132 xv. POLYGALEiE (oliver). [Poly gala. 



outer sepals or flowers sessile ; bracts caducous. Wing-sepals obovate to 

 orbicular, very faintly 3-uerved, the nervures soon dying out. Lateral petals 

 obliquely ovate-lanceolate. Capsule nearly orbicular, scarcely notched, sub- 

 glabrous. Seeds without a distinct strophiole, shortly hairy, the hairs loose, 

 with circinate-capitate tips in the Angola specimens, as noticed first by 

 Dr. Welwitsch. 



Upper Guinea. Senegambia, Perrottet ! 



Lower Guinea. Angola, provs. Pungo Andongo (flowers cream-coloured) and Huilla 

 (flowers rose or purple), Dr. Wehoitsch ! Also in Cape Verde Islands, according to Webb. 



16. P. acicularis, Oliv. A glabrous shrub with stout rigid branches 

 bearing somewhat tufted, erect, leafy twigs terminating in short rigid ra- 

 cemes. Leaves acerose or very narrow-linear, numerous, scattered or HI 

 fascicles of 3-4, rather pungent, midrib depressed above, prominent beneath 

 in the acicular form, f-2 in. long. Racemes erect terminal or on tufted 

 lateral rigid ramuli. Pedicels much shorter than the outer sepals or flowers 

 subsessile ; bracts caducous. Anterior sepals connate, 2-dentate. Lateral 

 petals obovate or rotundate. Wing-sepals obovate-oblong, faintly nerved, 

 deciduous with the corolla. Capsule elliptical or obovate, narrowly notched 

 or emarginate, glabrous ; stigma circinate with a membranous wing. 



Nile Land. Near Madi, White Nile, Speke and Grant ! 

 (? Quorra, Barter, a very imperfect specimen.) 



17. P. guineensis, mild.; DC. Prod. i. 332 (Fl. Nlgrit. 223). A 

 very slender, erect, forking, glabrous annual attaining 2-3 ft. with striate 

 stem and scattered filiform leaves £-1 in. long. Flowers small, orange and 

 red, secund, in slender terminal racemes, sometimes distant ; pedicels slender 

 below, subclavate, patent or deflexed, equalling the outer sepals, the two an- 

 terior of which are connate and -2-fid ; bracts caducous. Wing-sepals obo- 

 vate, much narrowed below, deciduous. Lateral petals rotundate. Capsule 

 obovate-oblong with a broad triangular notch very conspicuous in the M»" 

 ripe fruit. 



Upper Guinea. Niger, Ansell! Barter! . . 



Willdeuow's description is much too brief to enable me to identify this plant certain y. 

 Sclmmacher and Thonning, who take up the same name in their Iteskr. Guin. Planter, 

 describe their plant as with ' perianthium triphyllum,' and do not refer to the cohesion o 

 the anterior sepals. It is possible, therefore, that they had a different plant in view. 



^ 18. P. rarifolia, DC. Prod. i. 332 (ex descr.); Fl. NU/rU. 223. 



Shrubby, with slender, erect, glabrous branches strongly ridged when diY- 

 Leaves scattered, often remote, very narrow-linear or filiform, erect or op- 

 pressed, |-2 in. long, i-2 lines broad. Flowers glabrous or pilose, in ter- 

 minal, erect racemes ; pedicels spreading, equalling or shorter than the oute 

 sepals ; bracts minute, caducous. Anterior sepals connate, entire or bide"- 

 tate. Wing-sepals pale, oblong- or rotundate-ovate, shortly narrowed at W* 

 base with 3 principal looping (not coloured) nervures, persistent, k * n \ n 

 length. Lateral petals ample, rotundate-obovate, narrowed below. j!" 

 cristate. Capsule ovate- or quadrate-elliptical, retuse, exalate or the lo e » 

 more or less produced at each side of the notch, glabrous, about as broad 

 and at length nearly or quite equalling the wings. — P. tenidfolia, l 11 " 



