43 



There is no doubt that TreiiiatoJobdia is of Asiatic origin, in fact the genns 

 is closely related to Lobelia rosea Wall., in the subtropical Himalayas. Lohdia 

 rosea has a stem from four to twelve feet in height; its branches are horizontal 

 as in Trcmatolobrlia. The flowers are rose to white in color and crowded. The 

 capsule is suliglobose as is the case in TrrniatoIobcUa. Unfortunately nothing is 

 said in regard to the dehiscence of the capsules of this species; it would cer- 

 tainly be reniarkalile if the structure of the capsule of Lobelia ros(a proved to 

 be the same as that of Tiu muiohibdia. Unfortunately the writer has not been 

 able to examine a specimen of that species. 



The stem of the Hawaiian TreiiHitolohdia is sometimes eight feet in height, 

 and dies after flowering. Sterile specimens possess a dense crown of narrow 

 lanceolate, undulate leaves, which gradually drop when the plant begins to 

 flower. The species proper is also not luicommon on Hawaii especially in boggy 

 forests near the Volcano of Kilauea and in the forests of Kau, Hawaii, as well 

 as on the northern .slopes of ]\lt. Haleakala. ]\laui. along the Waikamoi trail, at 

 an elevation of four thousand feet. As has been remarked above, its ancestor 

 has reached these islands from the Asiatic Continent, as its closest living relative 

 is found in Lobelia rosea of the subtropical Himalayas. The seeds of Tremato- 

 lobdia, are much smaller than in Lobelia, ovate in outline and smooth and not 

 margined; in the Himalayan Lobelia rosea the seeds are ellipsoidal, compressed 

 and also not margined. The seed is obviously fitted out for wind-dispersal, 

 though birds may not l)e e.xcluded as possilile agents. 



THE GENUS BRIGHAMLi. 



Certainly one of the most curious Hawaiian Lobelioideae, though not one of 

 the handsome ones is Briyliainia i)isigiiis. It was named in honor of Dr. Wm. 

 T. Crigham, the director of the Bishop Museum, by Dr. Asa Gray. Botanists 

 thought at fii'st to unite it with the genus Isotonia with which it is closely re- 

 lated. Unlike the other genera of Hawaiian Lobelioieleac. Brighamia insie/nis 

 the Alula or I'uaaUi of the natives, does not inhabit the high mountains or mossy 

 rainforests, but the steep cliffs on the windward side of Niihau. Kauai, Molokai, 

 and Lanai. Tlie writer has observed it on the cliffs of Kalaupapa and on 

 almost bare rockwalls between Kalawao and Waikolu. within the spray of the 

 sea, only a few feet above the mighty breakers of the Pacific. In Halawa Valley 

 on the same island Brighamia grows in the di'v rocky gorges at the broad en- 

 trance to the valley. It certainly is a most grotesque i)lant and has aptly been 

 compared by Hillelirand with a cabliage put on a fence i)ost. The stem is thick 

 clubshaped and fleshy throughout, bearing a crown of broad fleshy leaves at 

 the apex. The flowers appear in the axils of the leaves and instead of drooping 

 as in other genera, stand erect; they are white and have a strong fragrance 

 reminiscent of a violet. It is the only species in the genus but is represented on 

 Kauai by a form described by Charles N. Forbes as forma cifriiia on account 

 of its orange yellow flowers. Like the other Hawaiian Lobelioideae it is not 

 known from any other part of the world but its ancestor was undoubtedly Aus- 

 tralian. As has already been remarked it is related to the genus Isotoma which 

 consists of about eight species of which six arc peculiar to Australia, one to 

 the West Indies, and one to the Society Islands. Isotoma longiflora is one of 



