G L A 
themfelves at their head, rende-rcS tliemfelves matters 
of all Campania, and gaTnrd" Several viiStories over the 
Roman pr:Etors. At length they were defeated by 
Cralllis, at the extremity of Italy ; liaving, in vain, at¬ 
tempted to pafs over into Sicily. 
GLADIATO'RIAN, adj. Of gladiators. — Tlie gla- 
diatorian and other fanguinary fports, which we allow our 
■people, difcoverfufficiently ournational tafte. Skqftejbury. 
GLA'DIATURE, y". [^gladiatura, The feat of 
fighting with fwords. 
GLADI'OLUS, y. \_gladius, Lat. a fvvord ; from the 
form of the leaves.] Corn-flag; in botany, a genus 
of the clafs triandria, order monogynia, natural order 
enfata:, (irides,/jy. \\\\sLCQde,HaU, Boerh.Adanfon-, bul- 
bof;e, Ray.) Tiie generic charadters are—Calyx : a 
fpatlie, two-valved, inferior, Ihorter than the corolla ; 
valves oblong, permanent ; the outer one larger, inclof- 
ing the inner. Corolla: one-petalled, fuperior ; tube 
cylincbic, bent j border fomewhat bell-lhaped, lix- 
parted ; I'egments oblong, from erect-patulous, the up- 
permolt and loweft lateral either ■without or within. 
Stamina : filaments tliree, inferted into the orifice of 
the tube, filiform, fliorter than the corolla ; antherae 
ovate, incumbent. Piltillum: germ inferior, triangular ; 
Ityle filiform ; ftigmas three, rolled back and fpread- 
ing, blunt, villofe. Pericarpium : capfule ovate, three- 
carnered, blunt, three-celled, three-valved. Seeds ; 
very many, fmooth : Gaertner obferves that antholyza 
may very well be placed in tliis genus.— EJfential Cha- 
raElcr. Corolla, fix-parted, irregular, unequal ; flig- 
mas, three. 
Species, i. Gladiolus communis, or common corn- 
flag: leaves fword-fhaped ; flowers di'ftant. Root round, 
comprefTed, yellowifli, covered with a browm furrowed 
fkin ; hence Ipring two fword-fhaped leaves, embracing 
each other at the bale, and between them rifes the 
flower-ftalk, growing near tw'o feet high, having one or 
two narrow leaves embracing it like a Iheath, and ter¬ 
minated by five or fix purple flowers, one above another 
at feme diftance, ranged on the fame fide of the fialk ; 
the fpathe covers the flower-bud before it expands, but 
fplits open lengthwife when it opens, and fhrivels up to 
a dry fkin, remaining about the feed-vefl'el till the feeds 
are ripe; feeds imbricate, as far as eight in one cell. 
It was cultivated by Gerarde in his garden in 1596, and 
it was even then very common. He gives the names 
not only of corn-flag, but corn-fedge, and corn-gladin. 
Johnlbn adds that oi fword-Jlag. 
Miller makes three fpecies of this : i. The common 
fort, deferibed above; G. Jlor uno verfu difpofitis of C. 
Bauhin, with the flowers difpofed on one fide the ftalk, 
varying with white and flefli-coloured flowers : this 
Gerarde calls kalian earn Jlag. 2. The Italian (G, Ita- 
licus,) utrinque jloridus of C. Bauhin, w'ith flowers on each 
Jide the ftalk ; of which he fays there is alfo a variety 
with white flowers ; this Gerarde and Parkinfon figure 
under the name of Frcnchxorn-jlag. 3. The great corn- 
flag of Byzantium (G. Byzantinus), w'hich has larger 
roots, but of the fame form ; the leaves alfo are much 
broader and larger, with deeper channels ; the flovver- 
ftalks rife higher ; the flowers are much larger, of a 
deeper red colour, and the Iheaths are longer. It makes 
a fine appearance when in flower, and is worthy of a 
place in every good garden ; the rather, becaufe the 
roots do not increafe fo faft as to be troublefome. Par- 
kinfon, befides the French, Italian, and Byzantine, corn- 
flags, has three varieties; the blufh, white, and fmall 
purple. He obferves that Gerarde miflook the French 
lor the Italian : and that John Tradefcant affured him, 
that he faw many acres of ground in Barbary fpread 
over with them. < 
2. Gladiolus imbricatus, or netted corn-flag : leaves 
fword-ibaped ; flowers imbricate. Flowers fmall, all 
directed one v,a.y, and imbricate. Native of Ruilia. 
