CANELLA ALBA. 
Laurel-leaved Canella.* 
91 
Class DoDECANDRiA. — Order Monogynia. 
ZVaf. Ord. OLKRACEiE, Linn. Meliace^, Juss. 
Gen. Char. C«Z//x three-lobed. Petals ^\e. Filaments 
none. Anthers twenty-one, adhering to a pitcher-shaped 
nectary. Berry three-celled. Seeds two to four. 
There is but one known species. 
The Canella Alba is a native of the new World, and is very 
common in Jamaica and other West India Islands ; according to 
Clusius, it was first introduced into Britain about the year 1600, and 
we are informed by Mr. Aiton.t that in 1739 it was cultivated by 
Mr. Miller in Chelsea Gardens. For some time, however, and even 
until lately, it was very generally confounded with the Wintera 
Aromatica, a native of South America, discovered by Captain 
Winter, from whom it took its name, in 1579, when that Commander 
accompanied Sir Francis Drake in his voyage to the South Pacific 
Ocean. John Bauhin was the first who confounded the names of 
these trees,! by calling the bark of the Wintera, Canella Alba, 
and this error was adopted by Linnaeus himself,§ who gave to it the 
name of Laurus Winterana; but on discovering that it belonged to 
a distinct genus, he still, in a manner, continued his original error, 
by calling it simply Winterania, as a generic name ; and by this it 
was universally known, till Professor Murray corrected the error, 
and made a distinct genus of Canella. It must however be observed, 
that although these two trees do not strictly agree in their botanical 
characters, there is a very strong resemblance between them ; while 
the sensible and medical properties of their respective barks are 
nearly the same ; and indeed, the bark of the Canella Alba is very 
* Fig. a. the calyx and pistillum magnified, b. The anthers. c. The 
d. Transverse section of the frait. e. A seed of the natural size, 
■f- Hort. Kew. vol. ii. p. 125. 
t Hist. vol. i. p. 460. 
§ Sp. Plant, ed. i. p. 3T1. 
