II 



leaves of the calyx are fleshy, and possess air-cells, which 

 certainly must contribute to the buoyancy of the flower. 

 The seeds of the many-celled fruit are numerous, and im- 

 bedded in a spongy substance. We met the plants frequently 

 afterwards, and the higher we advanced, the more gigantic 

 they became : we measured a leaf which was six feet five 

 inches in diameter, its rim five inches and a half high, and 

 the flower across fifteen inches. The flower is much injured 

 by a beetle (Trichius sp. ?) which destroys completely the 

 inner part of the disk ; we have counted sometimes from 

 twenty to thirty in one flower.' 



" Some drawings were sent home by Mr. Schomburgk in 

 illustration of the previous account. He considered the 

 plant a species of the genus Nymphsea, and was desirous 

 that it should be distinguished by the name of the Queen, 

 a wish with which Her Majesty has been graciously pleased 

 to comply. But it proves, upon an examination of the draw- 

 ings and papers, which the Royal Geographical Society has 

 placed in my hands for publication, that the plant is not a 

 Nymphsea, as Mr. Schomburgk supposed, but a new and 

 well marked genus; for this reason, it has appeared to me 

 that the object of its discoverer will be best attained by 

 suppressing the name of Nymphsea Victoria, by which he 

 had proposed to distinguish the plant, and by embodying 

 Her Majesty's name in the usual way in that of the genus. 

 I have therefore proposed to name it Victoria Regia. 



" This noble plant, corresponds with the genus Euryale in 

 the spiny character of the leaves and stalks, and to a certain 

 extent in the great developement of the former organs ; but 

 it is in fact most nearly related to Nymphsea itself." 



At the time when this was written I knew nothing of the 

 plant beyond what could be learned from Mr. Schomburgk's 

 description and figures ; these however contained abundant 

 evidence upon which to establish the genus. I was therefore 

 a little surprised to find, soon after the account above quoted 

 Jiael been printed, that either this very plant, or one 

 nearly allied to it, had been called Euryale Amazonica by 

 Professor Poppig. In the second volume of the travels of 

 this distinguished naturalist, mention is made of a Nymphse- 

 aceous plant of extraordinary dimensions, rivalling the East 

 Indian Rafflesia in size, but far superior in richness of colour, 

 inhabiting the Igarape River, one of the branches of the 



