than under cultivation, and the corolla is of a dull ochreous- 
yellow streaked with dull red, giving it somewhat of a 
purpurascent orange or lateriteous tint. 
M. aurea is a common plant on the sea cliffs of Madeira, 
and also ascends the ravines, rooting deeply into fissures of 
perpendicular dry sunny rocks; it was introduced into 
England in 1777 by Masson, a collector sent from Kew to 
South Africa, who visited Madeira en route to his destina- 
tion. The specimen figured flowered at Kew in July and 
August of last year. The whole plant abounds in milky 
juice. . 
Duscr. Stem none or in old plants a few inches (rarely a 
foot) long, cylindric, thicker than the thumb, fleshy, scarred, 
rarely branched. Leaves in a single terminal tuft, dark 
green, varnished and shining, five to six inches long by three 
to three and a half wide, very narrow, petioled, elliptic- 
lanceolate, doubly or trebly serrate ; petiole stout, one to 
two inches long. Panicle terminal, one to one and a half 
feet high, pyramidal, stout, erect; bracts leafy, sessile, 
entire or subserrate. Flowers about three together in 
cymes towards the ends of the branches, one and a half 
inches long and as much in diameter, erect, on short stout 
upeurved pedicels. Calyz-tube obconic, five-angled, yellow 
with five strong green ribs; lobes half to three-quarters 
of an inch long, broadly ovate, acute, green, spreading, 
green with a golden-yellow midrib. Corolla bright golden- 
yellow, tube short, slender; lobes lanceolate, acuminate, 
spreading, about as long as the calyx-lobes. Stamens with 
dilated filaments and narrow linear mucronate anthers. 
Style stout, green, not much overtopping the anthers, 
stigmatic-arms radiating, greenish. Oapsules bursting — 
between the ribs.—J. D. H. 
Fig. 1, flower cut open vertically ; 2 and 3, back and front view of stamen :—both 
enlarged. 
