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This genus is very clofely related to SrENANTiTEnA, as 

 \¥ell as to Mehciirus. (See thofe articles.) We might 

 perhaps fafely unite them all to Stypiielia. The opinion 

 of Mr. Brown, however, who has examined them in a frefh 

 ftate, deferves all poffible attention, and we have therefore 

 followed his views of the fubjeft. AJlroloma confifls of 

 (hrubs, of humble llature, for the moft part decumbent. 

 Leaves fcattered, often ciUated. Flowers axillary, ereft. 

 Six fpecies are mentioned by this author, under the following 

 characters. 



I. A. humtfiifum. Diffufe Aftroloma. (Vintenatiahumi- 

 fufa; Cavan. Ic. v. 4. 28. t. 348.) — Stem proftrate, much 

 branched. Leaves linear-lanceolate, fringed with minute 

 briftles ; flightly convex on the upper fide. — Found in 

 various parts of New Holland, on the fouth-weil coaft, as 

 well as at Port Jackfon, and in Van Diemen's idand. We 

 have not heard of this plant, nor any other of its genus, in 

 the gardens of Europe. The^y?^^;^ are a foot, more or lefs, 

 in length, round, fpreading flat on the grouTid, and fending 

 up numerous, crowded, ereft, (hort, leafy branches. Flowers 

 oil the main ftems and branches, axillary, fchtary, feffile, an 

 inch long, of a fine crjmfon, with a glaucous, fomewhat 

 rofe-coloured, calyx. Drupa nearly the fize of a pea, red- 

 di(h, fmooth, almoft concealed in the permanent calyx. The 

 abbe Cavanilles dedicated this plant, as a diftinft genus, to 

 tlie honour of M. Ventenat, though he made a miftake in its 

 orthography. But there is another Ventenatia, of which 

 the reader m.ay find an account in its proper place. The 

 remaining five fpecies have all been found in tlie fouthern 

 pai't of New Holland, by Mr. Brown, and apparently by 

 no other botanift. We give their names and definitions from 

 his work. 



2. A. projlratum. Proftrate Aftroloma. — Stem proftrate, 

 much branched. Leaves linear-lanceolate, fringed ; flat 

 above ; rather convex beneath. — Seen with unexpended 

 flowers only, by Mr. Brown. 



3. A. denticulatum. Toothed Aftroloma — Stem pro- 

 cumbent, or fomewhat erett. Leaves lanceolate, flat, 

 fringed, with hairs dilated at their bafe. 



4. A. pallklum. Pale Aftroloma. — Stem diffufe, with 

 afcending branches. Leaves lanceolate, fcftile, fringed, im- 

 bricated ; flightly concave on their upper fide. 



5. A. compaftum. Compaft Aftroloma Stem diff"ufe, 



with very fliort afceiiding young branches. Leaves obovato- 

 lanceolate, fringed ; rather concave on their upper fide ; 

 tapering at the bafe into fliort footftalks. 



6. A. ledum. Upright Aftroloma. — Stem ereft, fome- 

 what branched. Leaves lanceolate-oblong, flat, imbri- 

 cated ; rough-edged ; their teeth m.inute, very fhort, ob- 

 tufe. 



ATHENS, in Geography, 1. 4, r. 478. Add— Alfo, a 

 townfhip oi Maine, in the county of Somerfet, with 374 

 inhabitants. — AHo, ntownfliip of Pennfylvania, in Lycoming 

 county, having 759 inhabitants. — Alfo, a county of Ohio, 

 containing 2790 inliabitants. — Alfo, a townfliip of the faid 

 county, with 840 inhabitants. 



ATHEROPOGON, in Botany, from a^ri^, an awn, and 

 Twytji, a beard, alluding to the appearance of the flowers. 

 — Muhlenb. in Willd. Sp. PI. v. 4. 937. Gram. 287. 

 Purfli 75. — Clafs and order, TrianJrta Digynia. (Polyga- 

 mia Monoecia, Willd.) Nat. Ord. Gram'nin. 



Gen. Ch. Gal. Glume of two valves, two-flowered ; floret 

 neuter. Cor. Glume of two valves ; in the perfeft floret 

 the outer valve has three awns, and the latter is cloven ; in 

 the neutral one the outer valve is membranous, cloven, awned 

 below the point, the inner has two awns. Stam. in one floret 



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only, filaments three ; anthers fcarlet. P'l/l. in the fame 

 flower only, germcn oblong ; ftyles two ; ttigmas feathery. 

