- 
.. valved from the summit till near the base, 
. one to three-seeded by abortion ; endocar 
. Pellicular, diaphanous, finally separating 
tom the mæsocarp ; valves connivent, per- 
sistent, cymbiform, before maturity placen- 
— liferous on their middle, placed opposite 
the three interior sepals; placentas three, 
_ ‘Persistent, nerviform, subulate at their 
_ Sammut, finally separating from the endo- 
. SP; generally but one of them semini- 
| ferous, whilst the two others bear but the 
 Temmants of the nondeveloped ovules, fu- 
 Micles ascendent or suberect, capillary, 
more or less elongated, persistent. Seeds 
inverted or of indeterminate direction with 
regard to the apex of the pericarp, ortho- 
tropous, Ovate, obtuse, convex on their 
Capsule, reddish-brown, smooth and shin- 
mg, obscurely pellucid, tegument thin, 
shew "5, micropyle punctiform, termi- 
; s and chalaza confluent in a ba- 
i ; perisperm corneous, embryo 
(visible by the aid of a strong light hich 
apg and perisperm) antitroprous, 
ee aot in the form of a triangle 
central part of the perisperm ; 
ascendent, geniculate, nearly 
ly Sa obtuse ; radicle oblique- 
ie » Slender, cylindrical, obtuse, 
m... Shorter than the cotyledons. 
— Species was found in the Province 
ES 
INFORMATION RESPECTING SEEDS FOUND IN ROMAN TOMBS. 
293 
of Texas by Mr. Drummond (third collec- 
tion, No. 201), as also by M. Berlandier. 
Its compact axillary clusters of flowers 
will prevent any one from confounding it, 
either with Heteromeris Michauzii, nob., 
or H. cymosa, nob.: not to speak of vari- 
ous other important, but less obvious dif- 
ferences. I shall but add, that in the latter 
of these, the placentas of the apetalous 
flowers are always four-ovulated, and the 
placentas of the petaliferous ones about 
twelve-ovulated. 
INFORMATION RESPECTING 
SEEDS WHICH HAVE BEEN 
FOUND IN ROMAN TOMBS, 
AND WHICH HAVE RETAINED 
THEIR POWERS OF GERMI- 
NATION. 
By M. CHARLES Des MouLins, Correspondent of 
Linnzan Society of Bourdeaux, &c. 
(From the Transactions of that Society.) 
In the spring of the year 1834, a pro- 
prietor of land in the Commune de la 
Mouzie-Saint Martin, in the Canton of 
Laforce, and Arrondissement of Bergerac 
(Dordogne), M. Geraud de Marcillae, hav- 
ing caused a piece of ground to be dug 
over to a considerable depth for the pur- 
pose of planting a vineyard, discovered a 
good many tombs, most of which presented 
this remarkable peculiarity, that the head 
of the skeleton deposited therein, rested 
on a heap of apparently well-preserved 
seeds. 
M. de Marcillae, perceiving that the 
continuation of the work must necessarily 
destroy these highly valuable relics, had 
the enlightened consideration to delay the 
clearing of the ground, and to give notice 
of this discovery to M. L’Abbé Audierne, 
Vicar-General of Périgneux, to whom the 
Archeologia of this district is already in- 
debted for much important assistance. M. 
L’Abbé, whose zeal would not permit him 
to remain inactive under such circum- 
stances, promised a speedy visit to the se- 
pulchres that had been already discovered, 
and earnestly recommended that the first 
tomb which the pick-axe should next de- 
