BARTLETT. — DESCRIPTIONS OF MEXICAN PHANEROGAMS. 631 



centia terminalis 5-11-flora, floribus in rhachi quam ramo crassiore 

 subumbellatim dispositis. Pedicelli ca. 6 mm. longi. Sepala margin- 

 ibus atrotincta integra. Fructus subglobosus 1.5-1.8 cm. longus, 

 1.4-1.6 mm. latus, apice abrupte mucronatus, seminibus 8 aut abortu 

 paucioribus. Flores ignoti. — Type (in hb. Gray) collected at Iguala 

 Canon, State of Guerrero, alt. 750 m., 3 October, 1906, Pringle, no. 

 10,337. 



Melinia angustifolia (Torr.) Gray and M. Mexican a Brandegee. 

 In tbe Botany of the Mexican Boundary Survey Torrey published 

 Metastelma (?) angustifolia, based upon Wright's no. 1677 from Santa 

 Cruz, Sonora, commenting upon it as follows : " We refer this plant to 

 Metastelma with much doubt, but there is no other genus to which it 

 seems to be more allied." Gray transferred Torrey's species to Melinia, 

 but with some misgivings as to its true affinity, as is evidenced by the 

 following quotation from the Synoptical Flora : " Melinia, Decaisne. 

 . . . Two or three extra-tropical S. American species, which have 

 cordate leaves and slender peduncles ; to which is appended the fol- 

 lowing, doubtfully, for its habit is that of Metastelma." When, in 

 1889, Watson described the genus Pattalias, the type species of which 

 was Pattalias Palmeri Wats., he wrote : " A second species of this genus 

 is P. angustifolius, a Sonora plant doubtfully referred by Dr. Torrey 

 in the Mexican Boundary Report to Metastelma, and more recently by 

 Dr. Gray to the extra-tropical South American genus Melinia. It is 

 of similar habit [to P. Palmeri], but has petiolate leaves, a longer 

 calyx, the crown at the base of the column, the anther-tips much more 

 conspicuous, and the beak of the stigma narrow and columnar." 



Another plant of the same dubious affinity was published in Zoe for 

 August, 1905 (Vol. V, p. 216), as Melinia mexicana Brandegee. Al- 

 though habitally similar to Metastelma angustifolia Torr., it is clearly 

 distinguished from that species by its shorter rostrum, longer and more 

 fleshy corona-scales, and its recurved anther- membranes, which are 

 much less constricted at the base than are those of Metastelma angusti- 

 folia Torr. The two species are congeneric, and since they cannot be 

 placed with Metastelma nor with Melinia nor with Pattalias, a new 

 genus is here characterized for their reception. 



BASISTELMA, gen. nov. Calyx alte 5-lobus, lobis saepius angustis 

 acutis. Corolla campanulata, lobis intus infra mediam saepius retror- 

 sum pilosis, aestivatione leviter sed manifesto dextrorsum (externe 

 visis) obtegentibus. Coronae squamae 5 carnulosae triangulo-subulatae 

 vel lanceolatae, ad columnae basin corollae adnatis. Stamina prope 

 corollae basin affixa, filamentis in columnam brevem connatis. An- 

 therarum membranae rectae vel reflexae, haud inflexae. Pollinia in 



