12 COUNT FICALHO AND W. P. HIERN 
in the sense used by Professor Oliver in his ‘ Flora of Tropical Africa.’ It is, however, 
not very far from the northern boundary of the ninth botanical region of Grisebach, 
which he calls the Kalahari region. No collections from this locality have been pre- 
viously made and forwarded to Europe to enrich our herbaria. 
The present little collection consists of 72 numbers, with scarcely any duplicates, com- 
prising 65 species, 60 of which are taken up in the following enumeration, and are 
referred to 39 genera; 5 of the numbers are too imperfect for determination, and cannot 
with certainty be even assigned to their natural orders, except one, which is a grass in 
very young flower-bud. 
The collection is too small to enable us fairly to judge of the proportional numbers of 
species in this flora belonging to the various primary divisions of the vegetable kingdom, 
or even to the principal natural orders. 
Out of the 60 species in 39 genera detailed in the enumeration, 59 species belong to 
Phanerogamia and 1 only to Cryptogamia; 24 species in 21 genera belong to Dico- 
tyledones, and 85 species in 17 genera to Monocotyledones; in Dicotyledones 3 species 
іп as many genera belong to Thalamiflore, 9 species іп 6 genera to Calyciflorze, 11 species 
in as many genera to Gamopetale, and 1 species to Monochlamydez: all the species in 
the class Monocotyledones belong to the series Glumiferee. 
The Graminee of the enumeration contain 25 species іп 12 genera; the Cyperaceze 
10 species іп 5 genera, the Leguminosz (the sole representatives of the series Calyciflorze 
in the enumeration) contain 9 species іп 6 genera ; the Composite, 4 species in as many 
genera; the'Convolvulaces: and Acanthaceze contain 2 species each in as many genera; 
and of the remaining natural orders ,namely Polygalex, СатуорһуПеге, Tiliaceze, Rubiacez, 
Аросупасеге, Verbenaces, Шесеһгасеге, and Filices, each contains one species. 
The numerical preponderance of Monocotyledons over Dicotyledons is fully accounted 
for by the large proportion of grasses and sedges; and this depended, in all probability, 
on the comparative ease with which the generality of such plants can be gathered, dried, 
and eonveyed, requiring but little paper for their preservation, taking up a small space, 
and adding no considerable weight to a traveller's burden. In like manner is to be 
explained the absence of fleshy or large-foliage plants and of woody or bulky specimens. 
Thus there is no specimen in the collection of the “ Ойсо,” a grand tree, which 
Major Serpa Pinto, on page 361 of the first volume of his book of travels, with reference 
to the 14th day of August 1878, states is so abundant along the right bank of the river 
Ninda, and so plentiful in its blossom that for hours and hours the wayfarer is living in 
an atmosphere of almost overpowering perfume. 
'This same tree had been found previously, on the 25th day of July 1878, on the right 
bank of the river Cuchibi, about latitude 14° 3’ south, and longitude 20° 8’ east of Green- 
wich. An illustration of the plant is given on page 305 of the same volume, figure 
66. With regard to it we read, on pages 304-306, as follows :—‘‘ While traversing 
the forest I became conscious of a most delicious and delicate odour, which I found 
to emanate from the flower of a tree that grew abundantly about me. There is not, 
perhaps, any known flower that has a more fragrant perfume than the blossom of the 
“Ойсо” (for by that name do the natives designate the plant). The configuration of the 
