MR. J. O. BAKER 0:S THE FLORA OF MADAGASCAR. 411 



Further Contributions to^tli 



Bj J. G. Ba^, ] 



[E«ad 18th November, 1886.] 



Since I last reported to tbe Linnean Society on the Flora of 

 Madagascar, in the Session of 1884-85, two large boxes of plants 

 have been received from our indefatigable correspondent, the 

 Eev. E. Baron, F.L.S, One of these, owing to the unsettled 



state of political affairs in the island, did not reach us for more 

 than a year after the letter announcing it came to hand, so that 

 we had quite given it up for lost. These two boxes carry up 

 his collecting-numbers to nearly 5000. The present paper con- 

 tains descriptions of the principal new genera and species in- 

 cluded in these boxes of which the specimens were suflBciently 

 complete. There appear to be seven new genera — one in Meni- 

 spermaceae, one in Greraniacese, two in Melastomacese, one in 

 Eubiacese, and two in Compositae. The species are distributed 

 through the primary divisions as follows, viz. : — Thalamiflorse 

 51, Calyciflorae 48, Gamopetalae 9r3, Incompletae 31, Monocotyle- 

 dons 27, Vascular Cryptogamia 5. 



As before, the great bulk of the new species belong to the 

 large, well-known, widely-spread tropical genera, such ^sGarctnta, 

 Hibiscus^ Begonia^ Vernonia^ Vitis^ Ficus^ Piper, and CyperuB. 

 Of characteristically Cape types we have Pelargonium, Stoehe, 

 Belmonfia, and Cineraria added to the flora of Madagascar, u 

 second species of Crassula, several fleshy-leaved Kleinioid Senecioa, 

 and a curious dwarf Aloe, allied to the Cape Aloe aristata of 

 Haworth. Of familiar European genera we have Celtis and 

 Deyeuxia added and new species of Nasturtium and Ajuga. Of 

 the endemic Madagascar genera we get nev^&^ecie&o^ Asteropeia, 

 Bhodol^na, Dichcet anther a, Veprecella, Gravesia, Kitchingia, 

 Dicoryphe, Oncostemum, Mascarenhaisia, and Dypsis, There is 



nothing materially fresh affecting the relations of Madagascar 

 to Tropical Africa, Mauritius, and Bourbon. The feeble affinity 

 of the Madagascar to the Indian and Malayan flora is strength- 

 ened by tlie discovery of the genus Cyclea and of new species of 

 Alyxia, Didyinocarpus, and Strobilanfhes. Of types of certain 

 or possible economic interest we have species of Dalbergia, 

 Macaranga, and Strychnos, two species of Commiphora (Balsamo- 

 dendron) and four of Garcinia. A curious Euphorbiaccoua 



XIIf>. JOUMf. — BOTAKY, VOL. XXII. 2 O 



