Eichornia. | CXLI. PONTEDERIACEE (BROWN). 5 
Syst. Veg. vii. pt. 2, 1147; Kunth, Enum, iv, 128, Monochoria natans, 
Thomson in Speke, Nile, Append. 649. 
Upper Guinea. Senegal, Perrottet, Leprieur, and Heudelot, 258 (ex Solms). 
Sierra Leone; ina pool on the way to Danlilia and near Falaba, Scott-Elliot, 5290! 
Niger Territory : Nupe, Barter! Oware: banks of the River Formosa, Palisot 
de Beauvois (ex Solms). 
Nile Land. British East Africa: Madi, Speke & Grant, 726! 727! Gazelle 
River, Schweinfurth, 1166! 1208! Jur: between Gir and Addai, Schweinfurth, 
2555! 
Also occurs in Madagascar according to Count Solms, 
The plant collected in Loanda, Angola, by Welwitsch (3014), and referred by 
Rendle in Cat. Afr. Pl. Welw. ii., 66 to Eichornia natans, is certainly not that 
species, but appears to be a seedling, without flowers or fruit, of some Dicotyledon. 
The specimen is but a worthless scrap. ‘ 
3. MONOCHORIA, Pres]; Benth. et Hook. f. Gen. Pl. iii. 839. 
Perianth-segments 6, free to the base, subequal, oblong. Stamens 6, 
atiixed to the base of the perianth-segments, equal or unequal, especially 
as to the anthers, the largest stamen with an erect tooth on one side of 
the filament ; anthers oblong, erect, basifixed, opening by longitudinal 
slits. Ovury sessile, 3-celled, with axile placentas; style filiform, very 
shortly trifid or somewhat 6-fid at the apex; ovules numerous in each 
cell.—Aquatic herbs. Rhizome stout and creeping, or none. Leaves 
all radical, or rarely spaced out on a short erect stem, alternate, with 
long sheathing petioles, and sagittate, cordate-ovate or lanceolate blades. 
Flowering stems radical, with one sheathing leaf or a tubular sheath at 
its summit, enclosing the membranous spathe at the base of the peduncle. 
Flowers racemose, of moderate size, blue, all alike. 
A genus of about 5 species, natives of the warmer parts of the Old World. The 
following is the only African species. 
1. M. africana, V. FH. Br. Plant 13-2 ft. high, glabrous. 
Rhizome none. Leaves and flower-stems all radical, with a dense tuft 
of fibrous roots at their base. Leaves 3-44 in. long, 2-3 in. broad, ovate, 
acuminate, slightly cordate at the base, with long petioles. Flower- 
ing stems 11-14 in. long, stout, with a leaf or a tubular leaf-sheath 
at their summit, enclosing a membranous spathe or bract 8-9 lin. 
long, which is abruptly terminated by a filiform point 2-4 lin. long. 
Peduncle 14-24 in. long, rather stout. Flower-spike 24-4 in. long. 
Flowers numerous, rather crowded, ebracteate, erect, violet. Pedicels 
14-2 lin. long, erect. Perianth campanulate or somewhat funnel- 
shaped, 5-6 lin. long; outer segments 1} lin. broad, oblong, obtuse, 
with narrow membranous margins; inner segments 3 lin. broad, elliptic, 
obtuse, with broad membranous margins. Stamens (especially the 
anthers) unequal ; filaments of the largest stamen with an erect tooth 
on one side. Ovary ovoid, trigonous; style filiform, divided at the apex 
into 3 short bifid stigmatic lobes.— MV. vaginalis, Pres], var. africana. 
