350 Transactions of the South African Philosophical Society. 



Ericinella, Halleria, Acocanthera, Sparmannia, Impatiens micrantha, 

 Bhoicissus erythrocles, Alepiclea, Buttya, Pycnostachys, Lasiocorys, 

 Melothris punctata, Lobelia Schimperi, Melhania, Jtcsticia hrevi- 

 caulis, Anthospermum pachyrrhizum, Trirhaphis, Sporoholus, Tricho- 

 pteryx, Hesperantha, Acidanthers, Antholyza, Lapieyronzia, Disperis, 

 Anemone Thomsoni, Helichrysum globosnm and H. gerhercefolium, 

 Senecio farinaceous, Glarenceanus and ionis, Landtia. To these 

 would have further to be added numerous genera which South 

 Africa and the Tropical African mountains have in common with the 

 lower regions of Tropical Africa. While these types have a fairly 

 uniform distribution, there are also on the high mountains of Africa 

 here and there species of genera which in South Africa are richly 

 developed : Protea (though not so poorly represented in Tropical 

 Africa as formerly believed, yet much less developed than in South 

 Africa), Struthiola (with only 1 species on Mount Kenia), Blceria, 

 Psoralea, Lightfootia, Gazania, Berkkeya, Selago, Streptocarpus, 

 Falkia, Gyphia, Disa, Wurmhea. Several of these genera also 

 occur on Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands. Not only on 

 the African high mountains, but also in the lower regions of Tropical 

 Africa we meet with the genera Kyllingia, Aloe, Kniphofia, Alhuca, 

 Morcea, Kalanchoe, Trochomeria. This is also the case with the 

 follow^ing genera, which reach as far as the Mediterranean : 

 Danthonia, Gladiolus, Dipcadi, Urginea, Pennisetum, Bhus, Celtis, 

 Peucedanum ; while other genera reaching from South Africa to the 

 Mediterranean Eegion only inhabit the mountains, namely : Osyris, 

 Bhamnus, Erica, Bomulea, Bromus, Habenaria, Banunculus, Pelar- 

 gonium, Mesembrianthemum, Silene, Dianthus, Trifolium, Crassula, 

 Pimpinella, Daucus, Bubia, Wahlenbergia, Crepis, Lactuca, Sonchus, 

 Helichrysum, Pennisetum ciliare, Fuirena pubescens, Bartsia Trixago, 

 Sanicida europcea. It is well known that some of these genera, 

 such as Erica, Pelargonium, Mese^nbrianthemum, Crassula, Helichry- 

 sum and Wahlenbergia are in South Africa, on a restricted area, 

 represented by a large number of species. In spite of that we must 

 not at once jump to the conclusion that these genera originated in 

 South Africa. Since the Mediterranean and Tropical African species 

 are distinct from the South African ones we must assume a great 

 age for these genera connecting South Africa with the Mediterranean 

 Eegion." 



I must further quote pretty freely from a more recent publication 

 of Engler (1905, p. 587), as it throws important side-lights on the 

 origin of the South African Flora : " There is no doubt that in 

 Tropical Africa a floral element predominates, which is peculiar 

 to this part of the world. An accurate comparison shows that 



