CLASS ENNEANDRIA. 
161 
CLASS IX.-ENNEANDRIA. 
Order Monogynia. 
This is also a very small class. In the first 
Order we find the genus Laurus , which in¬ 
cludes the cinnamon, bay, sassafras, cam-' 
phor, spice-bush, &c. The bay ( Laurus no- 
bilis ) is a native of Italy; the Romans consi¬ 
dered it a favourite of the Muses. The em¬ 
peror Tiberius wore it not only as a triumphal 
clown, but as a protection against thunder; 
it being thought that Jupiter had a particular 
regard" for the plant. The la-urel, as well as 
the olive, was considered as an emblem of 
peace; it was sometimes called laurus paci¬ 
fier a, the peace-bearing laurel Branches of 
laurel carried among contending armies, were 
considered as a signal for the cessation of 
arms. Poets crowned with laurel, were called 
laureates. Camphor is the produce of the Latjrus camphor a , a large 
tree which grows in Japan. “ The Laurus cinnamomum is a tree 
which grows to the height of twenty feet; it sends out numerous 
branches crowned with a smooth bark. The leaves are of a bright 
green, standing in opposite pairs. The petals are six, of a greenish 
white colour. The fruit is a pulpy pericarp enclosing a nut. This 
tree is a native of Ceylon, where it grows very common in woods 
and hedges. The imported cinnamon is the inner bark {liber) of 
the tree ; it is remarkable that the leaves, fruit, and root, all yield oil 
of very different qualities. That produced from the leaves is called 
the oil of cloves; that obtained from the fruit Ls of a thick consist¬ 
ence, very fragrant, and is made into candles for the use of the king; 
the bark of the roots affords an aromatic oil, called the oil of cam¬ 
phor. The Sassafras-tree (Laurus sassafras) is a native American 
plant; when first introduced into Europe, it sold for a great price, 
the oil being highly valued for medicinal uses. It grows on the bor¬ 
ders of streams and in woods; it is often no larger than a shrub; 
its flowers are yellow; its fruit, blue-berries. The Laurus benzoin , 
called Spice-bush, has scarlet berries, and is an aromatic plant.”* 
Fig. 133, a,| represents a flower of the Butomas, {flowering rush ;) 
the petals are six ; they are ovate. The umbellatus is the only spe¬ 
cies known ; the flowers grow in rose-coloured umbels. It is found 
in wet grounds, and near the margin of lakes and ponds. 
Order Trigynia. 
The third Order presents us with but one genus; but this renders 
the order important; it is the Rhubarb, {Rheum.) In one species, the 
Rheum tartaricum , the leaves are acid, and on this account, when 
young, they are used for making pies. This plant is a native of Tar¬ 
tary, but now common in our gardens. The Rheum palmatum is the 
plant which produces the medicinal rhubarb ; this is obtained from 
the roots, which are thick, fleshy, and yellow. This plant is cultiva¬ 
ted in England, and is remarkable for the rapidity of its growth. An 
English writer,f asserts that its stem has been known to grow more 
than eleven feet in three months; its leaves are five feet in circum- 
* Woodville. t See also Appendix, Plate viii. Fig. 4. t Woodville. 
Class Enneandria—Different species of the genus Laurus—Describe the different 
species of Laurus—Butomas—What genus is found in the order Trigynia ? 
14* 
Fig. 133. 
