G E S 
city artd modefty, by which true genius is fo generally 
diftinguillied. With qualities I'uch as thelq, GelFiier 
could not fail to be loved and refpefted ; and uniting 
to tafte and literature the talents requilite for adfive 
life, he was raifed by the fuflVages of the citizens of 
Zurich to the fird offices in the republic ; the duties ot 
which he difeharged with Icrupulous fidelity. The 
fame of the accomplilhed and virtuous magilfrate ot 
Zurich, fpread to the remotefi: parts of Europe. The 
emprefa of Rufiia, Catharine II. fent him a gold medal 
as a mark of her efteem: and firangers from all coun¬ 
tries vifiting SwilTerland courted his fociety, and gave 
him the rnott flattering proofs of their refpedt and ad¬ 
miration. His Deatli of Abel is his grand produdfion ; 
but his Idyls are alfo generally known and admired ; 
we tranferibe the character given of them by Dr. Blair: 
“ Of all the modems, Geifner, a poet of Swilferland, 
has been the mod: fuccefsful in his padoral compofi- 
tions. He has introduced into his Idyls, (as he enti¬ 
tles them) many new ideas. His ruraf feenery is often 
ftriking, and his defcripiions lively. He prefents paf- 
toral life to us with all the embellidiments of which it 
is fufceptible, but without any e.xcefs of refinement. 
What forms the chief merit of this poet, is, that he 
wrote to the heart, and has enriched the fubjefts of his 
Idyls with incidents that gave rife to much tender fen- 
timent. Scenes of domedic felicity are beautifully 
painted. The mutual atfedlion of hulbands and wives, 
of parents and children, of brothers and fifters, as well 
as of lovers, are dilplayed in a pleading and touching 
manner. Not underdanding his language, I can be no 
judge of his dyle, but in the fubjedb and condiidt of his 
padorals, he appears to me to have out-done all the 
moderns.”—“The dyle of Geffher, (obferves his tranf- 
lator,) on which Dr. Blair declines giving an opinion, 
appears to me to be pure, eafy, and perfpicuous, alto¬ 
gether free from thofe inverfions and contortions which 
are found in the Death of Abel, as trandated by Mrs. 
Collyer, and which give it fo forced and unnatural an 
air. The dyle of the Idyls particularly is poliihed 
with the utmod care, and dilcovers an elegance, yet 
fimplicity of expredion, perfectly fuited to the charac¬ 
ters and manners which are deferibed.” 
GESNE'RA, or Gesneria,/! [fo named by Plu- 
mierin honour of Conrad Gefner of Zurich, the famous 
botanid and natural hidorian.^ In botany, a genus of 
the clafs didynamia, order angiofpermia,, natural order 
perfonat*, (campanulacea:, JvJf.) The generic cha¬ 
racters are—Calyx : perianthuim one-leafed, luperior, 
five-cleft, fliarp, permanent. Corolla: one-petalled, 
incurved and recurved ; tube thickilh, with a contranfted 
neck and funnel-form throat; border five-cleft, blunt; 
upper divilions concave ; three lower flat, fpreading. 
Stamina: filaments four, ffiorter than the corolla ; an- 
therae fimple, Pidillum: germ inferior, flatted; dyle 
filiform, the fame in fituatioii and length with the Ita- 
mens ; ftigma capitate. Pericarpium: capfule round- 
iffi, and crowned with the patulous calyx, fub-bilocu- 
lar; partition in the middle longitudinally interrupted. 
Seeds : extremely numerous, and very fmall ; recep¬ 
tacles on each fide fadened to the partition. If the 
capfule be cut tranfverfely near the top, it appears to be 
one-celled ; if through the middle, two-celled. Swartz. 
—EJfential CharaSler. Calyx, five-cleft, fitting on the 
germ ; corolla, incurved and recurved j capfule, infe¬ 
rior, two-celled. 
Species, i. Gefneria humilis, or low gefneria: leaves 
lanceolate, ferrate, fedile; peduncles branched, many- 
flowered. All the fpecies are natives of South Ame¬ 
rica and the Wed Indies, The fird is of much ham- 
bler growth than the third fpecies; the leaves much 
Imaller; and the flowers deeper cut at their brims. It, 
was found growing naturally by Dr. Houdoun at Car- 
thagena in New Spaing and by fir Hans Sloane in Ja- 
niaka., 
G E S 5'55 
X, Gefneria acaulis, or ftemlefs gefneria : leaves lan¬ 
ceolate-ovate, ferrate, fubpetioled, crowded at the end; 
peduncles tliree-flowered, (horter than the leaf. Stem 
round, woody, having a clay-colo.ured bark, with fomc 
furrows in it, riling three or four inches high, having at 
the top very many oblong lea^ves, danding very thick, 
without any order, on foot-dalks a quarter of an inch 
in length, covered with a reddiffi wool-like mofs. They 
are feven inches long, and an inch and half broad near 
the farther end, whence they narrow to a point, and 
they alfo. grow gradually narrower to the foot-dalk. 
