column of about forty fect high, and ten to twelve inches in dia- 
meter, more slender upwards, jointed as it were with annular 
scars of the fallen leaf-stalks; these rings are a foot to fourteen 
inches apart. Crown of leaves or Jronds extremely beautiful ; 
each leaf is twelve to fifteen feet, petiolate, lanceolate, pinnate, re- 
curved ; pinnee numerous on the rachis, solitary, or more usually 
two to four aggregated, springing from near each other. Petiole 
subtriangular at the base, very much dilated, of a greyish-brown 
colour, keeled, at the margin fimbriatedly fibrous, amplexicaul. 
Spadia axillary ; two spadices during the autumn arose from 
axils of the leaf-stalks, substipitate, two and a half to three feet 
long, ligneous at first, at length bursting open laterally, concave 
and fusiform, almost woody, very erect, rigid, firm, dark dirty- 
green externally, within tawny, acute and apiculated. As this 
spatha bursts longitudinally on one side, the spadia emerges. 
This is nearly as long as the spatha, and clothed with numerous, 
long, gracefully drooping, wax-like branches, loaded with flowers 
of two kinds, which are sessile on the branches: some female, 
but mostly male. owers in bud conical: the sepals com- 
pactly imbricated. Sepals six, three outer (calyx), three inner 
(petals) ovate, concave, moderately patent, with minute bracteas 
at the base. AMJale flowers with six, oblong, yellow anthers on 
short filaments. Female with a short downy ovary, crowned 
with three stigmas. Frwit a dull orange-flowered apiculated 
drupe, about the size of an acorn of the English Oak. 
Fig. 1. Flowering specimen of Cocos plumosa, Hook.,—greatly reduced. 2. 
Spatha and spadix of flowers, also much reduced. 3. Portion of a drooping 
flowering branch,—zat. size. 4. Male tlower,—smagnified. 5. Female flower un 
expanded. 6. Pistil from the female flower,—magnified. 1. Drupe,—nat. size. 
