LOPEZIA RACEMOSA. -MEXICAN LOPEZIA. 
Class I. MONANDRIA.-Qrder I. MONOGYNIA. 
Natural Order, CIRCiEAC.dE. THE ENCHANTER’S NIGHTSHADE TRIBE. 
Lopezia named in honour of Thomas Lopez, a Spanish botanist, who is said to have directed his attention 
to the natural history of the New World. 
Stalk five or six feet high, branched almost to the bottom, square, of a deep red colour, smooth towards 
the bottom,, slightly hairy above : Branches like the stalk; leaves alternate, ovate, pointed, toothed on the 
edges, more so on the larger leaves, slightly beset with soft hairs, veins prominent on the under side, usually 
running parallel to each other and unbranched: Leafstalks hairy ; flowers numerous, from the alee of the 
leaves, growing irregularly on hairy leafy racemi, standing on long slender peduncles, which hang down as 
the seed-vessels are produced ; Calyx : a Perianthium of four leaves sitting on the Germen, leaves narrow, 
concave, reddish, with green tips, the lowermost one widely separated from the others, and placed imme- 
diately under the nectary ; Corolla four Petals of a pale red colour, forming in their mode of growth the 
l upper half of a circle, the two uppermost linear, of a deeper colour near the apex, jointed below the middle, 
with a small green gland on each joint, standing on short round foot-stalks; Nectary situated below the 
Petals, perfectly white, somewhat ovate, the sides folding together, before the flower fully expands, nearly 
upright, embracing and containing within it the Pistillum and Stamen. Stamen Filament one, tapering and 
I very slender just below the Anthera, arising from the same part as (and placed opposite to the base of) the 
j Nectary, the lower part of it broader, somewhat fleshy, cartilaginous, and cf the same nature as the inferior 
j part of the Nectary, with a groove as that has on the inside, so that before the flower expands, the bases of 
I each are like two half tubes, the sides of which, nearly touching each other, wholly enclose the Pistillum ; 
Pistillum Germen below the Calyx, round, smooth, and green; Style filiform, white, length of the 'Fila- 
ment; Stigma forming a small villous head. 
Some plants have a claim on our attention for their utility, some for their beauty, and some for the 
singularity of their structure, and the wonderful nature of their economy ; in the last class we must place 
| the present plant, the flowers of which we recommend to the examination of such of our readers as may 
I have an opportunity of seeing them ; to the philosophic mind, not captivated with mere shew, they will 
' afford a most delicious treat. 
A VISIT TO A VEGETABLE GIANT. 
This huge tree which spreads out its great branches over a large area of ground, formerly overshadowed 
{ the royal palace, and was the wonder of the whole city; and now, when palace and city are only constituents 
of the dust around it, the tree flourishes, and commands the admiration of the traveller, and the adoration of 
j the majority of the Javanese nation. The place where it is found is now known as Batatulies. At its foot 
I is a small wooden structure, where a few Mohammedan priests officiate, to whose care is committed the con- 
I servancy, of this monarch of the forest, and of some supplementary relics, upon the proceeds of the exhi- 
bition of which, and on the fees for the attendant religious ceremonies, they contrive to pick up a tolerable 
j livelihood; for the tree is in an odour of sanctity beyond all other trees in the island. Wo and bad success 
i to that miserable peasant who goes to market without paying his adorations and coin at the shrine of the giant 
tree! Besides this, the fame of the tree has spread far and wide, and many come to behold and wonder, who 
j may pay the customary offerings without adoring the deity of the place. The subsidiary relics consist of 
some pieces of old Padjajarian tombstones, and a marvellous bit of rock, into which some Hercules of old is 
] said to have set his foot. These are held in equal veneration with the great tree, and their worship is com- 
mingled with the services of the mighty vegetable idol which towers above them. The tree stands at no 
considerable distance from the wayside, and forms an imposing feature of a landscape, by no means deficient 
in grandeur. It is placed upon an elevated plain, and is conspicuous from all sides of it, and attracts the 
attention of every one even at some distance. So noble is its appearance, so majestic its port, that it has 
been said if once beheld, it cannot soon be forgotten. Coffee plantations crown the fields and the sides of 
the hills, offering a striking contrast of feebleness and colossal strength in the vegetable kingdom. Shining 
rivers, waving rice-fields, woods and mountains, with a fuming volcano in the distance, complete the picture 
of its situation. 
The trunk of the tree is of dimensions so vast, that very many men, by their united hands, cannot em- 
brace it; botanical data do not exist for the determination of its age; the tree is too sacred probably to allow 
of the requisite steps for that examination. The trunk at first sight almost appears, as if it consisted of a 
number of trees all intimately united together; and from all sides of it huge irregular boughs jut up of all 
sorts of shapes, and in every direction, while the deep farrows and hollows consequent upon extreme vege- 
table old age contribute to give the monster a grandeur and awfulness of character not easily conceivable, 
perhaps the greatest marvel about the tree is the remarkable fact, that it is actually made up of two trees 
united into one ; and most curious to relate, two trees of the same genus, but of different species! Both 
have grown together, so as to form one indivisible trunk of enormous size ; but the distinctive features of 
each species come out in the branches, and appear, even to the eye of the casual observer and untutored 
savage, in the remarkable difference in the colour of the foliage. At a little distance the spectacle is very 
