54 Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 



10 to 12 mm. long, the linear hilum % as long and surrounded by a very 

 low black caruncle. , 



Fort McKinley, Rizal Province, Luzon, P. I. Merrill No. 6348, Sep- 

 tember, 1908; also "cultivated at Manila" ; Montalban, Rizal Province, 

 Luzon, P. I. C. B. Robinson, No. 9648, January 23, 1910; Merrill, 

 March 10, 1906; Laguna Province, P. I., C. B. Robinson, March 5-11, 

 1910. 



All of the above material is in the Philippine Bureau of Science. In 

 the Herbarium of the Botanical Garden at Berlin is additional material 

 as follows: 



Philippines: Montalban, Warburg No. 12,585; Mt. Merivales, War- 

 burg No. 12,897. 



Celebes: Minahassa, Koorders No. 17,639B in 1897. 



This species is closely allied to Stizolobium sericophyllum (Perkins) 

 which has similar pods and seeds, but with thickish densely soft pubes- 

 cent leaves, the pubescence not appressed. The constrictions between 

 the seeds form nearly complete partitions within the pod. 



Through the Office of Seed and Plant Introduction this species has been 

 introduced as follows, the seeds collected by the writer: S. P. I. 31,602 

 from La Carlota, Negros; No. 31,603 from Bosoc, Negros; and No. 

 31,604 from Alabang, Luzon, all in the Philippine Islands. Seeds of 

 what is apparently the same species were received from Medan, Sumatra 

 (S. P. I. No. 26,663) but these failed to germinate. 



The plant is not strictly annual, but dies after fruiting. Growing plants 

 in Florida lived three years without blooming. 



STIZOLOBIUM PRURITUM ( Wight) n. comb. 



Mucuna prurita Wight in Hooker, Botanical Miscellany, 2: 348. 1831. 

 The original description is as follows: 



" Mucuna prurita ; floribus thyrsoideis, leguminibus oblongo-curvatis 

 compressis ecarinatis urentibus, foliolis subtus hirsutis, intermedio 

 rhomboideo obtuso, lateralibus extus dilatis. (Suppl. Tab. XIII. ) 



" Carpopogon pruriens. Roxb. Hort. Beng. p. 54. 



"Dolichos pruriens. Roxb. Drawing in Mus. of E. Ind. C. n. 284. 

 (an Linn et alior). 



" Stizolobium pruriens. Spre.ng. Syst. Veget. v. 3, p. 252? 



" Nai Corana. Rheed. Malab. v. 8, p. 61. (. 35. 



" Cacara pruritus. Rumph. Amb. v. 6. p. 393. t. 142. 



' ' Poonepoosikie. Tamul. 



"Stems suffruticose, twining, branched; branches rounded, hairy. 

 Petioles much enlarged at the base, 6-8 inches long, cylindrical, hairy. 

 Leaves ternate, middle leaflet rhomboid, or rhomboideo-elliptical, obtuse, 

 mucronate; lateral ones much dilated on the outside, and also mucronate; 

 on short, thick, rusty, tomentose stalks; above nearly glabrous, below 

 silvery, from short appressed white hairs; the veins very prominent 

 beneath. Stipules filiform-subulate, those of the leaflets much smaller 

 than the others. Racemes peduncled, axillary, pendulous, much shorter 

 than the petioles, thyrsoid. Flowers large, purple. Pedicels in threes, 

 short, arising from a small thick tubercle. Calyx pubescent, 2-lipped ; 

 upper lip entire, obtuse; under one 3-cleft, the lobes acute. Corolla: 



