OMPHALOCARPUM, AND ASTERANTHOS. 5 
narrow acumen, at the bottom of which, on each side, is а broad tooth; they are acute 
and biglandular at the base, upon a very short petiole. Іп Heudelot’s specimens they 
are narrower, subacute at the base, terminate at the summit in a simple narrow 
obtuse point, and they have a slender petiole. In Vogel’s specimens they are more 
elliptie, with a narrow mucronate acumen, are more coriaceous, with undulating cartila- 
ginous margins, where several dark spots are seen, indicating as many abortive teeth ; 
they are pale above, yellowish beneath, biglandular near the short fuscous petiole, and 
have about 9 pairs of ascending nerves. Іп Whitfield's numerous specimens the leaves 
are longer, with a long, narrow acumen, are of a darkish green colour above, and of a 
peculiar lurid brown beneath, are subcoriaceous, with about 8 pairs of more patent 
nerves, rarely with basal glands, and have longer petioles. In Mann's plant, from 
Old Calabar, the leaves are nearly double the size of any of the preceding, are more 
oblong, suddenly contracted at the apex into a very long narrow acumen, below which 
is seen an obtuse tooth on each side, as in Beauvais's plant, but with the addition within 
it of a conspicuous gland; they are acute at base, with 2 glands near a very short dark-red 
thicker petiole; the margins are undulated and cartilaginous ; and they have ten pairs of 
straight ascending nerves. Іп Mann's plant from Fernando Po the leaves are still 
longer (10 inches), broader at the base, terminating abruptly at the summit in a short 
simple obtuse acumen; they are more coriaceous, very pale, with an almost encaustic 
surface above, pale yellow, and subnitid beneath, rarely with basal glands, with 12 pairs 
of prominent diverging nerves, and short stiff fuscous petioles. In Welwitsch's plant 
from Angola the leaves are of median size, much more membranaceous, more elliptic, 
of a more opaque green on both sides, obtusely and distinetly toothed on their thin 
margins, without basal glands, with about 7 pairs of subascending nerves, have extremely 
short petioles, with their margins subdecurrent with the angles of the branches. 
This constant difference in the leaves and habits of the plants is accompanied by 
equally marked peculiarities in the flowers and fruits, indicating the distinctness of the 
species. In the flowers the number of sepals is constantly 5 (except where, as rarely 
happens, they are reduced to four by abortion); the number of marginal lobes and rays 
of the corolla, the number of segments in the several whorls of the corona, vary in the 
several species, but they are always multiples of 5. The following table gives in columns 
the number of parts in the several whorls of the flower, and the relative dimensions of 
the calyx and corolla in the several species :— 
Corona. Relative diam. 
Lobes and of calyx and 
Species. anat p TR corolla in lines. 
Corola: | Outer whorl. | Second whorl.| "ner Whorl | д | 
of filaments. Calyx. | Corolla, 
М. imperialis ........ 35 35 35 20 10 8 18 
Ni Heudeloüi ..........: 40 40 90 10 7 15 
RO nM 2.6: 30 75 40 90 5 8 90 
N. Whitfeldi ...... 35 60 50 20 5 9 18 
N. euspidata ........ 40 7 40 20 10 21 
AR МЕНИИ se. 30 40 40 20 11 13 
| №. angolensis ........ 30 60 45 20 10 12. | 21 
