F.R.S., then Director of the Botanical Gardens of Pera- 

 denyia. It flowers annually in a cool greenhouse in the 

 spring months. It is a variable plant in the size and length 

 of the leaves, size of the flower, and length and acuteness 

 of the perianth- segments ; but the three species founded by 

 Wight on dried specimens of it depend on characters due 

 to withering or pressure rather than to natural ones. 



Descr. A rather rigid herb, one to two feet high ; root- 

 stock creeping, stem dichotomously branched above, and 

 branches acutely angled; base of stem with broad sheath- 

 ing foliaceous scales; branches leafy. Leaves rather rigid, 

 one to four inches long by one to two inches broad, 

 narrowed into a distinct petiole, from elliptic to elliptic- 

 lanceolate and almost orbicular, cuspidate acute acuminate 

 or almost caudate, usually five-nerved and with as many 

 shallow folds; cross-nervules distinct. Flowers half to 

 three-quarters of an inch in diameter, subcampanulate, 

 white, from two to five together in the axils of the upper- 

 most leaves ; peduncle one to one and a half inch long, 

 stout, angular, decurved. Sepals six in two series, oblong 

 or linear-oblong, obtuse or subacute, hardly saccate at the 

 three-ribbed base, rather thick, almost keeled by the mid- 

 rib. Stamens six, shorter than the sepals ; filaments stout, 

 subulate, about equalling the oblong anthers. Ovary 

 obovoid ; style stout, with three revolute stigmas. Berry 

 three-quarters of an inch in diameter, depressed globose, 

 dark blue, few-seeded. Seeds globose. — J. B. II. 



Fig. 1, Petal; 2 and 3, stamens; 4, pistil; 5, transverse section of ovary; 6, 

 ripe fruit ; 7 and 8, seeds :— all but Jigs. 6 and 7 enlarged. 



