236 BECCAIU. 
gibbous above^ feebl}^ armed witli \"ury small, scattered, 3-1 mm. long, 
liorizontal, semiconieal, (straight spines, which liave the tip slightly darker 
than tlie surface of the sheath and the base lighter and tumescent. Ocrea 
very short, axillary, liguliform. Leaves cirriferous, large; petiole very 
short and robust or almost obsolete, flattish and smooth above, 3 cm. 
broad, armed along the margins with ratlier stout, 8-10 mm. long, 
straight, horizontal spines; rachis in the intermediate portion obtusely 
trigonous, fugaceously ashy-furfuraccous, with an obtu.sc smooth salient 
angle above, armed beneath with rather remote solitary and binata (up- 
wards probably 3-nate) black-tipped claws. Leaflets rather numerous, 
(about 50 on the whole), equidistant, not very approximate (6-7 cm. 
apart) rigidly papyraceous, green on both surfaces, slightly paler beneath; 
narrowly elliptical-lanceolate, narrowing almost equally towards both 
ends, plicatc-pluricostulate, base and apex acute, the latter spinulous; the 
niid-costa alone rather prominent and sliarp above and spinulous as are 
two other lateral costula; wdiich are near the upper margin; the other 
eostulm are very tenuous and smooth; imderneath the nerves are numer- 
ous, but devoid of bristles or spinules; the intermediate leaflets are 
45-47 cm. long and 4.5-5 cm. broad; the lower ones are smaller, 20-25 
cm. long and proportionally narrower. Male spadix Female 
spadix decompound forming a large diifusc panicle; primary spatlics 
; partial inflorescences 40-50 cm. long (the few I have seen) 
with 10-12 spikelets on each side; secondary spathes (the spathes of the 
partial inflorescences) narrowly tubular-infundibuliform, unarmed, strio- 
late, very thinly and fugaceously furfuraceous, produced at the summit 
into a broadly triangular acute point; the mouth ciliate with small 
paleolai; spikelets (when bearing the fruit) spreading or horizontal, 
slightly arched, with a distinct axillary callus, inserted just at the mouths 
of their respective spathes, 10-12 cm. long (the upper ones somewhat 
shorter) with 20-22 distichous flowers on each side; spathels shortly, 
very broadly and asymmetrically infundibuliform, obsoletely striately- 
veined, slightly produced and apieulate at one side, truncate and dccid- 
uously ciliolate at the mouth; involucrophorum very shallowly eupular, 
immersed in its own spathel, bidentate and laterally adnate to the base 
of the spathel above its own ; involucre shallowly and irregularly eupular ; 
areola of the neuter flower very depressedly lunate. Fruiting perianth 
shortly but distinctly pedicelliform ; the calyx parted down to almost 
the middle into 3 triangular, slightly striately veined, acute lobes, and 
^ with a smooth base; the segments of the corolla triangular, barely shorter 
than the teeth of the calyx. Fruit small, spherical, abruptly and com- 
paratively stoutly beaked, 6.5 mm. in diameter (ivhen not quite ripe) 
with a small basal acute eaudiculum, which penetrates into the perianth; 
scales in 18-20 longitudinal series, shining, convex and not channeled 
along the middle, of a dirty straw-yellowish color and with a reddish 