From the axils come out fmall peduncles, branched, 
ludaining fcarlet flowers an incli long, which are fol¬ 
lowed by a ihort, fungous, cornered, feed-velTel, having 
no didiudi: cells, containmg many fmall, oblong, yel. 
lowifh, feeds. Browne calls it “ i’mall tufted gelneria, 
with Icarlet flowers;” and obferves that the dem is 
always fimple, creeping along the rocks, and bearing a 
pretty large tuft of leaves at the extremity, with fingle 
flowers fpringing from each axil. Swartz deferibes the. 
dem as very (hort at fird, but as it advances becoming 
frequently a foot in length, and in this date covered 
with withered leaves and calyxes. Native of Jamaica. 
3. Gefneria toment-ofa, or v.’oolly gefneria: leaves 
ovate-lanceolate, crenate, hirfute ; peduncles lateial, 
very long, corymbiferous. I'his riles with a fhrubby 
dalk to the height of fix or feven feet, dividing into 
two or three irregular branches, covered with a rulfet 
wool ; leaves feven or eight inches long, and two and 
a half broad in the middle, having a rulfet woolly mid¬ 
rib ; they are placed on every fide the branches without 
order, and on diort footdalks. This plant bears fome 
affinity to the faxifrages in the fituation of thel'e recep¬ 
tacles, and in the opening of the capfule. It is called, 
by Browne, “hairy eredt gefneria, with open flowers.” 
It is a native of Jamaica, and was cultivated by Mr. Mil¬ 
ler in 1759. 
4. Gefneria craniolaria, or craniolaria gefneria : leaves- 
wedge-diaped, oblong, tooth-laciniate ; peduncles ter¬ 
minating ; corollas bell-diaped. This fort grows na¬ 
turally at the Havannah, and in fome of the other iflands 
in America. It rifes with a flirubby Ifalk to the height 
of ten or twelve feet, dividing upwards into a few 
branches, which are garnilhed with Ipear-ffiaped leaveSj. 
Cut on their edges as in the genus Craniolaria, (fee 
vol. V. 323,) whence the trivial name is derived. 'I'he 
flowers are produced from the fide of the branches, 
growing feveral together on the fame foot-fialk ; they 
are fhaped like thofe of the foxglove, of a greenilh. 
yellow-colour, with brown fpots on the infide ; the 
flowers have a fwelling tube, which is recurved, and 
the brim is llightly divided into five unequal fegments: 
thefe appear in July, but are not fucceeded by feeds in 
England. 
5. Gefneria grandis, or large gefneria: leaves broadi 
lanceolate, very long, toothletted, rough-haired above,, 
rugged beneath ; peduncles terminating ; Item arbo- 
refeent. 6. Gefneria fcabra, or rough gefneria: leaves 
ovate-lanceolate, I'errate, rugged ; peduncles axillary; 
corollas cylindric, recurved. 7. Gefneria corymbola,, 
or corymbed gefneria : -leaves ovate, acute, ferrate, 
fcariofe, ftarp ; peduncles many-parted ; flowers in co. 
rymbs. 8, Gefneria exferta, or lengthened gefneria : 
leaves ovate-lanceolate, crenate, I'mooth; peduncles- 
three-flowered ; genitals twice the length of the co¬ 
rolla; capfules ovate, g. Gefneria calycina, or caly- 
cine gefneria : leaves lanceolate-ovate, acuminate, fer¬ 
rate, I'mooth; peduncles three- fiovvered ; genitals longer 
than the corolla ; calyxes bell-fhaped ; capfules cyan-, 
dric. 10. Gelneria ventricofa, or ventrico.fe gefneria 
leaves elliptic, acuminate, crenate, I'mooth ; peduncles 
four.flowered or thereabouts ; fegments of the calyx 
awl-fhaped, elongated; corollas ventricole. ii. Gef- 
neria pulcheila, or fair gefneria : herbaceous; leaves 
ternate, ovate, acute, ferrate, villofe ; peduncles axil- 
I Wj 
