888 



Chloranlhus inconspicuus, Civsium chinense, Lilium longifloiura 

 (affording a magnificent spectacle, with its large, cernuous, white 

 flowers, and the bulbs of which, when stewed, are much esteemed by 

 the natives), a particularly elegant little Composite (Gerbera amabi- 

 lis, mihi, in Walp. Ann, Bot. Syst. ii. ined.), and Ligularia Kampferi, 

 confined to the damp ledges of rocks ; whilst the deep green, luxuri- 

 ant carpet of verdure is enamelled by the most beautiful Orchids, such 

 as the golden Spathoglottis Fortuni, Arundina sinensis, the modest 

 Spiranthes australis, Platanthera Susannse, with its laciniated, snowy 

 perianth, Glossaspis tentaculata, &c., and the heath-like Baeckia fru- 

 tescens, which, when rubbed between the hands, exhales a most 

 pleasant aromatic odour, springs up in moist places, with a glaucous 

 Carex, Scleria, and Lepidosperma. 



The normal, or characteristic, species, those which are most widely 

 distributed, most numerous, and which most clearly strike the ob- 

 server, as constituting the peculiar and distinguishing character of the 

 Flora, are, amidst a thick, but rather coarse, turf, consisting of species 

 of Cyperus, especially in damp localities, Paspalus, Chrysopogon, 

 Andropogon, Anatherum, Digitaria, Lycopodium cernuum, &c., Myr- 

 tus tomentosa (with its gay, rose-coloured flowers, and sober, green 

 leaves, clothed beneath with a close, white down, which is met with 

 everywhere, and may be considered the commonest plant in the 

 island, and the fruit of which, when ripe, has a resinous, not unplea- 

 sant taste, somewhat resembling that of the black currant, and is 

 eaten by the natives), Melastoma calycina and M. macrocarpon, 

 covered with magnificent purplish pink blossoms, Ancistrolobusligus- 

 trinus (a pretty, compact shrub, with dark, blood-coloured flowers, 

 smelling like our St. John's-wort), and Callicarpa tomentosa, and 

 another with branches hidden in a velvety, fulvous down, lovely, 

 bright green leaves, farinose beneath, and dense bunches of small, 

 reddish lilac flowers. An Emblica, very common on the low grounds, 

 is among the first to put forth its delicate, green leaves on the ap- 

 proach of spring, two Clerodendra, the neat, myrtle-like Rospidios 

 vaccino'ides, Strophanthus divergens (with its trailing branches, dark, 

 glossy foliage, and curious, reddish yellow, caudate corollas), two 

 pretty Uvariae, Helicteres angustifolia, Desmodium triquetrum, Di- 

 cerma elegans (to which I refer, without doubt, the ^Eschynomene 

 heterophylla of Loureiro, hitherto undetermined), and Melanthesa 

 chinensis are almost equally common. Alpinia nutans elevates its 

 gorgeous racemes of flowers, of a light flesh-colour, streaked with the 

 intensest gold and scarlet, by the water-courses ; Ameletia subspicata 



