Aloe. 287 



190-1, agree very closely with the published description and figure 

 of this species, only the prickles vary with the size of the leaves 

 and even in my largest do not reach quite I of an inch ; further 

 the visible part of the perianth is scarlet (not yellow). I may 

 point out that dried specimens of this plant are frequently indis- 

 tinguishal)le from dried specimens of A. sajtonand var. latifolia, 

 l)ut in tlie live state tliej" are very sharply separated. 



25 (3U). A. uhscu/'u. Mill. — Through the kindness ol' \)\: 

 liolus 1 have been able to compare his No. 598 with tbe plant 

 growing in the Grahamstown Botanic Garden referred to on p. 39, 

 and find them identical. To this species belong Zeyher No. 1177 

 and Burke (?) No. 15 the former from "stony carroid places, in 

 Coega Kamma's Kloof,— 1st altitude. May," the latter from " under 

 rocky krantzes between Coega and Sunday's River, 2nd altitude, 

 Sep. 29." 



Judging from live specimens received from La Mortola there 

 is quite a different plant grown in European gai'densas.4. uhscura. 

 I have had it in flower, but as the inflorescences were damaged by 

 insects, though a few flowers were intact, and as further I do not 

 know whether it is a plant from South Africa 1 abstain fi'om 

 describing it. It remains to be seen whether this plant is really 

 the original A. obscura. Mill., and whether A. picta is thus not a 

 synonym of this species. Baker's description of the flower in the 

 Flora Capensis fits the plant from La Mortola. — A. obscura (if 

 itlentical with A. picta) has previously suffered through an unfor- 

 tunate mistake, as pointed out by Salm-Dyck ('• Verzeichuiss der 

 verschiedenen Arten und Abarten des Geschlechts Aloe, &c," 

 Diisseldoi-f 1817, p. 60).He shows that De Candolle in his " Plantes 

 Grasses" has put the description of the leaves and scape of 

 A. umbeUata under A. picta and vice versa. 



2G (311). A. grandidentata, Salm-Dyck. — I have received live 

 specimens of this species from Douglas (Miss Orpen) and Warreii- 

 ton (Miss C. Adams). It is widely distributed in the south-western 

 part of the Kalahari region. Near Pi-etoria grows a plant which I 

 was inclined to refer to this species as a variety, its inflorescence 

 is denser than in A. grandidentata, its flowers more slender and 

 their colour brighter. Some specimens approach the following 



