ACT 



on the wifdom of ages. We ftiould however certainly keep 

 Aana and Cimkifuga feparate, were it not for Macrotys, 

 v)?hich evidently, and almoft neceffarily, combines them. 



Sea. I. Cimkifuga. Fruit aggregate, burfting. Species 

 one to four. 



Seft. 2. Macrotys. Fruit fingle, burfting. Species five 

 and fix. 



Seft. 3. Chriflophoriana. Fruit fingle, not burfting. 

 Species feven and eight. 



Seft. I. Cimicifuga. Linn. 



Flowers with many ftyles. Fruit dry, burfting, aggregate. 



1. A. Cimicifuga. Bug-wort Aftsa. De Cand. n. i. 

 Linn. Sp. PI. 722. (Cimicifuga; Gmel. Sib. v. 4. 181. 

 t. 70. Linn. Am. Acad. v. 2. 354. C. fcetida ; Linn. 

 Syft. Nat. ed. 12. v. 2. 659.) — Germens four, nearly feffile, 

 very hairy. Clufters panicled. Leaves divided in a once or 

 twice temate manner ; their fegments ovato-lanceolate, 

 deeply toothed. — Native of various parts of Siberia, and of 

 the north-weft coaft of America. See our former article 

 CnviiciFUGA. 



2. A., podocarpa. Stalked Aftsea. De Cand. n. 2. (Ci- 

 micifuga americana ; Michaux Boreal. -Amer. v. i. 316.) — 

 Germens four or five, ftalked, fmooth. Clufters panicled. 



Leaves twice compound Found by Michaux, in ftiady 



woods on the mountains of Carolina, flowering in Auguft 

 and September. Herb two feet high, with the habit of 

 ji. racemofa. Calyx of five ovate, concave leaves. Capfules 

 four or five, fmooth, comprefted, pointed with thefly/es, and 

 each fupported by a ftalk half its own length. De Cand. 



3. K. cordifolia. Heart-leaved Aftaea. De Cand. n. 3. 

 ( Cimicifuga cordifolia ; Purfti 373, excluding the fy nony m . ) 

 — Germens two or three, fmooth, feffile. Clufters panicled. 

 Leaves divided in a twice ternate manner ; their fegments 

 five or feven lobed, ferrated, heart-ftiaped at the bafe — In 

 fliady woods on high mountains of Carolina, flowering in 

 July. Refembles A. Cimicifuga very much in general habit. 

 Purf}}. Like A. racemofa and podocarpa, differing from 

 the former in having numerous capfules, from the latter in 

 their being feffile. Leaves fmooth, their broad fegments, 

 (we fliould fay leaflets,) almoft refembling vine-leaves. Cluf- 

 ters elongated, wand-like, panicled, fmooth, with a little 

 acute braSea under each partial ftalk, and two fmaller lateral 

 ones at its bafe. De Cand. 



j^. A. palmata. Palmate Aftaea. De Cand. n. 4. (Ci- 

 micifuga palmata ; Michaux Boreal. -Amer. v. i. 316. Purfti 

 373. Hydraftis ; Lamarck lUuftr. t. 500, which therefore 

 is to be ilruck out of our article Hydha.stis. " H. cana- 

 denfis ; Poir. Suppl. to Lam. Dift. v. 3. 71, but not of 

 Linnaeus.") — Germens twelve to fifteen, in a roundifti head. 

 Clufters fomewhat panicled, forked. Leaves palmate. — In 

 the beds of mountain rivulets in Virginia and Carolina, 

 flowering in July and Auguft. A very tall and handfome 

 plant ; the leaves very large, and xheflovjers in great abund- 

 ance. Purfh. The whole plant is fmooth. Stem ereft, 

 finjple, hollow. Leaves two, alternate ; the lower one with 

 a broadifti_/?a/i, an inch and a half long ; the upper nearly 

 feffile ; both wedge-fhaped at the bafe, very broad, with 

 from three to five oval lobes, rather acute, and cut or fer- 

 rated in their upper part. Flowers terminal, corymbofe ; 

 their ftalks forked, minutely downy ; fingle-flowered and 

 naked at the extremity ; bracleated below. Calyx of four 

 orbicular leaves. Germens diftinft, crowded into a head. 

 De Cand. 



Seft. 2. Macrotys. " Raf. Schmaltz in Bot. Journ. 

 V. 2. 170." 



Flowers with a fingle ftyle. Fruit dry, burfting. 



5. A. racemofa. Long-cluftered Aftaea, or Black Snake- 

 12 



ACT 



root. Liun. Sp. PI. 722. De Cand. n. 5. Willd. n. 1. 

