572 WILSON EXPEDITION TO CHINA 



The fruits of Henry's No. 6719 agree very well with Pampanini's description and 

 figure; and Wilson's No. 172^ seems nearer to this variety than to the type, though 

 the fruits are slightly smaller. The flowering branch of Wilson's specimen has 

 staminate flowers with very slender pedicels almost like those of H. chinensis, var, 

 longipedicellata Wangerin. 



*i 



AUCUBA Thurb. 



Aucuba chinensis Bentham, Fl Hongk, 138 (1861). — Hemsley in 

 Jour, Linn, Soc, XXIII. 346 (1888). — Henry in Trans, As, Soc, Jap, 

 XXIV. suppl. 48 {List PL Formosa) (1896). — Matsumura & Hayata 

 in Jour, Coll, Sci, Tokyo, XXII. 178 {Enum, PI, Forvios.) (1906). 

 Wangerin in Engler, Pflanzenr, IV.-229; 40, fig. 9^ c (1910). 

 Schneider, III, Handh, Laubholzk, II. 455, fig. 502 k {im), — Leveille, 

 Fl Kouy-Tcheou, 115 (1914). 



w 



Aucuha japonica Harms in Bot. Jahrh. XXIX. 507 (non Thunberg) (1900). 

 Aiwnba japonicaj var longifolia Nakai in Tokyo Bot. Mag. XXIII. 43 (pro 

 parte) (1909), quoad synon. A. chinensis. 



Western Hupeh: north and south of Ichang, thickets, alt. 30- 

 1000 m., April 10 and June 1907 (No. 2047) ; bush 1-3 m. tall, fruit red) ; 

 without precise locality, May 1900 (Veitch Exped. No. 314). Western 

 Szech'uan: Mt. Omei, October 1903 (Veitch Exped. No. 3701); 

 same locality, June 1904 (Veitch Exped. No. 4955; Nanch'uan, A, 

 ron i?osf/iom (No. 456). Yunnan: Feng-chen-lin Mt., forests, alt. 

 2300-2500 m., A. Henry (Nos. 10122, 10123); Mengtsze, forests 

 east, A, Henry (No. 10123^). Hongkong: Happy Valley, De- 

 cember 1, 1899, Mou. Formosa: Bankinsing, A. Henry (No. 140). 



This species is exceedingly variable. Most of the forms from central and west- 

 em China differ from the type as represented by the Hongkong plant in their 

 smaller leaves, shorter fruiting panicles and smaller fruits. The Hongkong plant 

 with which Wilson's Nos. 3701 and 4955 from Mt. Omei agree has large generally 

 oblong leaves 12-20 cm. long and 3.5-8 cm. broad, elongated fruiting panicl^ 

 With the peduncle 8-10 cm. long and distinctly pedicelled oblong fruits about J 

 cm. long. All the other specimens from central and western China have sniai e 

 leaves varying from obovate to linear-oblong and from coarsely dentate *^^^^^.^ 

 entire, short glomerulate panicles with the peduncle about 3-4 cm. long and ovoi 

 fruits tapering toward the apex and 1.2-1.5 cm. long; the leaves are quite or near y 

 glabrous beneath except on Henry's No. 10123 from Yunnan, which has the ^^^^^^ 

 and the lateral veins covered with short spreading hairs. As stated ^^^^^^g^ 

 leaves of the western plant vary from obovate to linear-oblong and as the 

 extreme forms look very distinct, they may be distinguished as follows: 



Aucuba chinensis, forma obcordata Rehder, n. f. tj^jn 



A typo recedit foliis obovatis, basin versus sensim angustatis et mfra me ^^^ 

 integris v. fere integris, apice truncatis et in dentem medium longum ac ^^^ 

 desinentibus, dentibus lateralibus minoribus interdum ad mucrones rcductis, 

 cm. longis et 4.5-8 cm. latis. 



