56 
The fourth race, Brassica oleracea capitata, presents, 
according to De Candolle, variations which are chiefly con- 
fined to the shape of the head and the color of the leaves, 
and as the first circumstance appears to our author as the 
most important, he has adopted the shape as the character- 
istic of the varieties and admits as sub-varieties the green, 
and the purple or red colors. His varieties are : 
1. Depressa. The Flat-headed Cabbage. 
2. Spherica. The Round-headed Cabbage. 
3. Obovata. The Egg-shaped Cabbage. 
4, Elliptica. The Elliptic Cabbage. 
5. Conica. The Conical Cabbage. 
His illustrative sub-varieties are for 1, Chou de Strasburg; 
for 2, Chou cabus commun ; for 3, no common name ; for 4 
Chou d@’ York; for 5, Chou en pain de sucre, etc. 
De Candolle appears to have overlooked the significance 
of the occurrence of parallelisms in the variations that occur 
within the different races; is evidently at fault with the 
Portugal cabbage, and the Pak Choi and the Pe Tsai had 
not at that time come under his observation. In the light 
of additional information to that which he possessed, we 
must recognize the necessity in the fullness of time of a 
new classification which shall present characters more gen- 
eralized as well as more specialized, and in harmony with 
the history of origins and developments. 
At the present writing I propose to examine the history 
of the heading cabbage in certain of its aspects, and for 
this purpose I shall adopt DeCandolle’s division, Brassica 
oleracea capitata, varieties 1 to 5, although in great doubt 
as to the botanical correctness of the inferences suggested 
by the name and treatment. In regard to one point, how- 
ever, we may be reasonably assurred. No new types of the 
headed cabbage have appeared in quite recent times, and 
all the types, which DeCandolle classifies as varieties, have 
a more or less remote origin. 
The cabbage was in esteem in the ancient world, and a 
number of sorts are named by the Roman and Greek 
writers, but it seems the merest guess work to attempt to 
identify with varieties now grown. At the most, we can 
believe that they had the headed cabbage, and the Savoy, 
along with coleworts, and very likely others. To quote 
from the numerous commentators of the sixteenth and sev- 
enteenth centuries would be merely an affectation of learn- 
ing, without adding any certainty to our conclusions. 
1. Brassica oleracea capitata depressa, DC., the Flat- 
headed Cabbage. This form has received the modern name 
of Drumhead, and I find it figured in Pancorius Hubaruni, 
