118 THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



Stamford Raffles. The new flower was called Rafflesia 

 Schadcnhergii, in honor of its dicoverer, Dr. Schadenberg. 



The immense flower is composed of five round petals of 

 reddish green color, each measuring a foot across. These are 

 covered with numerouse irregular yellowish- white swellings. 

 The reflexed petals surround a cup nearly a foot wide, the 

 margin of which bears the stamens. The cup of the Rafflc- 

 'sia is filled with a fleshy disk, the upper surface of which is 

 covered with projections like miniature cow horns. When 

 free from its contents the cup will hold about twelve pints of 

 fluid. The flower is very thick, the petals being three- 

 quarters of an inch in thickness. Its striking beauty is spoiled 

 by its intolerable odor which pollutes the air for many feet 

 around it. It is also a parasite, growing on the trailing vines 

 which are found in great abundance in tropical forests. 



OUR NATIVE CYCAS 



By Mrs. W. D. Diddell. 



"IVyrOST [)e(iple are probal^ly familiar with the so-called sago 

 palm {Cycas rcTohita) but less well known is our 

 native Cycas, the Zaiiiia integrifolia, or coontie, of the Semi- 

 nole Indians. The Cycadaceae is a most interesting family, 

 the plants having stems and leaves like a palm but coiled in 

 the bud like a fern. It has the flowers and fruits of the pine 

 family and might be said to be the connecting link between 

 the pines and the palms. 



The Zaiiiia or coontie is found in South Florida and is 

 the only Cycas native to our Southeasetern States and s© far 

 as I know of the whole United States. It grows in low moist 

 lands and is found extensively in the everglades where the 



