Willdenow reduced that number to three, to which he added 
one of Loureiro. M. Persoon (Synopsis) to the four of M. La- 
marck adds a fifth of M. de Beauvois (Flore d’Oware. 
During M. du Thouars’ excursions in the Mauritius, Bourbon, 
and Madagascar, he discovered “ sixteen distinct species, which 
he was unable to refer to any described by authors, and of 
which, in the Journal above quoted, he has given specific cha- 
racters, and some notice of their habits.” So brief however are 
those notes altogether, that they rather serve to perplex than to 
enlighten ; and the only specific phrase of the species we take to 
be ours is, “ capitulis racemosis erectis, nucibus monospermis 
apice pyramidatis.” Our plant was received some twenty years 
_ ego, through Mr. Newman, of the Botanic Garden, Mauritius, 
and was stated to have come from Madagascar. It flourishes in 
stove-heat, and flowered for the first time (female flowers only) 
in 1852-3. 
Descr. This is with us a low spreading shrub, in the centre 
not two feet high, but from the base sending out numerous ho- 
rizontal, rooting, annulated (from the scars of old leaves) branches 
in all directions; the roofs are often nearly as thick as the 
branches, terete, here and there tuberculated, simple or forked, 
many of them aerial, others descending and burying themselves 
in the soil among moist moss. Leaves confined to the extremities 
of the branches, about a foot long, spirally arranged in threes, 
from an amplexicaul broad base, linear-subulate, much acumi- 
nated, minutely striated, carinated, the margins and keel fringed 
with white spinulose serratures. Peduncle short, terminal, buried 
among the upper leaves, erect, bearing a bracteated raceme or 
spike of from four to six sessile, elliptical heads (spadices) of 
closely compacted and conjoined pistils, inversely pyramidate, 
somewhat six-angled, one-ovuled: the apex and short style only 
of the ovary free, terminated by a two-lobed stigma. Bracteas 
or spathas large, ovato-rotundate, concave, membranaceous, 
sheathing, pale green, larger than the spadix, the lower ones 
acute, the upper ones terminated by a subulate, sharp, serrated 
point, resembling the apex of a leaf. 
: Fig. 1. Spadix or head of female flowers, with its bract or spatha :—natural 
size. 2, Spadix cut through transversely. 3. Two pistils cut through verti- 
cally :—magnified, 