 Ait. n. 2. See Act.ka n. 2. (Cimicifuga ferpentaria; 

 Purfli 372. Chriftophoriana americana procerior et longiils 

 fpicata; Dill. Elth. 79. t. 67.) — Piftil one. Clufters very 

 long. Fruit dry, burfting. Leaves divided in a thrice- 

 ternate manner, ferrated, and fomewhat cut. — In ftiady 

 ftony woods, from Canada to Florida, flowering in July and 

 Auguft. Purfh. Herbage like A. fpicata, but larger ; 

 flowers like A. Cimicifuga, but monogynous ; fruit like A. 

 cordifolia, but of a fingle capfule. It varies however occa- 

 fionally with two piflils. Cluflers downy, very long and 

 denfe. Flowers pr.le, fcetid, with fmall, thick, gibbous, 

 ilalked petals, each tipped with a briftly point. Capfules of 

 two valves. Seeds oblong. De Cand. This fpecies is often 

 cultivated in England, as a hardy perennial. The copious 

 ■whhxs flowers are ornamental, but intolerably foetid, like the 

 fcent, well known to furgeons, of a carious bone. The 

 plant is often fix or feven feet high. 



6. A. japonica. Japanefe Aftsea. Thunb. Jap. 221. 

 De Cand. n. 6. Willd. n. 3. — Piftil one. Spikes very long. 

 Leaves in three heart-ftiaped, palmate divifions, with from 

 three to feven lobes. — Gathered in Japan by Thunberg, 

 who defcribes it thus. Herb entirely fmooth. Leaves ftalked, 

 ternate ; leaflets ftalked, fimple, heart-ftiaped, cut, with five 

 or feven notched lobes, ferrated, a palm in length and 

 breadth ; pale underneath. General and partial footflalks 

 ftriated, longer than the leaflets. Spike from a palm to a 

 fpan in length. Calyx and corolla foon falhng. Germen 

 oblong, fmooth. Style none. The author gives no account 

 of the fruit, fo that it is impoffible to fay whether this 

 fpecies belongs to the fecond or third feftion. 



Seft. 3. Chriflophcriana of Tournefort. 

 Fruit fingle, pulpy, not burfting. 



7. A. fpicata. Black-berried Aftaea, oi- Herb Chrifto- 

 pher. Linn. Sp. PI. 722. Willd. n. i, a. Ait. n. i, a. 

 Fl. Brit. n. I. Engl. Bot. t. 918. Bull. Fr. t. 83. Fl. 

 Dan. t. 589. (Chriftophoriana; Cluf. Hift. v. 2. 86. Ger. 

 Em. 979. Lob. Ic. 682.) — Piftil one. Berry nearly glo- 

 bular. Petals as long as the ftamens. Clufter ovate. Leaves 

 divided in a twice or thrice ternate manner ; fegments ovato- 

 lanceolate, ferrated and cut Native of moift and Ihady 



mountainous fituations, in moft countries of Europe ; very 

 rare in England, being confined to the north-weft part of 

 Yorkftiire ; flowering in May. Roots fibrous. Berries 

 alv/ays black. See AcTiEA n. I. 



8. A. brachypetala. Red or White-berried Aftsa. De 

 Cand. n. 8. (A. americana; Purfti 366. A. ipicata (3 et 

 y ; Willd. n. 1. Ait. n. i. A. rubra ; Willd. Enum. 561. 

 Bigelow Boft. 129. Aconitum baccis niveis et rubris ; 

 Cornut. Canad. 76. t. 77. Morif. feft. 1. 1. 2. f. 7.)— Piftil 

 one. Berry ovate-oblong. Petals ftiorter than the ftamens. 

 Clufter ovale. Leaves divided in a twice or thrice ternate 



manner ; fegments ovato-lanceolate, ferrated and cut In 



fliady rocky woods, in rich vegetable mould, from Canada 

 to Virginia, principally on the mountains, flowering in 

 April and May. Known by the name of Red- and White 

 Cohofti, and confidered by the natives as a valuable medicine. 

 Purfh. Root more tuberous than in the laft. De Cand. 

 Berries bright red, or white ; there is faid to be a blue- 

 berried variety alfo. A plant with fmaller white berries, 

 tipped with red, on large thickened y?^/;^/, is thought by 

 Dr. Bigelow a diftin6t fpecies. His fpecimen juftifies this 

 opinion, and differs alfo in the terminal leaflets being ovate, 

 not threeJobcd. This merits further enquiry. 



ACTINEA, from axxo, a ray; meaning merely a 

 radiated flower ; nor is there any thing unufual or ftriking, 

 relative to the part in queftion in the inftance before 



us. 



