

HlPPURIS VULGARIS. MaRES-TAIU 



HIPPURIS Lin. Gen. PL MonandriA monogynia. 



Cal. o. Petala o. Stigma fimplex. San. i . 



Rait Syn* Gen-. 5» Herb^e flore jmperfecto seu stamineq vel afetalo poTitm 



HIPPURIS vulgaris. Lin. Syfi, Vegetab. p. 51. Sp. PL p. 6. FL Sues, n. 2, 



PINASTELLA. Bilkn. Nov. Gen. p* 168, 



LIMNOPEUCE» //tf//fn Hift* p. 264. Vailiant. Mem, de I' Acad, anno 1 7 1 6, t. 1. f. 3. 



POLYGONUM faemina. Mtf//j. in Diofic. p» 95^. Dodon.Pempt, p. 113. 



EQUISETUM paluftre brevioribus foliis polyfpermon. G &///?. 15. 



EQUISETUM paluftre alterum brevioribus fetis. 1W& 1200, 



CAUDA EQUINA faemina» G^r. ww^c. 11 14. 2&zi* $y«» P- x 3^- ttudfin. PL AngL ed. 2. p. 2. 

 Lightfoot PI. ScoU p. 70. 



&.AD1X perennis, fepens, geftlculata, alba, geniculis plu-|ROOT perennial, Creeping, jointed and white, the joints 

 rimis fibris Capillata. f -furnifhed with numerous capillary fibres. 



CAULES plurimi, fefquipedales et ultra, erecti» fimplices, | STALKS numerous, a foot and a half or more in height, 

 glabri, ftriati, teretes, fpongiofi, Jig. 1. me* J upright, fimpie, imrjoth, ftriated, round» 



dulla nliformi, compa&a, in radicibus tenaci. | fpongy, j%-> 1. the pith like a thread in tie 



I center, compact, and in the roots tough» 



FOLIA verticillata, o&o circiter, brevia, linearia, gla-? LEAVES growing in whirls, about eight in number 

 berrima, avenia, ad leritenx punctata» punctis| fhort, linear, perfedtly fmooth, without veins, 



excavatis. ¥ dotted when magnified, the dots appearing 



t hollow. 



FLORES hermaphroditi plerumque, prefertim vere, ad | FLOWERS for themoft part hermaphrodite, efpecially 

 finem aeftatis plures faemineos oblervavi, axil- | in the fpring, at the clofe of the fummer I 



lares» feffiles» | have obferved many of them to be female, 



¥ growing in the ahe af the leaves, and femle» 



CALYX nullus. I CALYX none. 



COROLLA nulla» ' > f COROLLA none. 



STAMEN: Filamentum tmicum, apici germinis in- 1 STAMEN: a fingle FilaMf.nt, fitting on the top of 

 iidens, primo breviffimum» demiffo polline Ion- ^ the germen, at firft very fhort, on fhedding 



gitudine piftilli. Anther a biloba, purpufaf-? the pollen becoming as long as the piftillum» 



cens, majufcula, fig. 2, J. AntHera compoied of two lobes, purplilh 



¥ and rather large, fig. 2, 3. 



PISTILLUM: Germen oblongum. Stylus breviffi- 1 PISTILLUM : Germen oblong. Style very fhort, 

 mus, nudus. Stigma lubulatum, album, ad:£ naked. Stigma tapering to a point, white 



lentem villofum, fig. 4, 5, 6. | and downy when magnified, fir. 4, r 6. 



PERICARPIUM nullum. f SEED-VESSEL none. 



SEMEN unicum, oblongum, nudum, fubofleum» intus|SEED fingle, oblong, naked, hard, white within, and 

 album, medio fufcum, membrana feu axilla | in the center brown, covered with a thin mem - 



tenui obtect.um, fig. 7, 8, 9. ¥ brane or arillus, fig. j % 8, 9. 



Greater nmplicity in the conftruction of a flower can fcarcely exift than in the Hippuris. Here we have neither 

 calyx, corolla, nor feed- veflel ; and thofe parts which are univerfally coniidered as eftential to the fructification' are 

 in the prefent inftance as few as pofuble, there being only one ftamen, with its correfponding piftillum, yet perfect 

 feed, and that in considerable quantity, is produced. 



The Hippuris here defcribed, which takes its name from the Greek c l7T7r?pc, five Cauda equina, is not the Hippuris 

 of the nrft Botanifts. They applied the term to our Equifetum, the Hippuris of Linn^us is the Polygonum jamina 

 of Dioscorides, and arranged by his commentator Matthiolus with our Polygonum avicu/are^and Herniaria. 

 Succeeding Botanifts imagining, from the growth of its leaves, or from its producing feed, that it had better 

 pretentions to be ranked with the Equifetum, abfurdly enough called it Cauda equina famina, to which Mr. Hudson 

 could not well avoid giving the Englifh name of Mares-tail. 



Although common in many parts of Great Britain, this plant is very rare about London, Mr. Hudson mentipnsit 

 as crowing in a part of the New River near Hornfey, where it may full be found. 



It flowers and produces its feeds from June to Augujt. 



In running ftreams it is frequently extended to a great length ; and we have been informed, that in fome rivers 

 it is an exceedingly troublefome weed, which we can the more readily believe, having experienced its roots to be of 

 the moft powertully creeping kind. 



A traniverfe fection of its ftalk is a beautiful microfcopic object. 



On examining this plant we have fometimes found its flowers to be female only. 





