96 XCVIII, ACANTHACEH (CLARKE). [ Blepharis. 
1. B. boerhaavizefolia, Pers. Syn. ii. 180. Procumbent, slender, 
hairy or nearly glabrate. Leaves apparently 4-nate in distant whorls, up 
to 44 by 1} in. (in Kirk’s examples), commonly 1} by } in., frequently 
small, elliptic, narrowed at both ends, entire, sessile. One-flowered 
branches sessile, axillary, solitary or clustered; bract (i.e., the true 
flower-bract in the axil of which the flower stands) 1-4 in., spathulate 
or spathulate-obovate, rigid, with 3 strong green nerves, with 7-15 
glochidiate spines (,1,—;/; in. long) round its head; bracteoles 0.  Posti- 
cous calyx-segment ?—} in. long, 2 inmost calyx-segments about half as 
long. Corolla 4 in. long, or in form B abyssinica, Hochst., #—1 in. long. 
Capsule } in. long, or rather more, 2-seeded.Nees in DC. Prod. xi. 
266; Wight Ic. t. 458; Benth. in Hook. Niger Fl. 481; A. Rich. 
Tent. F], Abyss. ii. 150; T. Anders.in Journ. Linn. Soe. vii. 34 ; Solms 
Laub. in Schweinf. Beitr. Fl. Aethiop. 107, 243; Franch. Sert. Somal. 
53; C. B, Clarke in Hook. f. Fl. Brit. Ind. iv.478 ; S. Moore in Journ. 
Bot. 1880, 230; Oliv. in Trans. Linn. Soe. ser. 2, Bot. ii. 345; Engl. 
Hochgebirgsfl. Trop. Afr. 389; Lindau in Engl. & Prantl, Pflanzenfam. 
iv. 3B. 316, fig. 126, B-H, in Pfl. Ost-Afr. C. 369, and in Ann. Istit. 
Bot. Roma vi. 75. B. rubiefolia, Schumach. Beskr. Guin. Pl. 292. 
B. abyssinica, Hochst. MS. in Schimper 247. B. Togodelia, Solms. Laub. 
in Schweinf. Beitr. Fl. Aethiop. 108, 248; Lindau in Engl. Pfl. Ost- 
Afr. U. 369. B. involucrata, Solms Laub. in Schweinf. Beitr. Fl. 
Aethiop. 107. Acanthus maderaspatensis, Linn. Sp. Plant. ed. ii. 892. 
Upper Guinea. Senegambia, Heudelot, 509! Sierra Leone, Afzelius ! Don! 
Scott-Elliot, 4525! Guinea, Thonning ! Lagos, Millen, 50! 
Nile Land. Eritrea: Aidereso, 4000 ft., Schweinfurth § Riva, 1431! Ginda, 
3200 ft., Schweinfurth § Riva, 2180! Abyssinia: Hamasen, Steudner, 1510! 1530! 
1531! Tigre; Axum, Schimper, 1492! Adowa, Petit, 328! Mount Sholoda, 
Schimper, 247 ! Serriro, 800 ft., Schimper, 497! Teramne and Mount Sholoda, Rohlfs 
§ Stecker ! Wadi Togodele, Ehrenberg ! Samen; Jaja, Schimper, 352! and without 
precise locality, Pearce! Schimper, 159, 1895! Somaliland, Mrs. Lort Phillips! 
Miss Edith Cole! Riva, 878! Kordofan, Pfund, 440! British East Africa: 
Bongo, Schweinfurth, 27! 2700! 2761! Mombasa, Scott-Elliot, 6124! Kirk ! Ribe, 
Wakefield ! Taita; Ndi Mountain, Hildebrandt, 2545! Maungu Mountain, 2000 ft., 
Johnston 
Lower Guinea. Congo, Smith! Angola: Huilla, Welwitsch, 5054! Loanda, 
Welwitsch, 5199! 5129! Ambriz, Monteiro ! 
Mozamb. Dist. German East Africa: Kilimanjaro, Volkens, 517 ! Usambara 
Mascheua, Holst, 8854! Kwa Mshuza, Holst, 9130! Tanga, Holst, 4100! Ugalla 
tiver, Boehm, 277! and without precise locality, Fischer, 482! Portuguese* East 
Africa: near Sena, Kirk! Zambesi, Kirk! British Central Africa: Nyasaland; 
‘Tanganyika Plateau, 2000-3000 ft. Whyte! River Shire, Kirk! and without 
precise locality, Med/er ! Lake Nyasa; Lukoma (Likoma Island ?), Bellingham ! 
The Abyssinian examples (both of Schimper, Petit, and Steudner) have the flower 
much larger than in the ordinary weed, and are the B. abyssinica, Hochst. MS. Solms 
Laubach, in Schweinfurth’s Beitr. Fl, Aethiopia, appears to have taken this as typical 
B. boerhaaviafolia ; and then to have described as a new species his B. Togode ia 
which is undistinguishable from the Indian weed. Schweinfurth’s 2761 has the 
bracts with recurved tips, the veins beautifully picked out with brown. 
