| 
1478 LEAFLETS OF PHILIPPINE BOTANY [Vor. IV, Art. 75 | 
Inhabiting a forested ridge of compact soil at 1250 feet | 
altitude. The local Visayan name is “Magalas.” Dedicated 
to Dr. A. Brand. 
Íts differential points from S. adenophylla merrittii Brand are: 
leaves larger, proportionally narrower and with longer petioles, 
spikes always glabrous and yellowish green, branchlets much 
slenderer, fruits by 2 mm. smaller in both dimensions, a slender 7 
tree at lower elevations, not a rigid shrub of high altitudes. 
“a 
GNETACEAE. 
Gnetum laxifrutescens Elm. n. sp. 
A scandent and looping shrubby vine; stem terete, rather 
crooked and more or less nodulose, 3.5 cm. thick, numerously 
branched at the top; wood soft and flexible, porous, greenish 
white, without odor, bitter, with 3 to 5 large and coarse concen- i 
tric riags; bark gray and brown mottled, more or less roughened I 
with blunt obscure lenticels; branches numerous, divaricate, Áo 
crooked, well interlaced, very flexible, conspicuously nodulose i 
and jointed, smooth and brown, lenticelled except the green 
young portion. Leaves descending, shining deep green and | 
folded above, duller and lighter green beneath, short ovate or 
ovately rotund, broadly and truncately rounded at the base, 
apex with a short acute point, entire margins wand-like or rugu- 
lose, black on both sides when dry, glabrous, rigidly coriaceous, 
15 em. long without the petioles, 12.5 cm. wide at the middle 
or a trifle below it, occasionally much smaller, opposite and 
well scattering; midvein stout toward the base, depressed on 
the upper side; lateral nerves 5 to 7 pairs, divaricate, branched 
toward their distal ends, reticulately united, even more promi- 
nent from the upper leaf surface, reticulations quite evident 
on both sides; petiole 2 em. long, smooth or lenticelled when old, E S 
caniculate along the upper face, rather stout. Infrutescence ^ 
pendulous from the larger branches, 1.5 to 5 dm. long, only spar- 
ingly branehed, the nodulosely ringed and very flexible stalks 
dark green, the rings of the fruit bearing portion provided with 
. a brush of short sordid brown hairs; pedicels reddish chocolate 
=- brown, glabrous, divaricate, 1.25 em. long, wrinkled when dry; 
