The Variety of Toad-Flax 
called Pdoria. 
The earlieft account that we find of the Pe/oria is in the firfi volume of the Amcenitates Academic re of 
Linnaeus, publifhed in 1 749; it there forms a diftind thefts or differtation, written by Daniel Rudberg, who 
enters minutely into the hiftory of the plant, defcribes it fully, and illuftrates it by an engraving. 
The plant appears to have been firfi difcovered in the year 1742, growing in a province of Sweden, about 
feven miles from Upfal, by a botanical ftudent of the name of Zioberg, who gathered a fpecimen of it, and 
placed it in his herbarium, as a plant he had not before feen, ignorant at the fame time of its nature and 
ceconomy, and of the value of his difcovery: in the fame year Profeffor Celsius, no lefs celebrated for his 
knowledge of plants than of languages, happening to look over Mr. Zioberg’s colledion, was immediately 
ftruck with the extraordinary appearances of this novelty ; but the Hate it was in, being dry and ftuck on paper, 
prevented him at that time from examining it to the extent he wifhed. In a fhort time the Profeffor had an 
opportunity of {hewing it to Linnaeus, who after looking at it with great attention, proclaimed it to be a 
fpecimen of Antirrhinum Unaria, with the flowers, as he fufpeded, of fome exotic, fluck On it, inftead of its 
own ; fuch deceptions are well known to be fometimes pradifed, but on opening one of the flowers, he was 
convinced that his fufpicions were unfounded : he now became impatient to poffefs the living plant, roots of 
which, at his requeft, were fcnt him by Mr. Zioberg, and planted in the botanic garden at Upfal, but did not 
fucceed ; thefe would have been replaced in 1743, but the plants where they originally grew had been obliterated 
by cattle : the fame injury befel them in 1744, fo that it is probable Linnaeus did not enjoy the pleafure he fo 
ardently wifhed for, of feeing it bloffom ; and there is reafon to conclude, that both the defcription and figure in 
the Aman. Acad, were taken from Zioberg’s dried fpecimen, which will in fome degree apologife for the 
inaccuracy of both ; that of the former we fhall have occafion to mention in the fequel of this account. 
Since the above differtation was publifhed, the Peloria has been found wild in various parts of Germany, and 
alfo in this our ifland. Mr. Hudson, in the firfi edition of his Flora Anglica, mentions it as growing’ near 
Clapham, Surrey; but as no botanift has obferved it there fince that publication, and as in the fecond edition of 
the faid work the fad is no longer noticed, we may reafonably conclude that Mr. Hudson was miflaken. 
In the year 1792, Mr. Ordoyno, Nurferyman at Newark-upon-Trent, molt obligingly fent me fome roots 
of this plant, found growing wild by Mr. Leighton, of Brocklefby, near Brigg in Lincolnfhire, in fome 
woods belonging to Mr. Pelham ; thefe were planted in a pot, and flowered with me fparingly in 1793: this 
fummer, 1794, in the beginning of Augufl, they produced a great number of flowering Items, and flowers in 
abundance, every one of which was true to its charader; but though the parts of frydification were perfed, no 
feed-veffels were formed; its failure in this refped I attribute to my keeping the plant in too flieltered a fituation 
as a plant from the fame root growing in a pot at Mr. Vere’s, Brompton Park-Houfe, Kenfington-Gore, under 
the management of his gardener William Anderson, produced two perfed feed-vefTels, containing many to 
all appearance well-conditioned feeds : we may ob ferve that thfe flowers of the Unaria itfelf are rarely fertile 
unlefs the plant be expofed to an open funny afped. 
When the Peloria was firfi publifhed in the Ameenit. Acad. Linn a us regarded it as a new genus, the charaders 
of which are there defcribed, he was inclined to think that it might be a hybrid plant, generated betwixt the 
Linaria, and fome other unknown vegetable; the fexuality of his fyflem often led the great Linnaeus to 
indulge in whims of this fort, m the Sp. PI. ed. 3. we find him to have relinquifhed the opinion of its being 
a diflina genus*, but flill adhering to his favourite idea of hybridity, now, as far as relates to this plant, very 
generally exploded. Prof. Murray has obferved, that the flowers of the genus Antirrhinum are peculiarly 
fubjea to monflrofity ; wc ourfelves have frequently feen the flowers of the common Toad-Flax with two or 
three fpurs, and thole of the majus having a tendency to a Peloria-like appearance, but never to affume the 
regularity which conflitutes the beauty and extreme Angularity of that plant ; there is, however, no appearance 
in the ftrudure of the flowers of the Peloria but what may be traced to thofe of the Linaria, of which they 
certainly are a mod wonderful modification, and hence there does not appear to be the leafl neceffity for having 
recourfe to any preternatural fexual intercourfe to explain this extraordinary phaenomenon. & 
The monflrofity in the Peloria appears to be confined wholly to the Corolla with its attendant Stamina, which 
is hereby rendered a fpecies of Flos multiplicatus, there is nothing in the other parts of the plant to diftinguifh 
it from the common Toad-Flax ; that the difference in the flowers of the two plants might be more obvioufly 
feen, we have had a flower of the Linaria engraved on the fame plate, Jig. 7. this in Peloria is fo metamorphofed 
as feared y to retain one original feature; the calyx,/^. 1 . varies but little, not at all in the number of its divifions - 
the Corolla from being irregular becomes regular, below it is dilated, above contraded, fo as to form a tubular 
kind of neck, terminating in,a prominent circular rim, which rolls back and is divided into five regular fhort 
fomewhat obtufe fegments, fig. 2. the mouth is internally villous, and puckered up fo as to become impervious - 
inftead of one depending fpur-like Nedary, there are five, fpringing from the bafe of the Corolla fig o and 
fpreading out almofl horizontally; the Stamina are increafed from four to five, jig. 4. thefe moft affuredlv 
are attached to the Corolla, notwithflanding Linn /Bus’s affertion that they are riullo modo corolla; affixa for 
on pulling off the Corolla, which eafily feparates from the receptacle in the living plant, they come away with 
it : no very material alteration takes place in the form of the Filaments, or Anthene, Jig. 5. nor does the 
Piflillum appear to partake of the monflrofity, Jig. 6. hence there is no phyfical caufb for that flerility which 
moft of the authors who have mentioned this plant attribute to it. J ’ 
We regret extremely that we cannot as yet give a fatisfadory anfwer to the Linmcan Quere in the Anuen 
Acad, an ex Peloria; Jcmimbus Linaria unquam enaj'catur ; we think it highly probable that the feeds of the 
Peloria will produce plants both of common Toad-Flax and Peloria, perhaps fome bearing flowers common 
to both, fuch as Haller relates to have been obferved by Fabricius; but this important fad remains to be 
afcertained by adual experiments : with fuch we are now engaged, and fhall not fail takino- the earlieft 
opportunity of laying the refult of them before our readers, when we treat of the Antirrhinum majus. 
The Peloria, like the Linaria, increases greatly by its roots, like that plant it fucceeds belt in a dry foil and 
expofed fituation, and no plant thrives better in a pot. 3 
Limbus derives the name of this Inins from the greelt word which Egnifies any thing monflrous- 
hence Apollonius Rhodius calls a monflrous birth T i X &. 1 0 4 1 
* Linaria; proles hybrida-genus proprium conttitueret nifi fruflus temper abortiret-natur* prodigium, Urm. Sp. Pi. t d. 3 . 
