ON THE CEYLON CARDAMOM. 
who has figured under this name the Small or Malabar Car- 
damom. 
In order to test the acuracy of this notion, I referred to 
Rheede's figure, vol. ii., t. 6., quoted both by Linnaeus* 
and Moon as the representation of the Grain of Paradise 
plant. But I was both disappointed and surprised to find 
that its fruit bore no resemblance either to the Ceylon Car- 
damom or to the capsule of the African grain of paradise. 
It followed, therefore, either that my suspicion was un- 
founded, or that the reference to Rheede's figure was er- 
roneous. 
When my former pupil, the late Mr. Frederick Saner, 
Assistant Surgeon in her Majesty's 61st regiment, was di- 
rected to proceed to Ceylon, I requested him to procure me 
specimens of the plants in question, with their accompany- 
ing fruits; and in order to establish their identity as com- 
pletely as possible, I begged hirn to obtain specimens named 
by the Superintendent of the Botanical Garden in Ceylon. 
Unfortunately, however, before I had received any commu- 
nication from him on the subject, he was prematurely cut 
off by dysentery; but some months afterwards his botani- 
cal collections and papers arrived in this country, and among 
them I found three species of Alpinia which had been sup- 
plied by Mr. Lear, the present Superintendent of the Bo- 
tanical Garden at Ceylon, whose letter, stating the names of 
the species, I have now before me. 
The first species was marked " Jilpinia (Amomum) 
Cardamomum. The finest species or true Cardamom" 
This specimen was in fruit, and was therefore easily recog- 
nised to be the Malabar Cardamom ( Elettaria Cardamo- 
mum of Maton.) 
The second species was marked " Alpiniu ( Amomum ) 
Granum paradisi. Grains of Paradise" This speci- 
* Species Plantarum. Ed. 2d. Holmiae. In the first edition of the 
Species Plantarum, Linneeus did not quote Rheede's figure. 
