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before that time were cftrethed by * botanical 
writers to have no fructification at ail, lias induced 
me to lay a few fpccimens of them with their mag- 
mfied drawings' before the Royal Society. 6 
In examining thcfe plants I was amazed to find 
two fpecies of them evidently of your clafs of 
Dioecia ; that is, male parts of fructification on one 
and female on the other. 
1 he. firld of thefe is the Conferva polymorpha, 
where in I ah. X VIII. at fig. a . is reprefented a very 
fimal 1 branch of the female in its natural fize, and at 
fig* A. the fame is magnified: in tlic tranfparent 
capfules of this fpecimen, we can eafily difeover the 
i>-cd .is it lies expanded in a watcn-glals in water. 
Lettci b. reprefents the natural lize of a lmall branch 
of the male. Letter B. the fame branch magnified, 
fliewing its amentaceous flowers, or catkins, with 
its minute male feed in fpikes. B i. fliews one of 
them highly magnified. 
The other Conferva is the Piumofa, and is one of 
our mofl elegant fub-marine plants. Fig. c. repre- 
fents the natural fize of a minute fprig of the fe- 
male. At fig. C. the lame is magnified, where the 
feeds appear in their capfules. the fig. d. fliews 
the natural fize of a fprig of the male Conferva 
piumofa ; and fig. D. the fame fprig magnified, fliew- 
ing the fpikes of male feed. 
* Ray, Synop. Ed. 3. p. 57. “ Conferva eft Mufci genus 
cc fterile et capitulis floridis deftitutum, immo nec peltis & tu- 
“ berculis, quae horum loco aliqui gerunt, donatum, ex meris 
“ fbliis teretibus et uniformibus feu mavis cauliculis, in tenuia 
“ capillamenta divifis, conftans.” 
JL 
The 
