Malvaceae-Theaceae. 
Kokia drynarioides (Seem.) Lewt. 
Kokio. 
KOKIA <n ai coho (Seem.) Lewt. in Stemi Mise. Coll. LX. 5. (1912) 3. pl. 5.— 
arioides Seem. F]. Vit. (1865) 22;—-H. Mann in Proce. Am. Acad. VII. 
(1867) “AST, et Fl. Haw. Isl. Proce. Ess. Inst. V. (1867) 141;—Hbd. Fl. Haw. Isl. 
(1888) 51;—Del Cast. Tl. sf Pies Mar. Pac, VI. (1890) 120 —Hibiscus drynarioides 
Kuntze Rev. Gen. Pl. I. 68. 
Leaves on long petioles, aera peal but with a few ue hairs at 
the base of the veins, cordate 7 to 5 lobed, the deltoid lobes about 3.5 em deep, the basal 
Sinus quite open; flowers sin in the axils o upper! aves, on atau peduneles 
0 em, which bear at the middle a broadly sessile and obliquely clasping caducous 
bract of 8 to 10 mm in le ; Iimy al bracts broad] ate to cordate, obtuse, 
entire, 7 to 13-nerved, 2.5 to 3 em long, and 2.5 em or more broad, glabrous, coriaceous; 
ie 
o 10 em 
calyx urceolate, cri neate, thin searious; petals red, obovate-oblong, entire, 7.5 
long, silky outside; er? Ep column of same length, truneate or obsoletely 2 to 3-toothed 
5-grooved; ovary 5-celled, each cell with one ascending ovule; capsule ovoid 
2.5 em, thick w woody, seat tardily near the apex; seeds obovoid, covered with a short 
reddish-brown tomentut 
Of this exceedingly interesting species there has been only one tree in existence 
up to a few months ago. This same tree which was declared dead, showed still 
some signs of life and produced a few capsules with mature seeds; but this is 
evidently the last, only a small branchlet having produced a few leaves. Seeds 
of this tree have been planted by the manager of the Molokai Ranch Co. and by 
Mr. G. P. Wilder, who secured the last ones to be had. A few have been sent 
to Washington to the Bureau of Plant Introduction. Thus it is hoped still to 
perpetuate this most interesting plant. Several trees occurred on the west end 
of Moloaki, at Mahana, all having now died, owing to ravages of cattle, sheep 
and goats, which eat off the bark and leaves. On Oahu, at the eastern end, on 
the hills of Makapuu and Koko Head, grew a variety of this species with lanceo- 
late involueral bracts, which has long been extinct. It was described by Lewton 
as a new species, though really only of varietal rank. 
It should be ealled Kokia drynarioides var. lanceolata. The reasons for this 
change are explained in the generic discussion. 
THEACEAE. 
The family Theaceae, with its 16 genera and about 174 species, is rather con- 
fined to the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. A few appear in the 
temperate regions of the northern hemisphere in America and Asia. The genus 
Eurya is the only representative of this family in the Hawaiian Islands, where it 
has one endemic species. To this family belongs Thea sinensis L., the Tea of 
commerce, which is found wild in the interior of the south Chinese island Hai- 
nan, and Upper Assam in Bengal, from whence it was introduced as an agricul- 
tural plant into China and Japan about 810 A. D 
307 
