RUE 



RUE 



Rue, Wall, or White maidenhair, ruta muraria, a fpecies 

 of afplenium ; which fee. 



This plant is found growing* out of the joints of old walls 

 in various parts of England, where it is gathered for me- 

 dicinal ufe ; but as it cannot be cultivated in gardens fo as 

 to grow to advantage, it is needlefs to fay more of it. 



This is one of the five capillary herbs mentioned in the 

 Difpenfatory, and has the fame virtues with the reft of the 

 maiden-hairs ; it is fometimes ufed in pectoral decoftions and 

 diuretic apozems. 



Rue, Wild AJfyrian. See Peganum. 



Its virtues agree with the garden rue, but it is more acri- 

 monious. 



Rue, in Geography, a town of France, in the department 

 of the Somrr.e, and chief place of a canton, in the diftrift of 

 Abbeville ; 12 miles N.W. of Abbeville. The place con- 

 tains 1346, and the canton 9736 inhabitants, on a territory 

 of 3325 kiliometres, in 16 communes. The chief trade of 

 this town is in fifti, (beep, wool, horfes, and cattle. 



Rue, a river of Wales, in the county of Montgomery, 

 which runs into the Severn, three miles S. of Wellbpool. — 

 Alfo, a river of France, which runs into the Dordogne, near 

 Bort. 



Rue Rww, a town of Switzerland, in the canton of Fri- 

 burg, capital of a bailiwick ; 10 miles W. of Gruyeres. 



RUEBLAND, a town of the duchy of Carinthia ; fix 

 miles S.S.E. of Spital. 



RUECCO, a river which rifes in Carniola, and runs into 

 the fea a little to the N.E. of Trieite, pafiing during its 

 fliort courfe through immenfe rocks. 



RUEDA, a town of Spain, in the province of Leon ; 

 11 miles E.S.E. of Leon — Alfo, a town of Spain, in the 

 province of Leon ; 16 miles S.W. of Valladolid. 



RUEDOCK. See Ruadock. 



RUELLE, a French term, formerly introduced into our 

 language, is a diminutive of rue,Jlreet, and fignifies, literally, 

 little Jlreet. 



' Its ufe, among us, was for an alcove, or other genteel 

 apartment, where the ladies receive vifits either in bed or up. 

 The poets go reading their works from ruelle to ruelle, to 

 befpeak the approbation and interett of the ladies. The 

 term, however, is now difufed. 



RUELLIA, in Botany, a genus of Plumicr's, named in 

 honour of a French phyfician and botanift, Dr. John Ruelle, 

 who publifhed, in 1 536, a treatife " De Natura Stirpium," 

 chiefly a trnnflation of Diofcorides, which is celebrated by 

 Plumier for the excellence of its latinity. Ruelle, though 

 phyfician to Francis I., quitted the profefiion of phyfic, and 

 entered into the church. He died a canon of Paris, in 1537. 

 — Plum. Gen. 12. t. 2. Linn. Gen. 324. Schreb. 423. 

 Willd. Sp. PI. v. 3.362. Mart. Mill. Dift. v. 4. Ait. Hort. 

 Kew. v. 4. 56. Purfh 420. Brown. Prodr. 477. Dill. 

 Elth. t. 248 and 249. Jul!'. 103. Lamarck DicL v. 6. 337. 

 Ulultr. t. 550. Gaertn. t. 54.— Clafs and order, Didy- 

 namia Angiofpermia. Nat. Ord. Pcrfonatt, Linu. Acanthi, 

 Jufl'. 



Gen. Ch. Cal. Perianth inferior, of one leaf, permanent, 

 divided, more or lefs deeply, into i\sn linear, acute, ilraight, 

 equal, permanent fegments. Cor. of one petal, fomewhat 

 irregular ; the upper part of the tube dilated and inclining ; 

 limb live-cleft, fpreading, obtufe ; the two upper (egments 

 moll reflexed. Stam. Filaments four, fhorler than the co- 

 rolla, fituated in the dilated part of the tube, approaching 

 each other, and connedted, in pairs ; anthers fcarcely pro- 

 jecting beyond the tube, each with two parallel, iimple cells. 

