. slender, and the limbs originate at small dis-tances from the ground, and seek a horizontalor an inclined direction. The bark of the trunkis rough, and that of the secondary branchessmooth and even. The branchlets are angu-lar, pubescent, but not dotted. The leaves,when young, are ovate-lanceolate, and some-what downy. When adult, they are broadlyovate-acuminate, about three inches long, oval-oblique or acute at the base, very acuminate atthe summit, and distinctly toothed in their cen-tral margins. Their colour is a beautiful dar
. slender, and the limbs originate at small dis-tances from the ground, and seek a horizontalor an inclined direction. The bark of the trunkis rough, and that of the secondary branchessmooth and even. The branchlets are angu-lar, pubescent, but not dotted. The leaves,when young, are ovate-lanceolate, and some-what downy. When adult, they are broadlyovate-acuminate, about three inches long, oval-oblique or acute at the base, very acuminate atthe summit, and distinctly toothed in their cen-tral margins. Their colour is a beautiful darkgreen, smooth or slightly rough on the upper surface, and hairy or pubescentbeneath, with numerous prominent veins. They may readily be distinguishedfrom those of the European species, by being larger, of a lighter and more shininggreen, and by their dying off earlier, with a brighter yellow hue. The flowers,which put forth in March, April, or May, are very small, white, and are suc-ceeded by purplish-red drupes, of a round form, and about the size of a wild. 518 CELTIS OCCIDENTALIS. cherry. When ripe, it is rather fleshy, very sweet, and, Hke that of the Celtisaustrahs, of Europe, becomes shrivelled, and of a brownish or blackish cast. Vaineties. The trees belonging to the genus celtis, like those of pyrus, fraxinus,uhnus, and others, from the similarity of their habits, and their apparent apti-tude to sport by the influences of soil, climate, &c., it seems to us, are subject tosimilar variations, and consequently should be reduced in the number of theirspecies. We have accordingly, for the sake of brevity, and the convenience ofclassification, brought all the North American kinds, including those usuallyregarded as species by botanists, under one head, and have considered them onlyas varieties of the Celtis occidentalis. Those, however, who differ from us, inopinion, will find no difficulty in recognizing among our synonymes, the names,as given by Michaux, Nuttall, Loudon, a
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