658 GRIGGS: SPECIES OF HELICONIA 
deeply boat-shaped, slightly tapering to a blunt somewhat in- 
curved tip; rachis straight, glabrous like the bracts; each bract 
very many-flowered: flowers about 7.5 cm. long, green outside, 
white inside, pubescent in two broad lines up the back, otherwise 
glabrous ; flower-bracts glabrous, nearly as long as the flowers, 
quite broad. (PL. 30.) 
No. 528; photographs 4, 5. Heliconia Champnetana was first 
seen on the steep mountain side up which zigzags Mr. Champ- 
ney’s road from Panzos to Sepacuité. Later it was observed east 
of Cahabon in the valley of the Oxec river. It gives me much 
pleasure to associate with this species the name of Mr. Kensett 
Champney, whose great and precise knowledge of the flora, fauna, 
customs and language of the country makes him an authority on 
all that pertains to the natural history and anthropology of Alta 
Vera Paz. To him we are indebted for a great deal of valuable 
information and for all the courtesies which he and Mr. and Mrs. 
Owen united to show us during our visit to Sepacuite. 
Heliconia Champneiana may be taken as the type of a very 
compact and natural section of the genus including H. rutila, H. 
purpurea, H. elongata and H. Boringuena. These are all character- 
ized by practically sessile, erect inflorescences, stiff straight rachises 
and by relatively broad often clasping branch-bracts. 
‘5° Heliconia Borinquena sp. nov. 
This species is very similar to the Guatemalan plant just de- 
scribed, but is somewhat smaller in all its parts. Whole plant 
3-4 m. long with 3-5 leaves on petioles about 1 m. long and 
sheathing bases twice as long. Its habit is different from H. 
Champneiana ; instead of growing erect it leans over and spreads 
out all its leaves horizontally. (Fic. 3.) 
Leaves 1-1.25 m. long, about 30 cm. broad, rounded at the 
base, acute or short-acuminate at the tip, glabrous, green above, 
decidedly glaucous beneath: inflorescence conspicuously upright 
no matter what may be the position of the stem, glabrous through- 
out, oblong, about 30 cm. long, half as wide ; branch-bracts 
10, very broadly ovate, broader than in /7. Champneiana, all * 
cept the lower nearly as broad as long (one from the muddle : 
the spike measures 12 cm. both in breadth and length), close’'y 
clasping and overlapping each other at the bases so that the ps 
of one is on a level with the bottom of the next above it, on 
