OF CENTRAL AFRICA. 267 



their agreement is very striking in habit, in leaves, in the 

 closely pressed bipartite pubescence, in the calyx, petals, 

 stamina, and stigma. They correspond, also, in some 

 other points, less obvious but equally important, which I 

 shall separately notice. The first of these is in having eight 

 glands on the receptacle ; a character peculiar, I believe, 

 to these plants, and which first suggested the generic name 

 Octadenia. The glands in Alyssum maritimum were 

 entirely overlooked by Adanson, are not noticed by M. 

 Desvaux, and M. De Candolle has described only the four 

 tliat subtend the longer stamina. These certainly are much 

 more conspicuous than the remaining four, which, how- 

 ever, occupy the place of the only glands existing in several 

 of the most nearly related genera. 



The number and position of the glands in this genus 

 give some support, perhaps, to the hypothesis which I have 

 formerly advanced, of the divisions of an hypogynous disk 

 being in most cases formed of abortive filaments; an 

 opinion more strikingly confirmed, however, in tliis family 

 of plants, by their form and texture in Alyssum calycinum 

 and minimum. 



The second point in which the two species of Koniga 

 agree is in the structure of the septum. On this, which I 

 consider as a new source of character in Cruciferge, I shall 

 offer some remarks in speaking of Farsetia. 



arete approximatis formato supra basin evancsoenti in monospermis obsoleto 

 ortis descendentibus. Fiiniciili ia dispermis polyspermisque in diversis loculis 

 alterni. 



Obs. Koniga ad Alyssiaearum tribum De Caiid. pertinens, liiiic Alysso auo- 

 torum inde Parsetiee aocedit. Sed Alyssum, uti in liorfc. Kew. et De Cand. 

 Syst. Nat. constitutum est, certe divisione eget. 



Alyssum Koi. facile distinguendum sequent ibus nolis: Silioula subrotunda, 

 disco convexo, limbo compresso, apice retuso, loculis dispermis, funiculis basi 

 septo adnalis et post lapsum seminuni persistentibus, supra liberis et cum 

 iisdem deeiduis, in diversis loculis oppositis, in eodera a styli basi equidis- 

 lantibus : Fetalis emarginatis : Mamenlis omnibus nonnuUisve appendiculatis 

 in speoiebus omnibus prteter A. calycinum in quo filamenta filiformia simplieia 

 sunt et glandularura loco setulre quatuor filamenta nana Eemulantes exstant. 



Ad Alyssum sic constitutum et herbas plerumque annuas pube stellari 

 foliisque integerrimis complectens pertinent A. camjiestre et calycinum, Liiin., 

 strigosum RusssU, minimum Willd. et striotum ejusd. a quo densiflorum 

 Besfont. yix differt ; fulvescens Smilh, umbellatum Besv. rostratum Sko, micro, 

 petalum Fisoh, liirsutura Bieb, aliasque species ineditas, 



