among botanists, the little upright column which is generally found in the centre of every flower. According to the Linnean system, it is the female part of generation, whose office is to receive and secrete the pollen, and produce the fruit. It consists of three parts, viz. germen, stylus, and stigma. See Botany, p. 434, and p. 454, 2d columns.

PISTOIA is a city of Italy, in the duchy of Tuscany, situated on the river Stella, in a beautiful plain near the foot of the Apennine mountains. By Pliny it is called Pistorium, and is said to have been once a Roman colony. At present it is a bishop's see, suffragan of Florence. The streets are broad and regular, the houses tolerably well built, but poorly inhabited for want of trade. Formerly it was an independent republic, but since it was subdued by the Florentines in 1200, it has been in a declining condition. The cathedral has a very handsome cupola, and a magnificent staircase to ascend to it. In the chapel dedicated to St James, where his relics are preserved, the walls are almost covered with plates of silver. Here are four marble statues of very good workmanship. The marble pulpit, the bas-reliefs, the vessel that holds the holy water, and the square steeple, are the work of John Pisano. The Jesuits have a very fine college, and the Franciscans, Dominicans, and Augustinians, good churches. In the church of Madonna dell' Umiltà there are two statues, one of Leo X. and the other of Clement VII. The public palace, situated in a large square, is a handsome building; several of the nobility have also very good houses. In the neighbouring mountains, called by the name of Pistoia, there are many large villages, the chief of which is that of S. Marcello, belonging to the family of Cartoli. These mountains are a part of the Apennines, and border on the territory of Bologna and the county of Vernio; higher up is the source of the river Reno. The country about Pistoia, especially towards Florence, is exceeding fertile and delightful, covered with all sorts of fruits, corn, wine, &c. and containing a vast number of little towns, wealthy villages, and country seats, so as to be reckoned the richest and most beautiful in all Tuscany. It is about 20 miles N. W. of Florence, and 30 N. E. of Pisa. E. Long. 11° 29'. N. Lat. 43° 55'.