transmitted to us, one had an upright, the other a resupi- 

 nate or revei-sed flower, in both which positions we have 

 shown it in the plate. Persoon having ranked the species 

 in the present genus, of which a resupinate flower has been 

 made an essential characteristic, we are led to suppose that 

 he must have been determined in his decision by observing 

 at least some of the flowers thus disposed on Monsieur Tur- 

 pin's specimen from Porto Rico, for thei*e are none shown 

 in this way by Plumier's figure. But for that feature, we 

 should think it would have been preferably arranged under 

 DoLicHos. Perhaps, however, when the two genera have un- 

 idergone the i-eform they are known to require, this species 

 will not be allotted to either? 



With the samples of the blossom we received also the 

 shell of the pod from which the seed that produced them 

 was taken, and have been thns enabled to identify the 

 plant beyond a doubt. It is among the most ornamental 

 of the tribe. Requires to be kept in the hothouse, where it 

 winds itself to the height of 1*2 or 14 feet, and produces its 

 bloom at the upper part of the bractes during the months 

 of October and November. 



A twining suftVutescent perennial; stem at the lower 

 part twice as thick as a finger, deeply furrowed, with 

 flexuose corky ridges; branches round, and nearly smooth. 

 Leaves about half a foot long, membranous, nei*ved, bright 

 green; terminal leaflet roundishly ovate, rhomboidal at the 

 lower part, shortly and abruptly pointed, three inches in 

 length, side-ones twice narrower, oblong, shortly acumi- 

 nated, with unequal sides: general petiole about three inches 

 long, jointed vvliere it joins the branch, as are the partial 

 ones where they join with it: general stipules opposite 

 ovately oblong sharp-pointed, partial ones subulate. Pe- 

 </if«c/fA- axillary, i-2-3, but of untiqual lengths, ascendent or 

 divaricate and recfming, stiff, villous, much, or but little, 

 shorter than the common petiole, reddish, terminated by a 

 ^hovt panicle of 5 or more flowers, with two? hractes at the 

 base of the same form as the stipules but smaller. Flowers 

 large, purple and white, upright or reversed, downy on the 

 outside. Califx shallow, thin, pale green, campanulate, 

 bilabiately 5-"cleft or nearly so, with a downy fringed 

 edge; one lip very short, repand with 3 faint indentations, 

 the middle tooth nearly obsolete: the other Up much the 

 longest, 3-nerved 3-cleft, with acuminated segments, of 

 which the middle one is much longer thon the two very 



c 2 



