DB. E. P. WniOlIT ON COCOA-NUTS IN THE SEYCHELLES. 455 



Note on Cocoa-nut^ in the Seychelles Islands. By Dr. E. Per- 



CETAL WiimHT, F.L.S., in a Letter to Dr. Hookee. 



[Kead Jan. 16, 1868.] 



At Silhouette, where there is one of the most complete and 

 best-paying Cocoa-nut farms, there is to be found one Cocoa- 

 nut tree, of moderate age, growing in wood-soi], and surrounded 

 by other trees, all in full bearing, but itself seldom producing 

 a well-developed fruit. I was not there when it was in blos- 

 som ; but I saw it with four stalks of ordinary dimensions, 

 of which, when examined closely, was seen to consist of a num- 

 ber of strangely metamorphosed fruits. These were but hastily 

 examined by me at the time ; but the conclusion I came to on the 

 spot was, that in none of the fruits were the hard shells developed, 

 and that in all there were two carpels. After the fruit reached 

 a certain stage of development it split, giving the appearance of 

 a flower of which the calyx would consist of the epidermic and 

 fibrous portion of the fruit, and the corolla of the soft shell (de- 

 tached completely from the former). On one branch there was a 

 fairly developed fruit, which, on opening, was found to consist of 

 two carpels, with a false development between them^ redividing 

 the nut into two. 



There was also one other fruit on the tree, which I took away 

 with me, but have not opened. It has but two edges, and is 

 evidently made up of two carpels. I also took a branch of the 

 altered fruits, which I hope will come safely to hand. There was 

 not another instance to be found on the estate, of, say, some 

 180.000 trees. 



/ _ 



Structure^hd Fertilization of Liparis Botokeri. By Mrs 



me otructure^ 

 M. E. Batibkh. 



[Read Feb. 6, 1868.] 



i. Bowkeri^ Harv., is one of the numerous discoveries of T, H. 

 Bowker, Esq., of the frontier armed and mounted ])olice. It 

 was first discovered in one of the numerous forest-clad and rocky 

 ravines that surround Port Bowker, on the banks of the Bashu 

 Biver, nearly a hundred miles beyond the colony, and it was 

 figured by Dr. Harvey in the second volume of the ' Thesaurus 

 Capensis' (t. 109). 



^^^ r 



In cultivation L. BoivJceri thrives well, and blossoms freely. I 

 have had a group of them in my flower-garden for several years, 



LIKN. PHOG. — BOTANY, VOL. X. 2 H 



