papery bark, resinous inner surface, and spongy farinaceous 
central portion, which has a musky odour and bitter aromatic 
taste. To us the odour of the root, whether fresh or dry, is 
detestable, resembling putrid musk, and it is very penetrating 
and durable. Another kind of Sumbul is alluded to by the 
same authors as Indian Sumbul, it is described in Pereira’s 
‘Elements of Materia Medica’; and a third has been im- 
ported into England from China. Both these are of unknown 
origin. 
As a genusI cannot regard Zuryangium as separable from 
Ferula, with which it agrees in habit, inflorescence, foliage, 
flowers, and form of fruit ; it differs in the great size of the 
solitary vitte. The vitte are, however, a most inconstant 
character in Ferula, varying even in the same species ; and if 
Narthex is included in it, so must also be Euryangium, as a 
section at the most. 
Descr. Root fusiform, a foot long, crowned with a tuft 
of the bristly remains of old leaves, spongy within, and full 
of fetid milk. Leaves puberulous, all radical, petioled ; petiole 
a foot long; blade three feet in diameter, deltoid in outline, 
3-pinnatifid, pale green, rachis of primary and secondary 
segments terete, swollen at the base; ultimate pinnee laxly pin- 
natifid, segments rhomboid-cuneate, obtusely crenate and cut 
at the apex, pale green, glaucous beneath, nerves flabellate. 
Stems trict, erect, solid above, nine feet high, terete, obscurely 
striate, one inch in diameter at the base, bearing a few 
scattered subsessile imperfect leaves. Inflorescence sparse, 
elongate, oblong in outline; branches erecto-patent, alter- 
nate, bearing alternate or rarely opposite compound umbels 
one and a half to two and a half inches in diameter; 
rachis and branches green; bracts at the axils linear- 
oblong, membranous, subacute, yellow. Umbels of six to 
eight rays. Jnvolucre none. Partial umbels one-quarter 
to one-half inch in diameter, peduncles one-half to three- 
quarters of an inch long. Flowers one-sixth of an inch 
in diameter, crowded, very shortly pedicelled, outer herma- 
phrodite, inner smaller. Calyz-teeth very obscure. Petals tri- 
angular-lanceolate, yellow, incurved. Stamens seated around 
a disk, filaments short, incurved Anthers yellow. Disk cup- 
shaped, fleshy, with waved, almost sinuate margins. Stylo- 
pods small, sunk in the disk; styles very short, recurved, 
obtuse. Ovary with five very large vitte between the 
dorsal ridges, and two small commissural ones.—J. D. H. 
ae} aa Plant, much reduced ; 2, portion of leaf; 3, inflorescence of 
