Herbarium catalogue

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[Reprinted Jrom the ‘Journau or Borany’ for September, 1899.] THE CAPRIOLA OF ADANSON. By W. P. Hiery, M.A., F.L.S. Accorpine to the Index Kewensis and other good authorities, the genus Cynodon Rich. (1805) enjoys as synonyms Capriola Adans. (1768), Dactilon Vill. (1787), and Fibichia Koel. (1802) ; and Dr. O. Kuntze, accepting the first of these synonyms as being the oldest generic name, has called our grass Capriola Dactylon 0. K. (1891); the Linnean name was Panicwn dactylon (1753), and the name in familiar use is Cynodon Dactylon Pers. (1805). But a doubt has been raised, calling in question the correctness of the change. Mr. Theodor Holm, of the United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C., discussed the question in the Botanical Gazette, xxv. pp. 47-52 (Jan. 1898); he said (p. 48): « The fact is that Capriola was intended for Panicum sanguinale or for Cynodon, or perhaps for both together, but in no instance has this name been applied to any plant which can be identified with absolute certainty as the Bermuda grass, the genus Cynodon of Richard in Persoon’s Synopsis,” and, after considering and weighing the antiquarian evidence deducible from the older botanical authors, he declared that ‘by bringing all these statements together, drawn up from the various writers as far back as we have been able to trace our Panicum and Cynodon, it does not appear that Capriola was ever intended for Cynodon alone, but rather for Panicum sanguinale. The constant quotation of Capriola and Sangwinaria together seems to indicate that these were merely synonyms. . . . Adanson is correct in applying Capriola to a grass. But this author does not seem to have had any reason for assigning the name Gramen dactylon, this name being yet too obscure.” On referring to Adanson’s Familles des Plantes (1768) it is seen that, in addition to the short character (ii. p. 81) assigned to Capriola, which is applicable to Cynodon, although not sufficiently diagnostic, there is quoted in the index (ii. p. 582), “ Caprroza, Leonic. Gramen dactylon. offic.’ From this entry it is learnt that Adanson intended for his plant the Capriola of Leoniceno, and that he considered it represented by the plant then known as the officinal gramen dactylon. The reference to Leoniceno, professor of medicine at Ferrara, must have been to the treatise, ‘ Nicolai Leoniceni viri doctissimi de Plinii et aliorum medicorum erroribus liber,’ a very scarce book, apparently not seen by either Dr. Kuntze or Mr. Holm; on p. 127 (1529), beside the name Sanguinaria in the margin, the following passage is pertinent to this question :— “Hst enim herba apud autoré de simplici medicina, quem aliqui putant fuisse Apuleium, galli crus, atque etia sanguinaria nominata: S ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH OOM E01421535 HERB.—A. O. Hume. Bee 98 (teernrcene- See she “GL, AP? Lect a SPECIES Bt er era ae fanaa =| | WARD sus ons é 2 | Loti Berle CaMas EP DM Bhs Pa SAP ‘ * No. in the Cf.. Edition London Catalogue, , “Commpice pad tug Facer oe Cel@eeT’’ phil sae LES Kontected by LC. Fe : oo ’ : Order, (No. G2.) LNAI MNALV ARSED... ' we GEL, NOTES. 2 THE CAPRIOLA OF ADANSON, quod etiai nomen uitiatum est, seu decurtatii apud Dioscoridem : nam sanguinari pro sanguinaria in multis codicibus legitur: De hac autem herba idem autor de simplici medicina, quictique sit retort eadem que de coronopode Dioscorides, quod uidelicet in loci asperis, & circa uias: addit autem et rationé curtam galli ne quim etiam sanguinaria nominetur, ed quod seilicet naribus imposita sanguinem fluere facit, & habet, ut inquit, in summitate pedem galli. Hee auté herba ipsa si quim sit uulgo nota, & simul eius nomen uulgare manifestauero, uereor ne Auicenne, atq; eius Expositoribus magnam pariam ignominia, qui in re notissimapueris hesitarint. Uerum ista clare non est tam parcere antiquis, quim uitam negligere, que ut antea diximus, sub Auicenne atq; eius Expositorium autoritate periclitatur. He proculdubio illa est quam partim sanguinariam ab effectu iam dicto, partim capriolam aulgo appellamus, Plinius unam speciem graminis facit, & gramen uocat aculeatum, quoniam ei in acumine aculei sint plurimi, quos ut idem Plinius inquit, conuolutos naribus inserunt, extrahuntq; ciendi sanguinis gratia.” The meaning of this passage, so far as it bears upon the present question, appears to be that among the mistakes of Pliny which the author dealt with, was the case of Sanguinaria, and that this mistake consisted in his making the two plants, which the Italians called sanguinaria and capriola respectively, into one species of grass. On referring to Parlatore, Flora Italiana, i. pp. 125-126 (1848), 223- 224, it appears that the plants which have these Italian names are Digitaria sanguinalis Scop. and Cynodon dactylon Pers. respectively ; it is therefore clear, notwithstanding the fact that writers between Loniceno and Adanson had confused again those grasses, that the former author intended in using the Italian name capriola to mean Cynodon Rich., and to exclude Panicum sanguinale L. In order to understand what Adanson meant by the officinal gramen dactylon, reference may be made to Scheuchzer’s Agrosto- graphia (1719), the standard book on grasses and allied plants, which was frequently quoted by Linneus, and is given under its author’s name in a list prefixed to the Species Plantarum (1758). Scheuchzer gives (pp. 93-112) an enumeration of the finger-grasses, «« Dactyloidea dicta,’’ which comprises seventeen species ; this list contains thirteen grasses into the names of each of which the words gramen Dactylon enter, and of these thirteen only one is called officinal, and none of the species not called yramen Dactylon are officinal; this sole officinal finger-grass is called (p. 104) Gramen Dactylon, radice repente, sive officinarum. There is therefore sufficient reason to believe that this was the plant intended by Adanson, and the same was also quoted by Linneus, Sp. Pl. ed. 1, p. 58 (1758), for his Panicum dactylon ; moreover, the other synonyms quoted by Linneus, l. c., were alike quoted by Scheuchzer, l.c., p. 104. The conclusion seems irresistible that Capriola Adans. was founded upon the same species as Cynodon Rich.; and there is no ground for thinking that Adanson included in the former genus the Panicum sanguinale Li, 2) Looney Kevan cs e£2, on rarasreatl sted Date... t. 99 ae Name.- Srhccha Oe UPL hiclhala:, Couttector.—. ba My NK FINE CH. Tee. Su22 - Ven, copyright reserved N N om 2 oS ®Q =