348 DECANDRiA MONOGYNiA. Senna, 



The seeds of this quickly growing, beautiful, stately, 

 useful species were sent to me from Bencoolen by Dr. 

 C. Campbell in the beginning of 1800, and in two years 

 the young trees reared from them, were not less than from 

 ten to twenty feet high, and stout in proportion. In 

 August, 1801, they blossomed for the first time and ripen- 

 ed their ssed in April, 1802. Now, 1809, they have grown 

 to a very great size for their age, w ith a trunk thirty-six 

 inches in circumference and four feet above ground. 



Trunk straight and covered with smooth, olive-colour- 

 ed bark. Branches few, spreading. Leaves numerous, 

 alternate, pinnate, from six inches to a foot long. Leaf- 

 lets from four to fourteen pair, opposite, short-petioletted, 

 oblong, entire, smooth, polished, of a deep, shining green, 

 the exterior pairs largest ; are entire, more or less emar- 

 ginate, with a small bristle at the apex ; from two to 

 three inches long and from half an inch to an inch broad. 

 Petioles smooth and channelled, no glands. Stipules 

 minute, subulate, caducous. Panicles terminal, very 

 large, erect, ovate, composed of many alternate, corym- 

 biform racemes. Flowers numerous, large, bright yellow. 

 Bractes lanceolate, concave, one-flowered. Calyx of 

 five, unequal, pale yellow, roundish, concave reflexed 

 leaflets, about one-third the length of the corol. Corol the 

 superior petal small, longer-clawed, and obcordate ; the 

 other four nearly equal, and almost round. Filaments se- 

 ven fertile ones, but as in the genus, diff^ering much in size; 

 the three uppermost barren, and small. Legumes linear, 

 thin, swelled a little at the seed, smooth, both margins 

 rounded, of a dark brown, from six to eight inches long. 

 Seeds many, thin, oval, of a dark shining brown colour. 



Dr. Campbell says that it is one of their most useful 

 trees in Sumatra, is of rapid growth, and the wood not 

 inferior to Ebony when old. I may add that in Bengal 

 its growth is also uncommonly rapid and the tree one of 

 the most beautiful the country can boast of. 



