named Raffle si a . 203 



or a little more), I soon detached it and removed it to our hut. 

 To tell you the truth, had I been alone, and had there been no 

 witnesses, I should I think have been fearful of mentioning the 

 dimensions of this rlower, so much does it exceed every flower I 

 have ever seen or heard of; but I had Sir Stamford and Lady 

 Raffles with me, and a Mr. Palsgrave, a respectable man resi- 

 dent at Manna, who, though equally astonished with myself, yet 

 are able to testify as to the truth. 



" ' The whole rlower was of a very thick substance, the petal* 

 and nectary being in but few places less than a quarter of an 

 inch thick, and in some places three-quarters of an inch ; the 

 substance of it was very succulent. When I first saw it a swarm 

 of flies were hovering over the mouth of the nectary, and appa- 

 rently laying their eggs in the substance of it. It had preciseh 

 the smell of tainted beef. The calyx consisted of several roundish . 

 dark-brown, concave leaves, which seemed to be indefinite in 

 number, and were unequal in size. There were five petals at- 

 tached to the nectary, which were thick, and covered with pro- 

 tuberances of a yellowish-white, varying in size, the interstices 

 being of a brick-red colour. The nectarium was cyathiform. 

 becoming narrower towards the top. The centre of the necta- 

 rium gave rise to a large pistil, which I can hardly describe, at the 

 top of which were about twenty processes, somewhat curved and 

 sharp at the end, resembling a cow's horns ; there were as many 

 smaller very short processes. A little more than half-way down, 

 a brown cord about the size of common whip-cord, but quite 

 smooth, surrounded what perhaps is the germen, and a little 

 below it was another cord somewhat moniliform. 



" * Now for the dimensions, which are the most astonishing 

 part of the flower. It measured a full yard across : the petals. 

 which were subrotund, being twelve inches from the base to the 

 apex, and it being about a foot from the insertion of the one petal 



2d2 to 



