OF THE AMAZON. 17 



PLATE VI. 



Leopoldinia piassaba, n. sp. 



Piassaba, Lingoa Geral. Chiquichiqui, Barre. [An 

 Indian language spoken on the Upper Rio Negro in 

 Venezuela.] 



This tree, the "Piassaba" of Brazil and the "Chiqui- 

 chiqui" of Venezuela, I have little hesitation in referring 

 to the genus Leopoldinia, though I have never seen it 

 in flower or in fruit. The texture aud form of the 

 leaves, the peculiar branching of the spadix, and the 

 extraordinary development of the fibres from the mar- 

 gins of the sheathing petioles, show it to be very closely 

 allied to the other species of this genus. 



The stem is generally short, but reaches twenty to 

 thirty ieet in height, and is much thicker than in either 

 of the preceding species. The leaves are very large 

 and regularly pinnate, with the pinnae gradually smaller 

 to the end, as in the two former species. The leaflets are 

 rigid, broadest in the middle, and gradually tapering to 

 a fine point, spreading out flat on each side of the mid- 

 rib, but slightly drooping at the tips. The petioles are 

 slender and smooth. The spadix is large, excessively 

 branched and drooping, and there are often several on 

 the same tree. The marginal processes of the petioles 

 are interlaced as in the two former species, and are pro- 

 duced into . long riband-like strips, which afterwards 

 split iuto fine fibres, and hang down five or six feet, 



