496 Stiles . — The Podocarpeae. 
xvi. Relations of the Podocarpeae to other Coniferae; 
Phylogeny. 
The question of the inter-relationships of the various phyla within the 
Coniferae is one on which very diverse opinions are held. The following 
quotation from the New Edition of Professors Coulter and Chamberlain’s 
‘ Morphology of Gymnosperms ’ shows how various are the views held with 
regard to the natural position of the Taxaceae (Taxeae and Podocarpeae). 
‘ They have been called the oldest living conifers and the most recent ; they 
have been connected with Ginkgo through Cephalotaxus and with Cordaites 
on account of the structure of the ovuliferous shoot of Taxus ; and the 
podocarps have been related to the araucarians through Dacrydium and 
Saxegothaea! 1 
During the last few years the opinion has been rapidly gaining ground 
that the Podocarpeae and the Araucarieae are directly descended from 
a common ancestor, the connecting link between the two orders being found 
in Saxegothaea . The first suggestion of this connexion really dates from 
as far back as Lindley, who actually classed Saxegothaea as one of the 
Pinaceae on account of its similarity to Agathis . 2 Of late years the first 
suggestion of a revival of this view appears as a result of Miss Young’s 
work on the male gametophyte of Dacrydium ; this writer being struck 
with the development of prothallial tissue in the Podocarpeae, Araucarieae, 
1 Coulter and Chamberlain (TO), p. 350. 2 Lindley (’53), p. 229 a. 
