Carex. | CLVI, CYPERACEH (CLARKE). 517 
red roots. Stems 14-3 ft. long, rather stout, triquetrous, rough on 
the angles. Leaves nearly as long as the stem, }-} in. broad. In- 
florescence up to 64 by } in., very dense (sometimes interrupted at the 
base), from straw-colour to rusty brown; lowest bract not sheathing, 
usually as long as the panicle, but in one example nearly a foot long. 
Spikes exceeding } in. in length, female at the base, some male at the 
top. Female glumes }—1 in. long, elliptic, acuminate, hardly mucronate. 
Utricle 4-} in. long, elongate-lanceolate, attenuated at either end, 
plano-convex, thin, appearing winged, smooth, with 3-5 thin nerves on 
the plane face, 9 thin nerves on the convex face, finally straw-coloured ; 
beak elongate-conic, split nearly to the base on the convex face, margins 
Sparingly scabrid; style-branches 2, linear, long.—Boott, Carex, ii. 75 
(excl. var. 8), tt. 204, 205; Boeck. in Linnea, xxxix. 101; Engl. 
Hochgebirgsfl. Trop. Afr. 151 excl. C. Steudneri; C. B. Clarke in 
Durand & Schinz, Conspect. Fl. Afr. v. 686. 
Wile Land. Abyssinia: Samen; near Demerki ou Mount Bachit, 10,500 ft., 
Schimper, 66! 1244! and without precise locality, Schimper, 1036 ! 1037! 
In this critical series, Schimper’s 1244 (figured by Boott, 1. c. t. 205) is the 
type of the species; but the description above given is taken from Schimper’s 1036, 
1037, which are figured in Boott, 1. c. t. 204; because in these latter the utricles and 
nuts are tully ripened. 
6. ©. erythrorrhiza, Boeck. in Linnea, xxxix. 103. Leaves + in. 
broad. Inflorescence 2 by $-1 in., excessively dense, chestnut-brown. 
Utricle 4 in. long, sessile, ovoid-lanceolate, irregularly nerved on the 
plane face, with 7 strong ribs on the convex face; beak lanceolate ; 
otherwise as C’. Koestlint.—Eng]. Hochgebirgsfl. Trop. Afr. 151; C. B. 
Clarke in Durand & Schinz, Conspect. Fl. Afr. v. 684. C. Koestlini, 
var. /3 minor, Boott, Carex, 11. 76, tt. 206, 207. 
Nile Land. Abyssinia: Samen ; near Demerki, on Mount Bachit, 10,500 ft., 
Schimper, 170! 1704! near Debra Eski, 9000 tt., Schimper, 170B! Debra Kana, 
9300 ft., Schimper! Begemeder; Mount Guna, 11,400 ft., Schimper, 1556! 
This species is founded on Schimper, 1556; the descriptiou above given is taken 
from Schimper, 170, which is Boott’s t. 206. 
It is very doubtful whether Boeckeler should be followed in giving Boott’s var. 8 
Specific rank; Boeckeler had very poor material compared with Boott; and, in 
grounding his species on the red roots, he was unaware that the remarkable roots are 
just the same in typical C. Koestlint. Both the species appear to have been 
collected at nearly or quite the same localities. On the other hand, the difference 
between the utricles in Schimper 1036 (Boott, 1. ¢. t. 204), and Schimper 170 
(Boott, 1. ¢. t. 206) appears too great to combine the two under one species. Boott 
discusses the question, and considers his series shows a perfect gradation from the 
one to the other; but it appears that several of these “intermediates” are not well 
ripened. 
7. C. Lycurus, K. Schum, in Engl. Pfl. Ost-Afr. C. 129. Glabrous. 
Stems 3 ft. long and upwards, stout, triquetrous, rough on the angles. 
Leaves # the length of the stems, $ in. broad or even more. Inflor- 
escence 3 by 3-3 in., dense, somewhat interrupted at the base, dusky 
green; lowest bract 1-2 in. long, setaceous. Spikes }-} in., female at 