3. Gladiolus alatus, or winged coru-flagleaves 
G L A 
fword-flijiped ; the fide petals very bro.td. Stem a fpan 
high, thickifh, flexuofe between the flowers. Nativa 
of the Cape of Good Hope. 
4. Gladiolus tubiflorus, or long-tubed corn-flag : 
leaves linear-lanceolate, villofe, fomewhat plaited, 
longer than the fcape ; tube very long; fpathes hirfute. 
Leaves a fpan long and more ; flem round, villofe, a 
finger’s length. Native of the Cape of Good Hope, 
where it was found by Thunberg: and Mafibn. It 
flowers in June ; and was introduced in 1774. 
5. Gladiolus plicatus, or hairy corn-flag : leaves ob¬ 
long-lanceolate, villofe, plaited ; tube longer than the 
fpathes. Leaves plaited at the nerves ; flowers two or 
three, violet fading to white. Cultivated in 1757, by 
Mr. Miller, who railed it from feeds which were fent 
him from the Cape of Good Hope. 
6. Gladiolus ftribhis, or upright corn-flag : leaves 
linear-lanceolate, villofe, plaited ; tube equal to the 
fpathe. This varies with a deep blue corolla, the tube 
and the bafe of the fegments a very dark purple ; and 
with a pale purple corolla, tlie tube blue. It was 
found at the Cape by Mr. Francis Mafibn, and intro- 
duced in 1774. It flowers in June. 
7. Gladiolus triflis, or fquare-flalkedcorn-flag: leaves 
linear-crofs-fhaped; corollas bell-lhaped. From the 
root come out two or three narrow leaves, a toot and 
Jialf long, having a longitudinal furi'ow in the middle, 
and ending in acute points ; they are of a deep green, 
and Hand erebt ; between thefe arifes a llender taper 
flalk, about the fame length as the leaves, having one 
or two fhort acute-pointed leaves on the lower part, 
embracing the flalk at their bafe. - It flowers at the end 
of May, and the feeds ripen about fix weeks after. 
Linnaeus gave the name of t'r?^is to this fpecies, from 
the gloomy colour of its flowers. They are very fre¬ 
quently of a pale yellow or fulphur-colour, fliaded in 
particular parts with very fine pencilings, efpecially on 
the under fide; but they vary much with diil'erent 
flrades of white and green, yellow, flelh-coloured, blue, 
purple, a:>d violet. Thunberg has diflinguifiled lixteeu 
of thefe varieties. It is commonly faid to produce only 
two flowers on a flem, but there are frequently more : 
they generally give forth a mod agreeable fragrance in 
their expanfion.- The leaves very charableridically dif- - 
tinguifl) this fpecies: they are alternately fheathing, li¬ 
near, acute, driated, fmooth, quite.entire, two or three 
in number, the upper ones, gradually fhorter ; the lowed 
is thickilh, fcored with a deep groove within the edge, 
the red refemble the fpathes, and are convoluted, but 
they are longer. Native of the Cape of Good Hope, 
and cultivated in 1745, by Mr. Miller. 
8. Gladiolus carinatus, or fpotted-dalked corn-flag : 
leaves linear, keeled on both fides, fmooth; tube o; . 
tlie corolla Ihorter than tlie fpathes and the borders ; 
digmas undivided, folded together. Stalk a foot and 
half high, and round-; leaves longer than the dalk ; 
flowers fweet. Native of the Cape ; flowers in April . 
and May. 
9. Gladiolus blandus, or blufh-coloured corn-flag : 
leaves linear-lanceolate, nerved, fmooth ; flowers in 
fpikes ; the upper fegment reflex ; digmas fiightly two- 
lobed. Native of the Cape of Good Hope ; and flowers 
in June. 
10. Gladiolus undulatus, or waved corn-flag : lea,ves 
fword-fiiaped ; petals nearly equal, lanceolate, waved - . 
This is of the fame dature with the common fort; dalk 
a foot and half in height; leavesi dre;iked ; flowers al¬ 
ternate, in a double row. This fpecies is intermediate 
between tltis genits- and, Ixia. . Nali.ve of the ( ape- 
See N° 14. 
11. Gladiolusj-ecurvus, or recurved corn-flag: leaves 
fword-fiiaped; petals.nearly equal, lanceolate, bowed 
back. This differs from tlie foregoing, in tlie petals 
not being-.,waved, and being lels acuminate ; the tube 
of the corolla, not filiform, lax or pendulous : in other , 
rcfpects 
