<5 ax* 
- 12 — 
belong here. Some species, A. Ixtli, Karw., in the garden of 
the late Mr. Thuret of Antibes, bears both capsules and bulblets; 
and so appears to do A. sobolifera (A. vivipara , Lam.) None 
of our species possess this peculiarity. 
The native country of the Agaves is preeminently Mexico ; in 
the southwestern parts of the United States, mostly in Arizona, 
13 species are found ; but only one of these extends to the 39 0 and 
even 40° N. Lat., while in California the northern limit of the 
Agaves is about 34 0 . A few species seem to be natives of the 
West Indies, and a few more may be peculiar to South America. 
The Agaves said to come from the East Indies, St. Helena, and 
other parts of the old world, are propably all forms of A. flme- 
rzcana originally brought there from America. 
I now proceed.to the enumeration of the species of the territory 
of the United States, and of a few undescribed or imperfectly 
known foreign Agaves of which I possess sufficient material. 
Agave, Lin. 
Perianthium superum tubulosum vel* bampanulatum, subregu- 
lare, subpersistens, limbo 6-fido, laciniis valvatis. Stamina 6; 
filamenta tubo plus minus adnata, in alabastro inflexa, demum 
plerumque longe exserta; antheras lineares versatileS. Ovarium 
inferum, triloculare, ovulis anatropis horizontalibus in loculo. 
singulo biseriatis ; stylus apice incrassato trilobus. Capsula cori- 
acea, loculicide trivalvis ; semina 6-seriata numerosissima, plano- 
compressa, nigra; embryo axilis, longitudine albuminis cornei. 
Plantae Americanae, praecipue Mexicans, acaules vel caule- 
scentes, saepius giganteae ; foliis crassis saepissime aculeato-denta- 
tis spinoso-mucronatis. 
I. SlNGULIFLOR^E. 
.Flores e bractearum axillis singuli, laxe spicati. 
' The species of this section have a more herbaceous character 
than those of the two others; they are stemless, with softer, pro¬ 
bably always annual leaves, not contracted above the base, with 
marginal asperities more than teeth, and a terminal bristle- n^bre 
than a spitie. They are the Herbacece and Subinermes T )f au¬ 
thors, which, however, include some species of the next section. 
Only about a dozen species are known, three of them within our 
Missour 
Botan ICAI 
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