wight's botanical letters. 169 



those deteiniined, are Mdica refracta, Roxb., Panicnm 

 montanum9 Andropogon monandrus, Roxb., and A. ^l if or mis, 

 Roxb. I have also several other grasses of great interest, 

 but which I do not yet know very well myself, and therefore 

 am not quite prepared to tell you about them : I am 

 however busy at work upon them, even although I labour 

 under the disadvantage of not having my books of reference 

 or specimens to help me out in a difficult case. Among the 

 Courtallum plants, are specimens of Trichopodiutn, a new 

 species of Sphcerocarya in fruit only, and two species of 

 OrchidecE, that I have not before seen, and do not know. 

 With respect to the Malabar plants, I have a noble col- 

 lection ; there are many at least new to me. Among these 

 are a curious Celastrineous* plant, with nearly a dozen 

 superposed ovules to each cell, a new Annonaceous genus 

 allied to Miliusa, but certainly distinct, specimens and draw- 

 ings of Zanonia, and a Loranthus, with the racemes of flowers 

 enclosed in a deep stoup-shaped involucre. {L. lageniftorus, VV. 

 and A., see Hook. Ic. Plant, vol 3. t. 229, 230.) My present 

 plan is, first to go through the grasses, and then introduce 

 all my recent collections, numbering each species as I pro- 

 ceed, according to the Prodromus or catalogue. This I fear 

 will take some time, as my collections are now very large, 

 and are rapidly increasing. I really think they will not fall 

 short of two thousand species ; and, owing to the vast num- 

 ber of specimens, the whole forms so very bulky a con- 

 cern, that I am anxious to get quit of them, in case I be 

 ordered on a march, as one of our country carts could not 

 contain them, a consideration of some importance, as I al- 

 ready require more than six carts to carry my books and hit, 

 when reduced to the smallest possible dimensions; and as 

 travelling is at all times expensive in this country, to carry 

 about such a quantity of things would be downright ruin. 

 Could I calculate on remaining here for a year or two, I 

 might get on well enough ; but that I can scarcely expect, as 



* Afterwards noticed in the commumcation dated *' Palamcottah, 25th 

 July, 1836."_Ed. 



Journ. ofBot. Vol. III. No. 20, Jan. 1841. z 



