Stapelia. | ASCLEPIADE (Brown). 959 
Coast Reaton: Var. 8B: Ladismith Div. ; roadside between Muis Kraal and 
Ladismith, Pillans, 689 ! 
The flowers, according to Mr. Pillans, have a strong carrion-like odour ; he states 
that no flies ever lay their eggs on the flowers so far as he has observed. 
(27. 8. glabriflora (N. E. Br. in Gard. Chron. 1876, vi. 809, fig. 
149); stems 4-9 in. long, erect, 3-1 in. square, puberulous, green ; 
angles much compressed, with erect rudimentary leaves 3-1} lin. long 
at the teeth ; flowers 1-2 together at the middle or lower part of the 
young stems, opening successively ; pedicels 1—2 in. long, 141} lin. 
thick, velvety ; sepals 1—} in. long, lanceolate, acuminate, velvety ; 
corolla in bud ovate, acuminate, 5-angled, when expanded the lobes 
recurve and cross each other behind, but if laid flat the flower 
measures 3-4) in. in diam., velvety on the back, transversely 
rugose and quite glabrous on the inner face, not ciliate, duil 
reddish-purple, darker at the tips of the lobes, the whole surface to 
the tips transversely marked with numerous very narrow linear 
irregular yellowish-white lines, those on the disk more slender and 
often dark-coloured instead of whitish ; lobes 1}-2 in. long, ? in. 
broad, lanceolate, acuminate, much recurved, slightly revolute at 
the margins; outer corona-lobes ¢ in. long, nearly 1 lin. broad, 
erectly spreading, recurved at the apex, linear, channelled down the 
face, obtuse or emarginate, with a very distinct apiculus, blackish- 
purple; inner corona-lobes ascending-spreading, blackish-purple, 
with the dorsal wing } in. long, erectly spreading, free to the base, 
oblong-linear or deltoid-lanceolate, obtuse or acute, entire or slightly 
toothed on the inner margin; inner horn }—} in. long, triquetrous- 
subulate, straight, with hooked or recurved tips. N. E. Br. in Gard. 
Chron. 1908, xliv. 187, fig. 78 ; Schlechter in Journ. Bot. 1898, 480. 
ORIGIN UNKNOWN : cultivated specimens ! 
Described from living plants. In all probability a hybrid raised in Europe. ]} 
28. 8. conformis (N. E. Br.) ; stems erect, 5-11 in. long, #14 
in, square, with much compressed toothed angles and rudimentary 
erect leaves 1—2 lin. long, velvety puberulous, green, sometimes 
tinted with purplish; flowers 2 to several together, successively 
developed from a short stout peduncle or cyme near the base of the 
young stems ; pedicels 4-1 in. long, stout, velvety ; sepals 2—4 lin. 
long, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, acute, velvety ; corolla 3-4 in. 
in diam., velvety on the back, transversely rugulose (except at the 
tips of the lobes) and glabrous or with a mifute erect pubescence 
around the corona on the inner face, irregularly ciliate (sometimes 
very sparsely) on the very edge of the lobes with spreading white 
hairs 1-2 lin. long, mingled with others more minute ; disk and 
basal half of the lobes sulpbur-yellow or dull yellowish-green or 
yellowish-white marked with numerous crowded narrow irregular 
transverse purple-brown lines, margins narrowly bordered with 
_ and apical half of lobes entirely dark purple-brown, usually with — 