 Pi/l. Germen fuperior, rouudifh ; ftyle tliread-fhapcd, the 

 length of the ilamens ; lliguia in two acute fegmenu, the 



Vol. XXX. 



lowermoft involute. Peric. Capfule nearly cylindrical, 

 pointed at each end, almoft feflile, of two cells, and two 

 valves, feparating by the elafticity of their taper bafe. Par- 

 tition contrary to the valves, and combined with them. 

 Seeds feveral, roundifh, comprefled, each fubtended by an 

 awl-fhaped, afcending prop. 



Efl". Ch. Calyx in five deep, equal fegments. Corolla 

 fomewhat beli-fhaped, (lightly irregular. Stamens approxi- 

 mated in pairs. Anthers of two parallel cells. Capfule of 

 two elaftic valves, and two cells ; partition from the centre 

 of each valve. Seeds feveral, with awl-fhaped props. 



This genus has generally been fuppoled, by botanifts of 

 the Linnian fchool, to differ from Jujlicia, merely in having 

 four ftamens inftead of two. The elaftic bivalve capfule, 

 with props to the feeds, was conlidered as common to both, 

 and very juftly ; though a few fpecies have been admitted, 

 in which thefe characters are altogether wanting, as R. hal- 

 famea and uliginofa. 



Mr. Brown has inveftigated Ruellia with no lefs care than 

 Justicia, fee that article ; for indeed a ftudent of tropical 

 plants could not fail foon to difcover, that he was able to 

 proceed but a very little way, without underltanding thefe 

 genera, and the family to which they belong. The able bo- 

 tanift juft mentioned feparates from Ruellia all fpecies that 

 have only two feeds in each cell, fuch as R. intrufa of Vahl, 

 and the Linnxan Jujlicia gangetica ; and even thefe, he thinks, 

 require fubdivifion. Others are to be removed on account 

 of their feparate partition, unconnected with the valves of 

 the capfule, like R. Blechum, &c. R. deprejja belongs, it 

 feems, to a different natural order. 



The number of fpecies, which in Willdenow is 46, be- 

 comes thus greatly reduced. In the new edition of Hort. 

 Kew. eleven are, under Mr. Brown's infpedtion, enumerated, 

 two of them not among Willdenow's. Four more are de- 

 fcribed in his own Prodromus, from New Holland. To all 

 thefe reptans of Forfter, and probably fecunda of Vahl, are 

 to be aflbciated, nor is it fuppofed that feveral more fpecies 

 may not be found. We fhall exhibit thefe acknowledged 

 ones (only omitting ringens ; fee Hvguophila,) as a fpe- 

 cimen of the genus, feveral of them being much recom- 

 mended by their beauty. Unfortunately they moftly re- 

 quire the heat of a ftove, a few only will fucceed with the 

 proteftion of a green-houfe, in this country. They are 

 generally perennial herbs ; fometimes fbrubby. 



1. R. evata. Ovate-leaved Ruellia. Cavan. Ic. v. 3. 

 38. t. 254. Willd. n. 4. Ait. n. 1. — Leaves feflile, ellip- 

 tic-oblong, acute at each end, entire, villous. Flowers 

 axillary, ternate, nearly feflile. Stem decumbent. — Native 

 of Mexico, from whence it was tranfmitted to the botanic 

 garden at Madrid. The late marchionefs of Bute fent it to 

 Kew in 1800. This is a perennial, herbaceous, ftove-plant, 

 flowering in July and Auguft. The root is fibrous. Stems 

 fcarcely a fpan long, obfeurely quadrangular, leafy, hairy ; 

 proftrate at the hale ; afcending at the extremity. Leaves 

 •ppofite, near two inches long, foft, downy and fringed. 

 Floivers about the top of the Item, large, longer than the 

 upper leaves, deep blue with a white tube. Stigma, accord- 

 ing to Cavanillcs, fpatulate, undivided. 



2. R.Jrepens. Whorled Ruellia. Linn. Sp. PI. 885. 

 Mant. 422. Willd. n. c. Ait. n. 2. Purfh 11. 1. (R. lire- 

 pens, capitulis comofis ; Dill. Elth. 330. t. 249.) — Leaves 

 (talked, ovate, acute, entire. Stalks three-flowered, very 

 fhort. Stem creft. Native of North America. On dry 

 hills, in (hady woods, from Virginia to Carolina, flowering 

 in June and July. Purjh. Stem fquare, with a few fbort 

 branches. Leaves two inches long, roughifh with fhort 

 fcattered hairs. Floivers large, pale blue, making two or 



4 S three 



