164 
organs, taking place in the 
lapse of time. There is a ten- 
dency to deviations and muta. 
tions through plants and ani- 
mals by gradualsteps at remote 
irregular periods. This is a 
part of the great universal law 
of PERPETUAL MUTABILITY in 
every thing. 
Thus it is needless to dispute 
and differ about new G. Sp. and 
varieties. Every variety is a 
deviation which becomes a Sp. 
as soon as it is permanent by 
reproduction. Deviations in 
essential organs may thus 
gradually become N. G. Yet 
every deviation in form ought 
to have a peculiar name, it is 
better to have only a generic 
and specific name for it than 4 
when deemed a variety. It is 
not impossible to ascertain the 
primitive Sp. that have pro- 
duced all the actual; many 
means exist to ascertain it: his- 
tory, locality, abundance, kc. 
This view of the subject will set- 
tle botany and zoology in anew 
way and greatly simplify those 
sciences. The races, breeds or 
varieties of men, monkeys, 
dogs, roses, apples, wheat.... 
and almost every other genus, 
may be reduced to one ora few 
primitive Sp. yet admit of sev- 
eral actual Sp. names may and 
will multiply as they do in 
geography and history by time 
and changes, but they will be 
reducible to a better classifica- 
tion by a kind of genealogical 
order or tables. 
My last work on Botany if 
I live and after publishing all 
my N. Sp. will be on this, and 
the reduction of our Flora from 
8000 to 1200 or 1500 primitive 
Sp. v^ith genealogical tables of 
the gradual deviations having 
formed our actual Sp. If I can- 
not perform this, give me credit 
for it, and do it yourself upon 
the plan that I trace. 
C. S. R. 
125. N. G. ScADiAinJS. Raf. 
A beautiful liliaceous plant 
of Louisiana, with splendid 
umbella of azure flowers, has 
long been know in our gar- 
dens near Philadelphia and our 
books of botany as the Crinum 
Jhnericanum; which I have late- 
ly ascertained to be very differ- 
ent from that South American 
plant, and it is now astonishing 
to me how it could have been 
thus misnamed, since it is not 
even a Crinum ; but a N. G. and 
totally distinct from the plant 
of Linneus, as the following 
comparison will shew. 
Crinum Jhhericamim. Bescr. 
of L. leaves oblong carinate un- 
dulate, bipedal, very broad. 
Scape compressed, flowers yel- 
lowish white, fragrant, seg- 
ments uncinate reflexed. 
Our plant? thus wronghj called 
by Pursh , Nuttal $x 9 has leaves 
ligulate flat, acuminate, pedal, 
breadth uncial. Scape round, 
flowers blue, inodorous seg- 
ments erect not uncinate! !1 — 
Thus not a single character 
is alike. What they have in 
common is merely a large bulb, 
thick leaves, a scape, a multi- 
flore umbel, &c. If it is to be a 
Crinum it must be called Cr. 
ceruleum Raf; but it is not, hav- 
ing unequal stamina, &e. 
Linneus was apt to form his 
