35 
''■'•I I ucAMtA r 
enormous polypody. 
P O L Y P O D I U M A U R E U M. 
A Single Leaf makes but a fimple appearance after the gorgeous clufters and n r r 
I A elegancies of nature, reprefented juftly, if imperfealy, in the precedln Di 
.n the fern kinds, to which this belongs, a Leaf I all. It is the Knt ® 
pable of propagation ; thefe bear no Stalk for Flowers ; but the whole 
The golden dots upon the.pale backs of the Leaves are cluflers of minute FI 
their fucceeding Seeds. Thefe are fo fmall, and the pre^refs of natur- ' ^ 
the great work of impregnation, is fo hid from our fight by the mmuLl 
gans, that the whole clafs is thence nam’d Cryptogamia ; thofe which impregnat 
Runty It was proper to give one Plant of this peculiar clafs ; and fortune comT 
have thrown m the way a nobler: for what beauty there can be in a Leaf this 1 
there is alfo a fingularity about the Root, worthy particular regard. Many o7 h' f 
and even of this particular Polypody kind, have Leaves more complex in thefi t J 
more divided ; but thofe who have ftiidy’d the art of defign, wilfgive the p'ize™! 
gance to this, whofe pai ts are ail large, and fuited to the enormouf whoie" " 
The antient Naturalifts hav'e nam'd a creature call’d tEp Qpx-fk' t i 
idleftoriesof its life : nay, fome have brrugb^he bod LL' e^ ’ 
the thick Root of a Fern, cover'd with a brown and downy coat, and they cut off f 
o he Stalks at a due heighth, which pafs upon the credulous for legs This Polyol' 
" ill explain the miracle ; and as it is evidently a native of r i ^ 
countries, tlto’ we firft had it from South AiLT it l no "k ' 7 f 
of thofe imagin’dcreatures have been made from it 
Near the decaying (lump of fome old tree where the foil ii j i 
Leaves of many feafons, rifes this fpecious Polypody. The thick "pal Tit R t" 
n,'r.L Riir” '■*' "»■». “j f™ >'”• 
Jlcafure! "lay be forc’d 7 
vifiIn7!lTcitTT ^nd its long undulated and fair di- 
is the charaaer of Polypodil-s amonTthe 
in long lines, or on the Lees of the T ^^^P'^Samous clafs ; the reft having the clufters 
S , n edges of the Leaves, or covering their whole furface. 
pcc7hlr7!rner . nm’ri “l “Tr ' '^is Leaf in a 
tion and difpofidon are" var^d lo faTour' it"'" TheT'^ '’'fj 7' o'’’"' 
-a.ina.ing part is larger than the refit both .heftVTul™ L.r offi^T: 
Wypod,„a. no„J,!,as p^ser.Ji, ,„;bas , pi„„u oblong, s ditondbus infi^U ps.ulb, icrminati maxima. 
Golden PoJ/pody* 
■P' / ^ I s. 
' .y. 
•V,? 
