X Y N 



alludes to the hardnefs of their wood, and perhaps to its 

 luhnlar form, filled with pith, as a bone is with marrow. 

 The authors who retain this genus fplit the Lonicera of 

 Linnsus, (fee that article,) into feveral, without ncccflity 

 or utility, offering, in our opinion at leaft, great violence to 

 nature. 



XYLOSTROMA, fo called from ^Ao», "mooJ, and 

 rfi.pa, ajlratum, or layer, becaufe this fungus forms inde- 

 terminate expanfions, like cloth or leather, in the infide of 

 the trunks or branches of trees. — Tode Fung. Mecklenb. 

 V. 1. 36. — CLifs and order, Cryptogamia Fungi. Nat. Ord. 

 Fungi angiocarpi ? 



EfT. Ch. Expanded, coriaceous, two-fided, (hapelefs, 

 concealed ; furfacc fmooth and even. Seminal globules very 

 minute, attached to internal fibres. 



I. X. giganteum. Oak Leather. Tode as above, t. 6. 

 f. 51. Sort-erb. Fung. t. 358. (Racodium Xyloftroma ; 

 Pcrf. Syn. Fung. 702. Fungus coriaceus quercinus haema- 

 todes ; Raii Sjn. 25. " F. amplifTimus ; Scop. PI. Subterr. 

 116. t. 44." BylTus Candida ; Lightf. Scot. 1004.) — 

 This Cngular produftion is found in the centre of the 

 trunks of grovx'ing oaks, fpreading in the form of a piece of 

 cloth or leather, with numerous ramifications, through fome 

 of the largeft trees. But whether it is, like the Boletus 

 lachrymanSy or Dry Rot, in wrought timber, the caufe of 

 their decay, or its confequence, we have not fufficient in- 

 formation to decide. Tode's obfervations countenance the 

 former opinion. He fays the wood of the trees, occupied 

 by this fungus, becomes rotten and perfeftly dry. Its 

 fmooth furfaces are owing to the fmoothnefs of the fiiTures, 

 through which it fpreads in a tender ftate, and its branching 

 indeterminate figure arifes from tlie irregularity and fubdi- 

 vifion of thofe fiffures. The infide is fpongy, or partly 

 hollow, occupied with branching fibres, bearing numerous 

 little ovate capfules, or receptacles, whofe apex appeared to 

 Mr. Sowerby to have an opaque lid. The whole fungus is 

 very durable, remaining unchanged for many years. Its 

 hue is generally an uniform buff or pale tan colour ; but 

 Perfoon notices a whitifh variety, more compaft than the 

 ufual kind ; and a faffron-coloured one, found by Schrader. 

 We cannot well reduce the Xyloftroma to any other genus 

 of this natural order. The Racodium, Perf. Syn. 701, de- 

 fined as " expanded and foft, refembling cloth in its denfely 

 interwoven fibres," feems to us but a vague affemblage ; 

 the firll fpecies being Byjfus nigra, which fome make a 

 Lichen, others a Conferva ; the lecond a Mucor. 



XYLOSTROTON, formed of luXcv, ivood, and rf^To;, 

 L:':d, among the jincients, an appellation given to Mofaic or 

 chequered work. 



XYLUS, in Ancient Geography, a town of Afia Minor, 

 in Caria. Steph. Byz. 



XYMETHUS, a town of Africa, in the interior of 

 Cyrenaica. Ptol. 



XYMPATHESIS, a word ufed by fome of the old 

 medical writers for fympathy. 



XYNERESIS, formed of ^m, or avi, together, and aifsa, 

 J feize, a word ufed by Hippocrates, and others of the 

 ancients, to exprefs a firm cohefion or connefHon of any 

 two things. Some ufe it to exprefs that firm (hutting 

 together, or clenching of the teeth, which happens in 

 convulfions. 



XYNIA, in Ancient Geography, a borough of Theffaly, 

 on the confines of Perrhcebia, near a lake of the fame name. 

 Livy. 



XYNOECIA, formed of |tv, or o-u», with, and oixtu), / 

 inhabit, a feail among the ancient Athenians, inftituted on 

 occafioii of Thefeus's uniting all the petty communities of 



X Y R 



Attica into one commonwealth ; the affemblies of which 

 were to be held at Athens, in the Prytaneum. 



