226 
POrULAR SCIENCE REVIEW. 
dozen other families. A list, which might probably he some- 
what enlarged, is given -below, upon which it may be remarked 
that Monocotyledons are few, and that none of the Dicotyledons^ 
are polype talons (unless it be preferred to consider Balanojpho- 
racem, as belonging to that division) — 
Dicotyledones. 
[Polypetalse — non6.~\ 
Monopetalse : 
Convolvulaceae — Cuscuta. 
Ericaceae — Monotropa, Fyrola aphylla, &c. 
Lennoaceae, Solms. — all. {Ammobroma, Lcnnoa, Cornllophyllutny, 
PhoUsma.') 
Scrophulariaceae — Harveya, See., Striya, etc., Phinanthus, Sec. 
Orobancliacese — all. 
Gentib,nace£e — Voyria, Sec. 
Gesneraceae — CJiristisonia. 
Apetalae : 
Lauraceae — Cassytha. 
Lorantliaceae — very nearly all. 
Santalaceae — Thesinm, Sec. 
Cytinaceae — all. 
Kafflesiaceae — all. 
Balanophoraceae — all. 
Monocotyledones : 
Melanthaceae — Petrosaia. 
Orchideae — Neottia, Sec. 
Triurideae — all? 
What is called “ habit,” is a very fallacious guide to affinityy. 
and has frequently proved so to even experienced systematists. 
It mainly results from modifications of the organs which for pur- 
poses of classification are of minor importance. Some of the 
parallelisms in outward appearance between plants with little 
real affinity have been noticed by A. W. Bennett, in an article 
in this Eeview for January 1872, and the matter is of that 
curious and suggestive character which leads to mauy specula- 
tions. The parasitic facies is a very marked one, and has 
naturally had an undue prominence assigned to it by some sys- 
tematic botanists. Bindley and Endlicher, for example, created 
a class under the name of Rhizogens or Ehizanthese to include 
the orders Bafflesiacece^ Cytinacece and Balanophoracece, which 
was considered to be intermediate between thallogenous Cryp- 
togams (like the Fungi) and Endogens. Though these emi- 
nent authors endeavoured to support their views by various 
arguments drawn from supposed constant peculiarities of the 
-embryo and the tissues, the group was no doubt founded chiefly 
on the habit of the plants composing it. This, however, results 
