MR. J. MIERS ON THE GENUS ATAMISQUEA. 3 



they at length open, the leaf always remains somewhat canaliculate : helow it is whitishly 

 furfuraceous, being covered with a tomentous down, that is almost wholly concealed by a 

 number of closely imbricate peltate scales with radiate ribs, which under a lens appear 

 like fish-scales : the petiole is short, white, and also lepidote. The flowers often axillary, 

 sometimes terminal, are altogether covered with imbricate scales ; the peduncles, one-fourth 

 to three-eighths of an inch in length, are usually solitary, but sometimes in pairs. The 

 sepals are rounded, very deeply concave, the margins being very slightly imbricate before 

 expansion ; they are at first reflexed, and soon break off transversely along the margin of 

 the torus ; they are covered within by tomentous whitish hairs, and are lepidote outside. 

 The torus is a fleshy deep oval cup, which after the fall of the flower becomes hardened, 

 and exhibits a somewhat bifid, erect tooth on its posterior or upper margin, and two other 

 smaller opposite teeth on its sides. The six petals arise in a single whorl from the inner 

 margin of the calycine cup, and are linear, and somewhat spathulate, being hairy within, 

 and covered on the outside with lepidote scales : four of these are of equal length, and 

 situated in pairs, opposite the sepals, while the two intermediate shorter petals are lateral, 

 and alternate with the two sepals ; in aestivation, the margins of the summits are some- 

 what imbricately disposed, those of the shorter pair being exterior to the others ; after ex- 

 pansion they are all thrown back, the upper pair remaining more erect. There are six 

 fertile and three sterile stamens, all seated upon a small gibbous ring, just above the gla- 

 brous thickened base of the thecaphore ; the sterile filaments are shorter than the others, 

 one of them being opposite to the upper petals, and the other two opposite to the lateral 

 petals, two fertile stamens interposing between them ; the fertile filaments are as long as 

 the petals, and though somewhat plicated before expansion, are afterwards erect, and de- 

 flected outwards near the summit ; they are quite glabrous, with a roundish fleshy gland 

 at the base, which is covered with whitish pubescence, and a few lepidote scales ; these 

 glands being seated upon the gibbous ring before mentioned, make it almost appear as if 

 the stamens were monadelphous, but they are in reality free to the base. The anthers, 

 which are oblong and basifixed on the apex of the filaments, are coriaceous, 2-celled, burst 

 inwardly by longitudinal furrows somewhat in front, and afterwards curl downwards in an 

 annular form. The thecaphore arises somewhat laterally from the bottom of the hollow 

 cup-shaped gibbous torus, and is inclined upon its shorter side ; the lower part, which is 

 glabrous, rises to the height of the cup, forming the staminiferous support above men- 

 tioned, one side of this support adhering to the lower and shorter portion of the cup, the 

 opposite side being free and channeled almost to its axis ; above this level the thecaphore 

 becomes more slender, is again inclined further downwards, and rising to the height of 

 the stamens bears upon its summit the ovarium, which, with the slender portion of the 

 thecaphore, is densely lepidote. The ovarium is of an oval form, somewhat nodding ; the 

 style is very short, and the stigma is almost obsoletely 2-lipped. The fruit is a somewhat 

 fleshy berry, covered with lepidote scales, about 3 lines long and 2 lines in diameter ; it is 

 unilocular, bearing generally two seeds, which almost fill the cavity ; the epicarp is thin 

 and somewhat coriaceous, and separable by pressure into four equal segments, leaving the 

 seeds, and the small quantity of enveloping pulp, contained within four slender cartilagi- 

 nous ribs, which arise from the base of the cell and unite in the apex ; these ribs corre- 



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