p. S, While this sheet was passing through the Press 1 

 discovered that the name Tulasnea was preoccupied. 1 have 

 therefore taken the liberty of substituting that of N. A. 

 Dalzell, Esq., M. A., of the Bombay Medical Establishment, 

 a recent but most promising addition to the Indian Botani- 

 cal corps, whose papers in Hooker's Botanical Journal give 

 assurance of his attaining the highest excellence in this, the 

 branch of Science to which he is devoting his attention. I 

 beg the favor of the reader changing the name on the plate. 



1919-1- Dai.zeu.ia ZETiANicA (R. W., Tristicha 

 Zeylanica^ Gard., Lawia Zeylanica^ Tul.) rhizoma 

 broadly expanding, thick, hardish : some of the leaves 

 rosulate linear, short ; some scattered, shortly ovate, 

 acute, papilteform : flowers numerous, scattered, ris- 

 ing from a broad longish sheath, externally beset on 

 all sides with prominent papillae : pedicel longish. Tul. 



Rivers in Ceylon. On smooth gneiss rocks in the 

 Mahawalle Guuga, near Peradenia. 



Fronds sub-orbicular, horizontal, irregularly-lobed : 

 leaves fascicled, small, linear, obtuse ; flowers spring- 

 ing from the upper surface of the fronds : spathe 

 conical, fleshy, echinate, open above : capsule 9-rib- 

 bed. Gard. 



Dalzeixia 



w 



rhizoma 



spreading, lichen-like, lobed and free on the margin : 

 buds for the most part on the free margins: leaves 

 numerous, fascicled round the base of the pedicel, 

 long, linear, pointed: no sheath: pedicel two or 

 three times the length of the leaves. 



Rivers, Salset near Bombay, Law. 



This is a very distinct species and most easily 

 recognized by its tufts of well-formed leaves, and no 

 sheaths. The leaves under the microscope exhibit 

 very conspicuously the hexagonal cellular texture so 

 generally observable in monocotyledonous plants. 

 For the accuracy of the representation of the section 

 of the seed at figure 8 of the plate, I will not venture 

 to vouch. If correct, it is an anomaly in the order, 



1919-3. Dameixia Lawh (R. W.), rhizoma spread- 

 ing, margins free, gemmiferous : leaves, surrounding 

 the sheath, few, short, broader than those within, 

 somewhat lanceolate ; those of the sheath very nu- 

 merous, short, needle-shaped, recurved : pedicels 

 shortish : capsule ovoid, scarcely angled. 



Salset near Bombay, Law. 



This is very distinct from the preceding in the 

 character of its leaves and sheaths, and is about 

 equally distinct from the following in the length of 

 the pedicel. This is a point not well brought out 

 by the artist, whose eye for proportion is not very 

 correct for things in their natural state, and for ob- 

 jects as seen under the microscope is utterly wanting. 

 He seems to look more to the space available on his 

 paper than to the relative sizes of parts of the object 

 to be delineated. I have now before me side by side 

 on the field of the microscope specimens of all the 

 three Bombay species- The peduncles of 2 and 4 

 are about the same length, but that of 2 is nearly 

 twice as thick : while the length of No. 3 is less by 

 two-thirds than that of the others. I feel it necessary 

 to mention this peculiarity of the artisf s vision to pre- 

 vent the magnified figures, which should be especially 

 correct, misleading those who consult them. The 

 forms of parts are correctly enough shown^ but the 

 relative sizes are often incorrect. 



1919--4* Dai^zellia pedunculosa (R. W.), rhizoma 

 spreading, margins iree, lobed, gemmiferous : leaves, 

 all aggregated and united to form the sheath, short 

 bristle -like : peduncle 6-8 times the length of the 

 sheath, very slender ; capsule ovoid, round, or scarce- 

 ly angled. 



Salset, Bombay, Law. 



Though so like in character to the last, I believe 

 this is a perfectly distinct species. 



1920. DalzeiaUA ramosissima (R. W.), rhizoma 

 very long, slender, much branched, with numerous 

 lateral floriferous branchlets, with one or several 

 flowers, aggregated towards the apex: each flower 

 bud usually accompanied with two slender, filiform, 

 leafy ramifii : leaves subulate, imbricating, exterior 

 ones short obtuse ; middle ones longer, acute ; interior 

 6 or 8 longest, ligulate, connate at the base, forming 

 the short sheath : filaments at first very short, after- 

 wards elongating. Anthers oblong, somewhat sagit- 

 tate at the base, cells distinct : styles filiform, about 

 the length of the ovary, hispid. 



Rivers in Malabar near Cochin, Rev. E. Johnson. 



This is a remarkable species on account of the great 

 size to which it grows, some of my specimens being 

 at least 18 inches long. 



Two points noticed above have either been over- 

 looted by the draftsman, or they are not constant, 

 and only met with in older plants than the specimen 

 selected for representation : I allude to the short 

 lateral floriferous branchlets each bearing from 2 or 3 



to 6-8 sessile flowers, congested on their extremities. 

 The other point overlooked, most probably from the 

 specimens used being too young, is the filiform ramuli 

 springing firom near the base of the peduncles : these, 

 so far as I have yet observed, do not, in any case, 

 exceed the length of the peduncle, are not thicker 

 than a thread, and clothed their whole length with 

 very slender, longish, imbricating leaves- It is cer- 

 tainly a very distinct species, but whether or not 

 these two points are merely occasionally present, or 

 are constant and have been overlooked by the artist, 

 is more than I can tell. 



Tristicha (Pet., Th.)- 



Gen. Char. Perianth 3-parted, lobes imbricated 

 in aestivation. Stamens 1 ; the rest of the character 

 as in JJalzellia, 



1920-2. Tristicha BETOiDEs (Gard., T.hypnoidesf 

 Tul.), stem erect, ramous ; leaves imbricating, elliptic 

 or elliptico-ovate, obtuse : pedicels axillary ; spath 

 deeply 2-3-lobed ; lobes orbicular : cai^ule 9-ribbed- 

 — Gard. 



This being an American plant is introduced simply 

 to show by contrast the difierence between the two 

 genera. It seems not improbable that species of the 

 American genus may yet be found in India* These 

 two genera mutually represent each other in their 

 respective floras, Dalzellia being to the Indian what 

 Tristicha is to the American branch of the order, 

 Andj curiously enough, the numbers are nearly the 

 same in each country, Tulasne has enumerated 5 



Tristicha 



be added. 



of Dalzellia^ to 



ella and D. /on- 

 he Indian srenus 



to seven species 



ajhekican 



( 35 ) 



