: on the inside. The carpels are very numerous, the short styles pro- 
COLLECTED BY MR. SPRUCE. ll 
flowers and shorter tails to the perianth, in the woods of the Rio 
Uaupés, and the Soridium Spruceanum in the woods of Caripi, near 
Para, and again in those of the Uaupés, mixed with Sciaphila albescens. 
The same vicinity of the Rio Uaupés furnished him with the three fol- - 
lowing new Sciaphile, of which one only American species (S. picta, 
Miers, from New Granada) had been previously known :— 
1. Sciaphila albescens, sp. n.; racemo elongato, pedicellis perianthio 
-foemineo imberbi 2-3-plo aiiai stylo ovarium longe superante. 
This very much resembles in appearance the Soridium Spruceanum, 
but is easily known by the length of the pedicels, besides the floral 
characters. It is a somewhat larger and stiffer plant than the S. picta, 
often attaining 6 inches, or rather more, and is altogether of a whitish 
colour. The scale-like leaves are narrow, tapering into a fine point; 
they are generally marked, as in other species, with oblong or linear 
coloured spots. The pedicels are from 2-3 lines long, stiff, and hori- 
zontally spreading or curved downwards. The flowers are about the 
size of those of the Soridium, but the female perianth has always six 
divisions, and the almost feathery styles, proceeding from near the base 
of the ovaries, are more than twice their length at the time of flower- 
ing. Of the three male flowers I examined, two had six divisions and 
three stamens, the third had four divisions and two stamens, precisely 
as in Soridium. The carpels in this and the other species open when 
ripe in two valves, exposing the dark brown, somewhat shining seeds. 
2. Sciaphila purpurea, sp. n.; elata, racemo elongato multifloro, pedi- 
cellis perianthio femineo apice barbato 3—5-plo longioribus, stylo 
apice clavato-penicillato ovarium vix superante. 
This is by far the largest species hitherto known, the tallest speci- 
mens found by Mr. Spruce having measured, when fresh, 4 feet 2 inches 
in length, although the generality of them are not much above a foot. 
The scale-like leaves are not so narrow as in S. albescens, the flowers - 
rather larger, more numerous, on slender pedicels, half an inch or more - 
inlength. The divisions of the perianth, both male and female, are 
six, narrow lanceolate, each with a tuft of transparent hairs at the 
ceeding from their base. The ripe carpels, not half the size of thi 
of S. albescens, are four times as numerous, and form dense globular 
heads, about 3 lines in diameter. This species was generally found 3 
growing on Termites' nests, in trees. We 
