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 276 OBSERVATIONS ON PLANTS

939, Be CcmcL prodr. \, p. 240), a supposed variety of which Avas found both in the neighbourhood of Tripoli and in Soudan, belongs to another subdivision of the genus, equally natural, and readily distinguishable. The species of this subdivision are included in M. De Candolle's second section of Cleome, but are there associated with many other plants, to which they have very little affinity.

All the species of Cleome Siliquaria are indigenous to North Africa and Middle Asia, except violacea, which is a native of Portugal. Cleome deflexa of M. De Candolle {^Jrodr. 1, p. 240), founded on specimens in Mr. Lambert's herbarium, which were sent by Don Joseph Pavon as belonging to Peru, seems to present a remarkable exception to this geographical distribution of the section. But on examining these specimens I find them absolutely iden- 223] tical with some states of violacea. I think it probable, therefore, either that they are erroneously stated to have come from Peru, or that this species may have been there introduced from European seeds.

Cadaba farinosa [ForsJc. Arab, p. 68, De Cand. prodr. 1, p. 244) is in the herbarium from Bornou. The specimen is pentandrous, and in other respects agrees with all those which I have seen from Senegal, and with Stroemia farinosa {Ante, p. 94) of my catalogue of Abyssinian plants, collected by Mr. Salt, and published in his travels. M. De Candolle, who had an opportunity of examining this Abyssinian plant, refers it to his C. dubia, a species established on specimens found in Senegal, and said to differ ixom. farinosa, slightly in the form of the leaves and in being tetrandous. Of the plant from Abyssinia I have seen only two expanded flowers, one of which is decidedly pentandrous, the other apparently te- trandrous. Mr. Salt, however, from an examination of recent specimens, states it to be pentandrous. It is probably, there- fore, not different from C. farinosa of Forskal, whose specimens M. De Candolle has not seen. And as the form of the leaves is variable in the specimens from Senegal, and not ellipti- cal, but between oval and oblong, in those of Abyssinia, C. dubia is probably identical with, or a variety merely of, farinosa, as M. De Candolle himself seems to suspect.

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