up the trunks of trees, and attaching itself to their bark by 
thick fleshy fibres. The main sfem or trunk is one or two inches 
thick, but variable in size in different parts of the same stem, 
ringed, as it were, with the scars formed by fallen leaves, more or 
less branched; the éranches are narrowed at the base, leafy. 
Leaves distichous, long-petioled, from a span to a foot long, 
oblique at the base, acuminulate at the apex, somewhat waved 
at the margin, dark-green, glossy, with stout costa, penni- 
veined, entire or in the disc and between the veins more or less 
perforated with large linear or oblong openings, one between 
each pair of veins, at various and very uncertain distances from 
the costa, lying parallel with the veins. Petioles grooved, with 
a membranous and sheathing margin, auricled above. Bractee 
elongated, boat-shaped, green, terminal from between the most 
superior pair of leaves: from this bract the peduncle emerges, 
thick, terete. Spatha cream-colour, deep cymbiform, ovate, 
acute: in the inside the surface appears as if impressed with 
the flowers of the spadix. Peduncle not much exserted beyond 
the bractea. Spadix included, much shorter than the spatha, 
cylindrical, thick, obtuse, clothed with white pistils for its whole 
length, which are closely compacted ; those towards the base 
without stamens, the rest surrounded by seven s/amens, which 
are close-pressed. Filaments broad, plane, tipped with two-celled 
anthers. Ovary turbinate, tapering upwards into a short style, 
two-celled, four-seeded. Stigma minute, four-lobed. 
Fig. 1. Single stamen. 2. Pistil from the upper part of the spadix, sur- 
rounded by its stamens. 8. Vertical section of the pistil. 4. Transverse sec- 
tion :—magnified. 
