of Land olphia florid a. Lastly, when preparing: the Apocynece 

 for the "Genera Plantarum," Bentham recognized the 

 identity of Valica of Lamarck with the earlier established 

 Landolphia of Beauvois, and referred V. comorensis, Bojer, to 

 the latter genus, but did not perceive its identity with L. 

 florida. This was no doubt due to the fact that whereas 

 the cymes oifiorida are, densely tomentose, those of co- 

 morensis are quite glabrous. Since its first publication L. 

 florida has been found in many places on both the east and 

 west coasts of Tropical Africa, from Guinea to Angola on 

 the west coast, and from the Soudan to Mozambique on 

 the east, occurring; in forests near the coast as well as in 

 the interior, and varying with glabrous, pubescent or 

 tomentose cymes. 



The first notice of the Landolphia yielding India-rubber 

 that I have found is by Col. now Sir J. A. Grant, in the 

 appendix to Speke's Journal (p. 639), repeated in an elaborate 

 account of his collections published in the Limuean Society s 

 Transactions (xxix. 107). In this he says of Landolphia 

 florida, "A woody climber, named M'hoonga (Kis), found at 

 Madi, Derembe, in a shady spot by a rocky burn. Its 

 trunk travelled like a boa constrictor along the ground 

 till it found a tree to climb up, and was twenty-five inches 

 in circumference ; ascending to the topmost branches, it 

 threw down pendarts of foliage and clusters of lily-white, 

 scented flowers. The milk, if rubbed upon the skin, adheres 

 like birdlime, and can scarcely be rubbed off. . . . The 

 Wahiao people make playing balls from the juice, and con- 

 sider its rubber to be the most adhesive known." 



For living specimens of this interesting plant the 

 Royal Gardens are indebted to Sir John" Kirk, from 

 whom they were received in 1878. The plant, a spray of 

 which is here figured, after climbing to the roof of the 

 Palm House, flowered profusely, in the month of June ot 

 this year, powerfully scenting the air with its delicious 

 fragrance. — J. D. 11. 



Fiff. 1, Calyx, pedicels and bracteoles ; 2, base of corolla-tube laid open, showing 

 tli« ttainens ; 3, t.tamens ; 4, ovary ; 5, transverse section of ditto : — all enlarged. 



