'J40 



spreading horizontally near the surface, blackish on the outside, red- 

 dish, and spongy within, the upper part covered with numerous 

 ridged fibres, the lower part sending down many long, whitish, wrink- 

 led, stringy roots: the leaves I'roni the root two or three feet long, 

 upriglu, an inch or more in breadth, striated, having a j)rominent 

 longitudinal" midrib, equal to the scape, deep green, smooth: stem- 

 leaves shorter, forming a sheath at (he botlom: scapes from one to 

 three feet in height, upright, alternately inclined from joint to joint, 

 round or flatted a little, smooth and spongy: the peduncles axillar}^ 

 flat on one side, and smooth; each sustaining two or three flowers, 

 the two outer (when there are three) having one sheath, and middle 

 flower two. It is common in most parts of Europe; flowering at the 

 end of June, or the beginning of July. 



The fourteenth species has a thick, tufled, fibrous root: the leaves 

 grass-green, when broken emitting a strong odour, not much unlike 

 that of hot roast beef at the first scent. They are acute and nerved 

 rather shorter than the scape; which is single, cylindrical, but angu- 

 lar on one side, jointed, sheathed with alternate spathaceous leaves, 

 two feet high, bearing several flowers. It is a native of France, &c. 



The fifteenth has the root white within, black without, the thick- 

 ness of the thumb, having white fibres, and bristly at top, with the 

 remains of leaves: the scape compressed, upright, jointed, sheathed 

 with alternate leaves, many-flowered, the length of the leaves, or a 

 little higher, a foot in length: the leaves narrow, sharp, curved-in at 

 the tip, nerved and smoolh, as is the whole plant: the spathes mem- 

 branaceous, acute, brownish, shorter than the peduncles, very thin 

 at the edge and tip: the peduncles two or three inches long, round, 

 slender, upright, one-flowered : the flowers elegant, but without 

 scent: claws of the outer petals channelled, green on the outside, 

 yellow on the inside, streaked with dark purple: border flat, rounded- 

 ovate, blunt, quite entire, pale at the base, then blue with deep-blue 

 streaks: inner petals spatulale, blunt, upright, shorter, bluer and 

 streaked. It is a native of Virginia, flowering here in June and 

 July. 



The sixteenth species has the scape jointed, bifid at the top, or 



