98 
IOWA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE 
the curves of the wings a jointed round pedicel comes forth. The part 
of this above the joint is three inches long and hollow. On this a large 
yellow flower, having four petals, stands out beyond the leaves, (and) 
when it first begins to flower, it is quadrangular. Yfhen open or the 
sun shines brightly a pistil is seen in the midst of it, which (is) green 
(and) goes down all the way to the joint, and is furnished with four 
sulphur-colored apices arranged in the form of a cross. Around this 
stand eight stamens, four of which are placed one opposite each leaf, the 
other four are set in between the first (four) : and on each one of these 
sets an oblong whitish little head. Underneath the flower itself four 
little leaves, oblong, narrow, (and) pale, are set. The flower is fragrant. 
Its odor is not unlike (that of) the Keiri but rather more like (that of) 
the yellow Liliasphodel. It does not last lieyond one day, (but) when it 
opens toward evening it vnTts on the evening of the following day, 
whence it deserves to ])e called Ephemerum. When the fiov-er with its 
pedicel has wilted down, the other part of the pedicel, an incli and a 
half long, gradually elongates to two or even three inches, and grows 
out into a pod or little horn, and this swells up on account of the 
abundant, black or fuscous, little seeds that it contains ; and when 
it (the seed), is ripe, these same little horns, which are thickly set on 
both sides of the stem, are divided into four parts. From the seed 
sown, the plants remain the whole summer and the following winter 
without a shoot, the leaves spread out over the ground, 'and the following 
year, about the end of spring, it begins to send up shoots, and in June 
to flower, and it flowers and perfects seUls towards the end of autumn, 
and since it is a biennial plant, from the seed that falls in the autumn, 
every year it is seen abundantly in our gardens without a stalk. With 
the coming of the second spring it erects a stalk and perfects its seeds. 
It will be seen that Morison gives both species new names and de- 
scribes them as his own. 
If we now make a comparison of the 1619 account of this plant, with 
the 1680 description, on comparing the Latin, it will be seen tliat there 
are a number of additions to the later account. The plant is now 
found in other parts of North America than Virginia. The sequence of 
the description has been transposed, the account of the rosette leaves 
coming first, in logical order. The clianges introduced are in many 
cases corrections of inaccuracies. Thus, in regard to the rosette leaves, 
‘ ' oblonga ”is changed to ‘ ' longa” ; ‘ ' obscure sinuata ’ ’becomes ' ‘ sinuata ’ ’ ; 
''mucronata” is added; ''glauca, ” referring to the rosette leaves, 
doubtless has tlie port-Augustini,en Latin meaning ‘‘bluish gra,y, ” in 