XYPHOID, in Anatomy, a name given to the carti- 

 lage, which forms the inferior extremity of the fternum. See, 

 the defcription of the Jlernum, in the article Lungs. 



XYRIS, in Botany, an ancient name, of unknown deriva- 

 tion, Jtpif, or rather fsipi; of the Greeks, fuppofed to be- 

 long to our Iris fccditiffima, transferred by Gronovius to the 

 prefent genus, as one of nearly fimilar habit and charaftera. 

 They are not, however, of the fame natural order. — Linn. 

 Gen. 29. Schreb. 39. Willd. Sp. PI. v. i. 254. Vahl 

 Enum. v. 2. 204. Mart. Mill. Dift. v. 4. Brown Prodr. 

 Nov. HoU. V. I. 255. Purfh 33. Juff. 44. Kunth 

 Nov. Gen. et Sp. v. i. 255. Poiret in Lamarck Dift. 

 V. 8. 818. Lamarck lUuftr. t. 36. Gsrtn. t. 15. — Clafs 

 and order, Triandria Alonogynia. Nat. Ord. Enfat£, Linn. 

 (rather Tripetaloidea.) Junci, Juff. Rejliaceis, Brown, 

 Kunth. 



Gen. Ch. (correAed from Brown and Gjertner), Cal. 

 Perianth inferior, of three concave chaffy leaves ; the outer- 

 moft hooded, deciduous ; the two lateral ones keeled, com- 

 preffed, curved, acute, converging, permanent. Cor. Pe- 

 tals three, large, fpreading, fiat, crenate ; with narrow 

 claws, as long as the calyx. Neftaries three, feathery, al- 

 ternate with the petals ; fufpefted by Brown and Kunth to 

 be barren itamens . Statn. Filaments three, inferted into the 

 claws of the petals, much fhorter than the limb, thread- 

 (haped, ercft ; anthers oblong, incumbent. Pijl. Germen 

 fuperior, obovate, three-lobed ; (lyle one, threau-fhaped, 

 rather longer than the claws of the petals, tlirec-cleft at the 

 fummit ; lligmas obtufe, entire, or jagged. Peric. Cap- 

 fule roundifh, of one cell and three valves, with three more 

 or lefs prominent receptacles, running down the middle of 

 each valve. Seeds numerous, minute, roundifh or elliptical, 

 acute. 



Eff. Ch. Calyx of three unequal leaves ; the two lateral 

 ones permanent. Petals three, equal. Neftaries three, 

 feathery. Capfule fuperior, of three valves, with central re- 

 ceptacles. Seeds numerous. 



A genus of perennial herbs, with fibrous roots. Leaves 

 radical, numerous, fword-fliaped, or thread-fhaped ; dilated, 

 equitant, and membranous at the bafe. Flower-Jlalk per- 

 fectly fiihple, wrapped in a (heath at the bottom. Head 

 terminal, fohtary, its fcales membranous, fingle-fiowered, 

 clofely imbricated ; the outer ones fometimes empty, and 

 unlike the reft. Anthers pofterior. Brown. Flowers 

 almoft invariably yellow. 



Linnxus was acquainted with but one fpecies, X. indica. 

 Several others have been determined by various authors, in- 

 fomuch that Willdenow defines four, and Vahl ten in all. 

 Mr. Brown has fifteen from New Holland alone, and there 

 is a new one from South America. The author juft men- 

 tioned divides this genus into two feftions. Thole fpecies 

 which belong to the fir(t feftion have a capfule of one cell, 

 whofe receptacles are feparate at the bafe ; of thefe there 

 are thirteen found in New Holland. The fecond feftion is 

 charafterized by a capfule incompletely divided into three 

 cells, the receptacles being combined in their lower part. 

 Of this there are two New Holland fpecies. It is utterly 

 impoffible for us to follow this arrangement, few people 

 having feen half the fpecies in any (late, much lefs their ripe 

 capfules. We are pofFeffed of ten, which appear to be 

 diftinft, and which can be referred, with tolerable certainty 

 in general, to as many defcribed fpecies. For the remainder 

 we (hall cite our authorities. 



I. X. indica. Eaft Indian Xyris. Linn. Sp. PL 62, 

 excluding the fynonyms of GronoviuSi Morifon, and Pifo. 



Liun.^ 



