BIOLOGICAL AND GENERAL NOTES. 3 
The spinosity, length and scandent nature of the stem, and the unwieldy size of 
the leaves and spadices of many Calami are causes of much annoyance, labour and loss 
of time to the botanist who is obliged to collect specimens of such plants. On thé 
other hand, this study has been greatly hindered by the very incomplete and 
fragmentary manner in which, on account of these difficulties ın collecting them, the 
species as a rule are represented in herbaria. 
Another not uncommon cause of error has been the differences that exist between 
the spadices of the two sexes, to say nothing of the association, which has frequently 
taken place in herbaria, of the leaves of one species with the spadices of another, 
Moreover, not a few species have been based on specimens belonging to only one 
sex, or on portions of but a single plant, and it has seldom happened that the 
description of a species has been based on the inspection of a good and large suite 
of specimens taken from many individuals. If indeed we had been content to 
describe only those species of which we possessed complete specimens, that is to say 
entire full-grown leaves, male and female spadix and fruit, the number of thosé 
secured to science would have been far smaller than it now is. Owing to the 
fragmentary nature of the material available for the study of these Calami it has 
been necessary to give a very rigorous, minute and full description of the various 
parts of the specimens actually at hand. These often have belonged to but one 
individual ; consequently the descriptions now offered, like those of other authors, are 
not only in many instances lacking in completeness, but frequently fail to give all 
the characters essential to the collectivity of individuals that constitutes a species. 
They only indicate the peculiarities of a single member of such a collectivity, or to 
be more precise those of only a small portion of some of its organs. I am led to 
make this remark because in more than one instance it may happen that the specific 
characters which I have assigned to a species will prove inconstant, or, when 
larger and more complete specimens become available, even be found to be not 
altogether exact. 
It is indeed impossible, when we have only one half or a fragment of a leaf 
available for study, to form a precise idea of the degree of variability or of the 
extent and amplitude of the characters of the leaves of a given species. When, for 
example, the statement is made that the leaf of a particular species has a_ petiole 
10 cm. long, with three pairs of leaflets on each side of the rachis, it is not meant 
by this that in every leaf of the numerous individuals which constitute the species 
the petiole must always be of that length and the leaflets always be exactly of this 
number. The phytographer, when he has not sufficient material at his: disposal, is of 
necessity compelled to describe the individual. On the other hand, the student who 
tries to recognize a species from a description made under such circumstances will 
be careful to give no more than their due importance to the characters assigned 
by the author and will make sufficient allowance for variability. 
In the case of Calami, as in that of many other Palms of large size, the 
conditions are not as they are in the case of small plants whereof a considerable 
number of specimens from different places may be brought together for comparison’ 
in the herbarium, so that the student is enabled to acquire a complete knowledge 
of the degree of variability exhibited by the individuals which constitute a species, 
From what has been said as regards the very fragmentary condition of the material 
Ayn. Roy. Bor. Garp. Gatcurra Vor. 2 
