after, they expelled the Portuguese 
Ceylon, and formed settlements of 
ir. own there, which they retained until 
that, in the course of that long period. 
E should endeavour to procure from 
- their own territories a lucrative article of 
commerce, in place of having to purchase 
- from others all of the finer sorts required 
for the European trade? If not, we may 
readily suppose they imported the plants 
above referred to, and which have re- 
mained unnoticed by the English, until 
Colonel Walker accidentally detected them 
about two years ago, in just such a situa- 
| fion as one might expect to find intro- 
duced trees, namely, in a garden close to a 
_ Dutch settlement. A most interesting dis- 
. Covery this is, since it seems to prove that 
. they are of exotic origin; that the soil and 
climate are suitable for its growth and pro- 
pagation ; and leaves room to infer, that 
the tree might be introduced with success 
on the West coast, at least, of India, the 
- Climate of which corresponds, in man 
. Pespects, with that of the South-West 
. Coast of Ceylon; and, lastly, because it 
Sets at rest, in part at least, this long- 
agitated question, by making us acquainted 
with the probable source of the best Gam- 
boge used in the arts. 
“ Botanically considered, this plant pre- 
sents some points of considerable interest, 
CL ap 
.. "Dr. Graham shows that his plant is 
. Bot a Xanthochymus, neither is it a Gar- 
cinia, and, unless there is an error in the 
E description, that it cannot be a Stalag- 
E mitis ; but that it forms a new genus, es- 
BOTANICAL INFORMATION. 
381 
sentially characterized by its stamens, the 
filaments of which are united into a single 
square column, and the anthers one-celled, 
opening at the apex by a calyptra, or lid, 
instead of two-celled, bursting longitudi- 
nally, as in all the other genera of Gutti- 
fere ; characters amply sufficient to sepa- 
rate it from every other genus of the order. 
“ To the conviction expressed, that this 
new genus is undoubtedly Gertner’s Man- 
gostana Morella, I can offer no objection ; 
as I am altogether unacquainted with that 
plant, except through the figure, and 
because Dr. Graham does not state the 
evidence on which he grounds his conclu- 
sion; but if it should prove correct, I 
must acknowledge that it goes far to es- 
tablish the fact that it is a native of Ceylon, 
and, consequently, that the juice of it, as 
well as of other trees, may be extracted for 
Gamboge, as that of Garcinia pictoria, 
Roxb. Another member of this new ge- 
nus is in Malabar. 
* Here the question must, for the pre- 
sent, rest; as it can only be finally settled 
by a reference to authentic specimens of 
the plants described by the older Botanists 
(who usually paid much attention to the 
useful plants), as the * Arbor Indica gut- 
tam gummi fundens,’ and which has now 
been bandied about from species to spe- 
cies till it seems to have multiplied itself 
into half a dozen different trees; but I 
trust that Ceylon Botanists will now be 
induced to take up the subject in earnest, 
and ascertain, by actual inspection and 
E- preservation of specimens, the tree or 
rees (for there may be several) from which 
di Gamboge is derived ; and further, to 
determine whether the trees which have 
given rise to this fresh agitation of the 
question are of indigenous or exotic ori- 
gin." fs 
END OF THE SECOND VOLUME. 
