289 



€>riginal ^ttitW. 



A FOURTH NEW HOj^GKONG CALAMUS. 

 By H. F. Hance, Ph.D., etc. 



The hope I expressed, when describing last year* three species of 

 Rattan from our Chinese colony — that I might be successful m procuring 

 specimens of the fourth species known to exist in the island — has 

 happily been realised, through the kind exertions of my friend Dr. 

 George Dods, to whom I was already indebted for two out of the 

 three I have characterised. Like the rest, the male flowers of this 

 last trouvaille are unfortunately unknown ; but the specimens Dr. 

 Dods has been so good as to communicate are sufficiently perfect to 

 enable a very satisfactory character to be drawn up, and to leave, I 

 believe I may say, no doubt of the precise affinity of the plant, of 

 which I submit the following diagnosis. 



Calamus {Eucalamus, Loriferi) tetradactylus, sp. no v. — Caudice 

 scandente 12-pedali et ultra, frondibus 6-15 poilices longis ecirrhiferis 

 subsessilibus, vaginis sub frondis insertione obtuse carinatis paulo 

 tumentibus ore poUicari tubuloso scarioso auctis inferioribus aculeis 

 paucis rectis armatis superioribus saepius inermibus, rachi triquetra 

 viridi subtus spinis validis sparsis recurvis armata, segmentis in 

 fascicules 3-4 oppositos v. sub-oppositos intervallo 1^-4 pollicum 

 sejunctos quovis fascicule e phyliis 2 v. rarissime 3 conflato digestis 

 lanceolato-oblongis acutis utrinque sed prsesertim supra lucidis nervis 

 3 subtus prominulis nervulisque 5 vix conspicuis praeditis praeter 

 marginem setaceo-aculeolatum inermibus binis terrainalibus saepius ad 

 medium fere coalitis 5-7 poll, longis pollicem latis, spadicis feminei 

 (abortivis loriformibus) in lorum elongatum gracile aculeis recurvis 

 nunc semiverticillatis dorso armatura producti fronde proxiraa dimidio 

 longioris decompositi spathis primariis tubulosis ore vix iuflatis acutis 

 inermibus, ramis primariis 3-4 spatham multum superantibus inter- 

 vallo iis sequilongo inter se distantibus glaberrimis flexuosis cernuis 

 6-pollicaribus ramulos 10-12 divaricates tenues sub-bipoUicares 10-20- 

 floros proferentibus, spathellis rig'dis tubulosis laxis acutis, bracteis 

 scariosis truncatis, fructus breviter stipitati globosi stigmatum basi 

 coronati 4-5 lin. diametro orthostichis 21-23 singulo e squamis 12-14 

 (summis depauperatis computatis) medio sulcatis stramineis brunneo- 

 apiculatis coraposito, seminibus ovoideis albumine extus grosse 

 tuberculato. 



* Journ. Bot., xii., 263. 

 N.s. VOL. 4. [October, 1875.] 



