Lepidaoateis. ] ACANTHACEM. 205 



4. L. purpuricaulis. Nee* in Wall. PL As. Rar. Hi, 96 ; F. B. I. iv t 

 519, rrain Beng. PL 815. 



A suberect or diffuse perennial herb. Stein* 8-24 in. long, glabrous off 

 hairy, 4-angled, often tinged with purple. Leave* 1-5 in. long, lanceo- 

 late, glabrous or sparingly hairy, often in unequal pair?, tho larger 

 attenuate at each end, tho smaller subovate. Spikes |-1| in. long, dense, 

 axillary, sessile, so itary or clustered, oblong; bracts | in. long, lanceo- 

 late, oroyato lanceolate niucronato, striate, glandular hairy; bracteoles 

 4 in. long, linear-falcate. Calyx glandular-pubescent, with one broad 

 lanceolate segmont J-J in. long, the 2 outer lateral ones linear-lanceo- 

 late, i in. long, tho 2 inner ones linear. Corolla £•£ in. long, white with 

 brownish spots on tho palate. Capsule £ in. long, 4-seeded. 



Dohra Dun (Gamble), Hardwar (Wallich). Distrib. Sub-tropical W. 

 Himalaya, up to 4,000 ft. in Kumaon, Chota Nagpur, extending to the.- 

 Prome Hills in Burma. 



5. L. hyalina, NflM in Wall. PI. As. Rar. Hi, 95 ; F. B. I. iv, 521, Pram 

 Beng. PI. S15. Euellia dependens, Roxb. Fl. Ind. Hi, 49. 



A suberect perennial herb, 1-2 ft. high, or the stems often somewhat pros- 

 trate. Leaves about 3 in. long, minutely glandular-hairy, scabrous on 

 the nerves beneath ; lower ovate ; upper narrower, pendent, petioles 

 £ in. long. Spikes oblong, dense, axillary and terminal, often clustered, 

 softly hairy ; bracts nearly £ in. long, lanceolate, acuminate, mucronate ; 

 bracteoles £ in. lung, narrower. Calyx $ in. long, linear-lanceolate, 

 mucronate, outer segments longest. Corolla % in. long, white with 

 brown spots on the palate. Capsule } in. long, 4-seeded. 



Abundant within the area and especially in the Sub-Himalayan tracts. 

 Distrib. outer Himalayan ranges from the Punjab eastwards, up to 

 4,000 in Kumaon ; also in Bengal, N. Assam and Burma, extending to 

 China. 



V a r. mollis, F. B. I. iv, 521; Prain Beng. Pi. 816.— Leaves all ovate, 

 hairy on both surfaces.— Sub-Himalayan tracts, common. — Distrib. N. 

 Bengal. 



•3' 



Var. ustulata, F. B. I. iv, 521. < L. ustulata, Kees.—A small sub-erect 

 plant up to 6 in. high. Leaves thick, £-1 in. long, ovoid or broadly ovate, 

 acute or subobtuse, almost glabrous above, more or less pubescent on 

 the prominent nerves beneath. Spikes J-l. in. long, bracts rather larger 

 than in the type. Common in the Sub-Himalayan tracts from Bijnor 

 to Gorakhpur (Dnthie) ; also in Bundelkhand. Distrib. W Himalaya 

 from Kashmir to Kumaon ascending to 4,000 ft.- Considerably less hairy 

 than the type or than any other of its varieties and of very different 

 habit. The Gorakhpur specimens are more erect, and the bracts are 

 deeply tinged with purple. The roots are very stout and sometimes 

 almost tuberous, a condition which has been observed in many other 

 perennial plants of the fire-exposed tracts of country. 



