GROUPS OF CLASSES. 135 
tries; without this uniformity no permanent improvement could be 
made in the science. 
Botanical names are chiefly taken from the Greek and Latin; these 
being the common languages of the learned world. All books on 
botany were, for a long time, written in Latin ;—the original works 
of Linnaeus ate in that language. Although it is important to the 
interests of science that there should be such a medium, by which the 
learned may communicate, it is also highly important to the general 
improvement and happiness of mankind, that their discoveries should 
be made accessible to all;—it would be useless to attempt to divest 
botany of all its technical terms, and names borrowed from the dead 
languages ; in doing this we should destroy the science, and intro¬ 
duce confusion in the place of order. But such facilities are now 
offered, that every young person can easily become acquainted with 
the grand outlines of the vegetable worldand, oh, how much are 
the beauties of nature enhanced, when viewed with the eye of a 
philosopher, and the emotions of a Christian! 
Groups of Classes and Orders in the Linncean System. 
1st. The first ten classes are founded upon the number of stamens. 
2d. Eleventh and Twelfth, upon the number and insertion of stamens. 
t 3d. Thirteenth and Fourteenth , upon number and relative length of stamens. 
4th. Fifteenth , Sixteenth , Seventeenth , and Eighteenth , upon connexion of stamens 
by filaments or anthers. 
5th. Nineteenth and Twentieth , upon position of stamens, relative to the pistil.' 
_ The Twenty-first class includes all plants which either have not stamens and pis¬ 
tils, or in which these organs are too minute to be seen without the help of a micro¬ 
scope. 
The Orders are founded, 
1st. Upon the number of pistils. 
2d. Upon the seeds being covered or uncovered in the calyx. 
3d. The relative length of the pods. 
4th. The comparison between the disk and ray-florets of compound flowers. 
5th. Number of stamens. 
6th. The orders of the class Cryptogamia are distinguished by natural family cha¬ 
racters. 
Names of the Artificial Classes. 
1. Monandria, one stamen. 
2. Diajudria, two stamens. 
3. Triandria, three stamens. 
4. Tetrandria, four stamens. 
5. Pentandria, five stamens. 
8. Hexandria, six stamens. 
7. Heptandria, seven stamens. 
8. Octatstdria, eight stamens. 
9. Enneandria, nine stamens. 
10. Decandria, ten stamens. 
11. Icosandria, over ten stamens, situated on the calyx. 
12. Polyandria, over ten stamens, situated on the receptacle. 
13. Didynamia, four stamens, two long and two short, flowers labiate. 
14. Tetradynamia, six stamens, four long and two short, flowers cruciform . 
15. Monadelphia, stamens united by their filaments into one set. 
16. Diadelphia, stamens united by their filaments into two sets, flowers papiliona¬ 
ceous. 
17. Syngenesia, five stamens united by their anthers, flowers compound. 
18. Gynandria, stamens growing on thp pistil. 
19. Moncecia, stamens and pistils on different flowers of the same plant. 
20. Dicecia, stamens and pistils on different flowers of different plants. 
21. Cryptogamia, stamens and pistils invisible. 
Why are botanical names taken from the Greek and Latin?—Why cannot all the 
termsm botany be translated into common language?—Repeat the distinctions in 
the groups of the Linnaean classes ?—On what are the orders founded ?—Repeat the 
names and characters of the artificial classes. 
