away) and rather bears the aspect of an herbaceous plant, become by 
accident perennial, than of a really shrubby one: and, in fact, it rarely 
- lasts altogether more than four or five years. 
Descr. Whole plant densely clothed with short pubescence, and 
slightly viscous. Stem round, about an inch in diameter at the base, 
dividing, at about a yard high, into two or three straggling, simple, or 
. rarely subdivided branches, which are naked below, clothed with leaves 
only towards the ends, in a terminal tuft or crown! Stipules minute, at 
_ first obsolete, hardening gradually into a pair of small, short, slightly re- 
curved prickles : these, however, fall off on the lower parts of the branches 
or stem. |! Petioles four to six inches or more long, often purplish like 
the upper part of the stem and ribs of the leaves, round, or but slightly 
channelled above. Leaflets usually seven, sometimes five, rarely six, 
eight, or nine; soft, flaccid, pubescent, of a dark, dull green above, paler 
beneath, with prominent, simple nerves; lanceolate, subacuminate, and 
often aighy waved: the middle leaflet four or five inches long and two 
broad; the side ones gradually smaller and broader in proportion ; the 
extreme ones not above an inch or two long. aceme of flowers 
terminal, erect, produced out of the tuft of leaves, finally a foot or 
more long, having in strong plants a very handsome candelabrum-like 
appearance. Bracteas simple, ovate, sessile, concave, almost cucullate, 
_ thickly clothing the main stem of the raceme: the lower ones compound 
_ and petioled, and thus gradually passing into leaves. | Flowers large and 
_ singular, of a dark, dull, atro-purpureous colour, foetid, with the very 
_ unpleasant smell of cabbage-water. Pedicels round, about an inch or an 
- inch and a halflong. Calyx of five unequal, narrow, lanceolate, acumi- 
nate sepals. Buds oblong, obtuse. Petals four, imbricate in the bud ; 
before their full expansion the filaments protrude in the shape of a bow, 
_ having a very singular appearance; the petals when expanded are reflex- 
_ ed, somewhat twisted or rolled together into a sort of cornucopia shape; in 
weak or unhealthy plants, and towards the end of the raceme in strong 
_ ones, often mottled more or less with a paler or whitish hue ; their claw 
very short, Zorus ovate or oblong. Stamens six, soon deciduous, leav- 
ing a white scar on the dark-purple torus. Filaments very long, (two or 
three inches,) divaricate, smooth, dark purple. Anthers small. Pollen 
_ bright yellow ; presently whitish or gray. Thecaphore round, dark pur- 
ple, pubescent, about two inches long ; bearing at the end the purplish, 
downy, small ovarium, which gradually, after the petals and stamens 
have fallen, grows into a straight, one-celled, oblong, somewhat inflated, 
compressed, pod-shaped, pubescent capsule, two inches long and half an 
inch broad, with a deep, broad notch at the top, in the middle of which 
appear the remains of the stigma, shorter than the two pointed, short 
beaks between which it is placed, } This seed-vessel, which is, in short, 
a genuine szligua, with only the central dissepiment obsolete or wanting, 
splits vertically from the base upwards into two concave valves, each of 
which separates from the upper and lower seminiferous ribs (placente) 
which run along the whole length of each suture, and are persistent; 
appearing at the base like a fork of the thecaphore, but again uniting at 
the apex. Seeds numerous, in a double (upper and inferior) row, along 
each of the two rib-like pee small, brown, roundish, flattened, 
curiously echinated like the husk of a Spanish Chestnut (CasTaNEa 
vesca, W.), all round the back. Rev. J. 7. Lowe. : 
Fig. 1. Pod. 2, Seed, 
