584 
E. D. MERRILL 
siderable variation. No other Indo-Malayan strand tree at all agrees 
with Osbeck's description. 
Rhamnus thea Osbeck, Dagbok Ostind. Resa i6i, 232. 1757 = 
Sageretia theezans (L.) Brongn. 
This is listed in Index Kewensis as ''Rhamnus thea Osb. It. 232 = 
Sageretia theezans." Osbeck's name is cited by Linnaeus as a synonym 
in the original description of Rhamnus theezans L. Mant. 2: 207. 
1 77 1. However, while there is no doubt as to the identity of Rhamnus 
thea, and this name is older than Rhamnus theezans L., I do not consider 
that Rhamnus thea is properly published by Osbeck, and hence do 
not accept his specific name. There is no Latin description, and a 
translation of Osbeck's remarks is as follows: ''Rhamnus thea, or poor 
man's tea, is a bush about 6 feet high, the leaves of which resemble 
those of our common tea, but the flowers belong to the first order of 
the fifth class [Pentagynia, Mojiandria], are quite small, spicate, on 
the much branched branchlets. It is used by the poor as tea and here 
served as a fence. It is called by the Chinese Tja. 
Scirpus chinensis Osbeck, Dagbok Ostind. Resa 220. 1753. 
Scirpus squarrosus L. Mant. 1: 181. 1767. 
The original description of this species is as follows: "Scirpus 
(chinensis) culmo triquetro, subnudo, spicis ternis, sessilibus, ter- 
minalibub, involucro diphyllo, reflexo." In Swedish follows a state- 
ment to the effect that it is a grass with long narrow leaves, one of 
those subtending the spike being much longer than the other, and with 
a reference to Motta pullu Rheede, Hort. Malabar. 12: 71. pi. 38 
as representing the species. 
Scirpus chinensis Osbeck is listed in Index Kewensis, the original 
publication is correctly cited, as to page, but not as to title: "Scirpus 
chinensis Osb. It. 220," and it is reduced to Scirpus squarrosus 1.., to 
which Linnaeus also referred Rheede's figure. There is practically 
no doubt as to the correctness of this identification of Osbeck's species, 
but his name is much older than that of Linnaeus and it is here adopted. 
Osbeck's specimen was collected September 23, 1 751, on " Frans " 
(= French) Island, near Whampoa. Dunn & Tutcher^^ cite the 
species from Whampoa. 
1- Fl. Kwangtung and Hongkong 30T. 1912, 
