172 PROFESSOE OLIVER OK FlYE NEAV GENERA 



the petals" and stamens point in the direction of Sanera and its 

 allies in SamydeiB, but the habit of the plant, the texture of its 

 flowers and broadly imbricate caljx-lobes appear preponderant in 

 favour of Bixinese, if maintained as distinct from Samydese, and 

 for the present it may be regarded as an anomalous member of 

 the tribe Flacourtiese of that family. I have not seen expanded 

 flowers, and it is probable that the perigynous condition of the 

 petals and stamens may be proportionally less marked when they 

 are fully developed. I have associated with this fine species the 

 name of our Associate Member, Mr. Allan Black, until recently 

 my colleague in the Kew Herbarium and now Superintendent of 

 the Bangalore Botanic Garden, he being the first to dissect its 

 flowers and to determine its probable afiinity. 



I believe that it will be necessary to unite the genera Oncoba 

 and Mayna. At the time when Mr. Bentham published his 

 " Notes on Bixacese and Samydacese '* in the Society's Journal 

 (vol. v., Bot., Suppl. ii. p. 75), and when the generic descriptions 

 were framed for the new ' Genera Plantarum,' such a contingency 

 could hardly have been contemplated. But, thanks to Mr. Gustav 

 Mann, to whom Ave are so largely indebted for many important 

 additions to the Flora of Western Equatorial Africa, and to Dr. 

 Welwitsch, we now possess seven or eight new species belonging 

 to those genera which, to the best of my judgment, entirely break 

 down all ground of generic distinction between them. Indeed, 

 in some of the new species so intermingled are the characters 

 which were formerly depended upon for the discrimination of 

 these genera that it is difilcult to arrange the species under even 

 well-marked subgenera or sections. They all agree in having 

 simple style, and this technical character may suffice to maintain 

 them as generically distinct from Carpotroche and Dendrostylis^ in 

 which the style is divided more or less. 



The principal marks distinguishing the genera Oncoba aii^ 

 Mayna^ which were relied upon when the known species oi Oncoba 

 were limited to four, with large flowers, from Tropical Africa, and 



a 



May 



•? 



terminal 



of the former, the small flowers in axillary racemes, with a minute 

 stigma and echinate fruit of the latter. Amongst the recently 

 discovered African species we have the flowers of Oncoba with 

 echinate fruit, with minutely divided stigma, and in aiiUa'"/ 



\ 



iascicles or racemes 



he- 



