360 



Notes on Indian Botany. 



tion by want of arrangement and loosely constructed specific 

 characters. The labours of that great Botanist in recasting 

 the whole genus and grouping the species into easily under- 

 stood subgenera and sections, combined with a more uniform 

 system in the construction of his specific characters, have 

 done much towards abridging the labour of future Botanists, 

 who may have to engage in their investigation. Much how- 

 ever as he has done, I believe, I may still assert, that there 

 are few, if indeed a single genus in the system of plants, that 

 yet stands so much in need of the skill of an able and philo- 

 sophical Mongraphist as Loranthus. 



The succinct characters and judicious arrangement of De 

 Candolle, aided by the copious descriptions of many, or 

 rather most, of the species, brought together by the younger 

 Schultes (Syst. Vegetab. Vol. VII.) have rendered the deter- 

 mination of known species a comparatively certain operation, 

 but still much is wanted towards a really philosophical ex- 

 position of this great genus as a whole. 



Martius, Blume and G. Don, seem all to be impressed with 

 the idea that it might be advantageously divided, and among 

 them it is broken into about 20 genera. 



In the correctness of this view I cannot coincide, for taken 

 as a whole it seems, so far as our acquaintance with its struc- 

 ture goes, a singularly natural genus. As regards the Indian 

 portion, I can speak with considerable confidence, from the 

 examination of a number of species, and it is my belief 

 the American division is quite in keeping. That it is readily 

 susceptible of division there can scarcely be a question, but 

 that the parts ought to have a generic value assigned, I am 

 far from thinking, under the conviction that being, as a whole, 

 so extremely natural and uniform in its structure, its parts 

 must prove most artificial : and to that extent become a 

 blemish in a natural system. 



In advancing this opinion, I wish however to be under- 

 stood as laying particular stress on our present ignorance of 

 the seminal structure, a most important point in the construe- 



