ME. G. BENTIIAM OK THE OEKUS PlTERAUIA, 121 



Notes on Pneran'a, DC, correctly ref(^:r^'d by the author to 



Fhaseolece. By Gteorge Bektha:m, P.L.S. 



[Eead Feb. 16, 18G5.] 



DeCakdolle first published the genus Fueraria in the ^ Annales 

 des Sciences Natnrellet^,' iv. p. 97, and in his ' Memoires sur les 

 Legumineuses/ p. 252, for the Iledysarum txiberoBxim^ Eoxb., which 

 has the habit and foliage of the large twining Phaseolese, besides 

 differing from Iledysaritm in the inarticulate pod, which, however, 

 he did not possess quite ripe. "With this he associated a second, 

 Nepalese species, which had certainly a flat 2-valved Phaseoleous 

 pod. Wight and Arnott (Prod. PI. Pen. Ind. Or. p. 205) at first 

 followed De CandoUe in including the genus among Clitorieie, 

 but subsequently some specimens in the Ilookcrlan herbarium 

 induced them to believe the pod to be really articulate ; and in the 

 Addenda et Corrigendaj p. 415, they express their fear that the 

 genus must be reduced to Dcsmodmm. Presuming that this was 

 correct, and seeing that the articulation of the pod was confirmed 

 by the figure in Wight's ' Icones,' t. 412, 1 proposed, in the 'Plautae 

 Junghuhniana^,' 1::^). 231, to reduce JBueraria to tlio single P. tu- 

 oerosa^ and to adJ the other species to a new genus Neustantlius ^ 

 which I there established for the Dolichos pliaseoloiJes^ Eoxb., and 

 some allied species. Having now, however, many specimens of 

 -P. tuberosa with the pod nearly ripe, showing no signs of articu- 

 lation, I turned to the specimens which had misled Arnott, and 

 find that the supposed articulation is only a contraction between 

 the seeds where an ovule has fliiled, which appears to be frequently 

 the case; and as to Wight's figure, I find that in the original 

 drawing from Avhich it was taken, the deceptive transverse lines 

 indicating the joints do not exist ; they must have been added by 

 Br. Wight's artist with a view to correcting the drawing to suit 

 the written character. It follows, therefore, that my genus Neii- 

 stantJius must now be merged in Fxieraria^ slightly modifying the 

 character I gave in the ' Plantse Junghuhnianae' and in the 'Plora 

 Hongkongensis,' so as to include the flat-podded species. The 

 genus thus established has the habit and pod of Phaseolus or of 

 some allied genera, with the flowers more like those of Dioclea. 

 It comprises nine species, difiering often considerably from each 

 other in the calyx, the form of the petals, or in the degree of 

 adherence of the upper stamen, as well as in the pod, but all, I 



