OCEANIC DISPERSAL OF PLANTS. 287 



fruit of the former is described as having a hard, blood-red sarcocarp, with the mesocarp 

 traversed by stout vessels from the thin crustaceous endocarp, and this description applies 

 fairly well to the skeleton fruit from the New Guinea drift, save that the endocarp of this 

 is more woody. AVhen fresh this must have been nearly or quite two inches and a half in 

 diameter. Beccari mentions, loc. cit., that he never found the fruit attached to the plant, 

 but always picked it up from the ground. 



The largest fruit of the order described is that of Macrococculus pomiferus, Beccari 

 (Malesia, i. p. 161). This is also drupaceous and globose or pyriform, and about four 

 inches long by three inches thick. It is from the same country. 



BIXINE^E. 

 Pangium edule, Beinw. 



Pangium edule, Reinw. ; Miq., Fl. Lid. Bat., i. 2, p. 109 ; Horsf., PI. Jav. Rar., p. 205, t. 43 ; Blunie, 

 Rumpbia, iv. p. 20, t. 178; Blanco, Fl. Philipp., ed. 3, t. 391. 



New Guinea drift. 



Miquel states that this is generally spread in the Malayan Archipelago, from Sumatra 

 to the Celebes, Amboina, and Ceram, though rare in Amboina ; and it is also common in 

 the Philippines ; but hitherto it has not been found either in Continental Asia or in 

 Australia. It is commonly cultivated by the Malays for the sake of its large, oleaginous 

 seeds, which are an important article of food. The fruit varies considerably in size and 

 shape, according to Blurne, who represents one nine inches long and six inches across the 

 middle. It has a thick fleshy indehiscent pericarp, which must decay before the seeds 

 become free. The broad, irregularly wedge-shaped seeds measure two inches or more in 

 their greatest diameter ; and they are provided with a crustaceous testa apparently 

 impervious to water. Only one seed is in the collection, and that is sound, though it has 

 probably lost its germinative power. In its present state it floats with about half its body 

 submerged. Good flowering specimens of this tree are wanted for the Kew Herbarium. 



DIPTEROCARPE.E. 

 Vateria papuana, Dyer. (Plate LXIV., B.) 



Vateria papuana, Dyer, ante, p. 123. 



Vatica papuana, Dyer in Journ. Bot., 1878, p. 100. 



Vateria sp., Beccari in D'Albertis, New Guinea, ii. p. 394. 



Fruits from the New Guinea drift, and sea-beach Arrou Islands ; flowering specimens 

 and fruits from Bauioi, Southern New Guinea. 



In the first place, only flowering specimens of this very distinct Dipterocarp were 

 communicated to Mr Dyer, and as the floral structure agreed with Vatica, it was referred 



