232 Mr. White's Description and Natural History 



the rim of the tube; passing which, it is received into the 

 staminal sheath of the upper border. 

 Stigma obtusely triangular, a little excavated oa the side of the 

 tube, with the upper rounded edge prominent from the 

 sheath. 

 Pericarpium a fleshy, fibrous, smooth capsule, contracting when 

 dry into a surface corrugated lengthwise, obtusely trigonal, 

 oblique a little; angles marked with a superficial score;, 

 sides inwardly bisected by a ridge ; three-celled, with three 

 valves. Seeds many, nidulating by means of a fine muci- 

 laginous, splendid, silky membrane, aad attached to the 

 receptacle, or rachis, by an eight-toothed oblong fascia in 

 each of its angles; the silky membrane of the seeds forming 

 filamentous pedicles for this purpose. Seeds from 18 to 27^ 

 obtusely wedge-shaped, a furrow on the plairv side, convex 

 on the other; surface scabrous, hard, horny. 

 Flowers on lax panicled peduncles, issuing horizontally from the 

 tuberous ringed part of the stem, near the root ; generally 

 two from each flat side. Common peduncle serpentine, 

 jointed, or rather rimmed, tapering. Partial peduncles 

 lateral from the rings at acute angles, and diminishing in- 

 tervals ; every partial peduncle supporting from two to four 

 pedicled flowers, one or two of which abortive. Length of 

 the peduncle varies fronv three and four inches to one and a 

 half and two feet. 

 Bractea oblong, acute, and spathous, accompanying and en-^ 



veloping the pedicles at their origin, withering. 

 Colour. Lower division of the corolla green ; upper spreading, 

 petal of the inner border with a pink ramification, pale white 

 on the outside and the rest of the border* 



Stents^ 