 Seed folitary, oblong. 



Eff. Ch. Calyx of two valves, two-flowered ; one floret 

 neuter. Corolla of two valves, the outermoil with three 

 awns : in the neutral floret both valves are awned. 



I. A. aphidoldes. Reflexcd Atheropogon. Willd. n.i. 

 Purfli n. I. — Gathered by the late Pvev. Dr. Muhlenberg, 

 on gravelly hills, in Pennfylvania, flowering in September. 

 Root perennial. Stem twelve or eighteen inches high, round, 

 fmooth, jointed in the lower part. Leaves lanceolate, very 

 long ; hairy at the bafe ; their Jheaths downy, crowned with 

 dijfipula. Chtjler fimple, ereft, of about twenty alternate, 

 diftant, pendulous Jlowers, each on a fliort partial ftalk. 

 Anthers of a vermilion hue. Willdenow attributes but one 

 valve to the calyx, Muhlenberg two. Their defcriptions are 

 meagre. There is no reafon for referring this genus to 

 Polygamia, even according to the moft ample ideas of that 

 clafs, for the prefence of a weuKxA Jloret does not conftitute 

 its charafter, nor is perhaps any genus of grafles in the Trlan- 

 dria Digynia quite exempt from fucli. 



ATHEROSPERMA, fo named by the celebrated 

 voyager M. Labillardiere, from a^r.^, an a-wn, and cnrsffj-a., 

 feed. — Labill. Nov. Roll. v. 2. 74. — Clafs and order, 

 Monoecia Mciiadelphia. Nat. Ord. Athcrofpcrmea:, Brown 

 Bot. of Terra AuftraUs, 21. 



Gen. Ch. Male, Cal. Perianth of one leaf, bell-fliaped, 

 with eight obtufe marginal fcgraents ; the four alternate 

 ones external and largeft ; the inner ones coloured. Cor. 

 none. Stam. Filaments numerous, ereft, inferted into the 

 bafe of the calyx, and much fliorter than its limb, fomewhat 

 combined at the bottom, and accompanied by fcales ; anthers 

 elhptical, attached by the back, ereft, of two cells, eaCh 

 opening by a longitudnial valve from the bafe upwards. 



Female, Cal. as in the male, with the addition of numerous, 

 internal, acute, marginal fcales. Cor. none. Pijl. Gerinens 

 numerous, ovate, hairy ; ftyles folitary, tliread-fliaped, hairy; 

 ftigmas fimple. Peric. none, except the permanent, en- 

 larged, hardened calyx. Seeds as many as the germens, 

 fmall, oval, each crowned with its permanent feathery 

 ftyle. 



1. A. mofchata. Nutmeg Atherofpenna. Labill. as 

 above, t. 224. — Native of Cape Van Diemen, from whence 

 we have fpecimens from the author ; with others from A. B. 

 Lambert, efq., gathered by general Grofe. A tree, twenty- 

 five feet or more in height ; the young branches fquare, 

 finely downy. Leaves oppoftte, on fliort thick ftalks, with- 

 out ^//■u/aj', elliptic-oblong, acute, either quite entire, or 

 with a few fliarp fcattered teeth ; fmooth and befprinkled 

 with minute pellucid dots above ; finely downy and hoary 

 beneath, with a reddifti mid-rib and flightly vifible veins. 

 Flowers axillary, folitziry, ftalked, drooping, rather fmall. 

 BraScas two, [Involucrum of Labillardiere,) clofe to each 

 flower, ovate, acute, concave, downy, deciduous. Calyx 

 finely hairy ; that of the fruit much enlarged, half an inch 

 broad, hemifpherical, clothed with denfe filky hairs, and 

 filled like a bafon with feathery-tailed feeds, whofe down 

 refembles that of a fyngenefious plant, and is not reprefented 

 in the above figure. The dried leaf, like every other part, 

 as far as we can examine, has a very ftrong flavour of nut- 

 megs, to which, and not to any mufky fcent, the fpecific 

 name alludes. We have chiefly followed our author in the 

 above defcription, except a moil important charafter, of the 

 valvular anthers, borrowed from Mr. Brown, whofe remarks 

 in the follov/ing article will be found greatly to illuftrate the 

 prefent, and to render fome future alterations necefiary. 



ATHERQ. 



