according to Messrs. Fischer and Steven, is the locality of 
this plant. M. DeCandolle indeed suspected that it must be 
different, but he did not remark in the dried specimens ex- 
amined by him any character beyond the bluntness of the 
petals and their general uniformity in size, and upon that 
distinction he was unwilling to rely. The true difference 
seems to consist in the very small number of carpels, which 
do not appear to exceed nine, while in the great Indian species 
they are as numerous as thirty or thirty-three. 
Speaking of N. speciosum and its supposed varieties, Dr. 
Roxburgh writes as follows :— 
*I have met with only two sorts on the coast of Coro- 
mandel, one with rose-coloured flowers, the other with flowers 
perfectly white, and since that time a third variety has been 
brought from China with smaller rosy flowers. They grow 
in such sweet water lakes, &c. as do not dry up during the 
driest season, and, on the coast, flower all the year round. 
In Bengal they flower during the hot season, April, May, and 
June, and ripen their seed about the close of the rains. 
In China there is a still more beautiful bright crimson variety, 
which they call Hung-lin; I have hitherto only seen a draw- 
ing of it. The white Nelumbium differs in few respects from 
the red one, and may be considered as only a variety of it. 
** The tender shoots of the roots between the joints of both 
sorts are eaten by the natives, either simply boiled or in their 
curries. The seeds are eaten raw, roasted, or boiled. "The 
leaves are used to eat off instead of plates. These holy and 
beautiful plants are often met with in the religious ceremonies 
of the Hindoos under their Sanscrit name Padma.” 
_ It is a stove aquatic, requiring to be kept dry during 
winter. Before putting it into the water, which ought to be 
done about the beginning of February, it should be repotted 
in sandy loam mixed with pieces of sandstone, to act on the 
same principle as drainage, for the water in which it is grown 
requires to be renewed once or twice a week, and should 
never be allowed (especially in summer) to be below 80°. 
About the end of October, when the leaves begin to decay, 
the pot should be lifted out of the water and dried off gra- 
dually. As the soil becomes dry it will crack or leave the 
sides of the pot, which should be filled up with sand, in order 
to cover many roots that would otherwise be exposed. 
ee 2 
