198 ANNALS OF THE ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN, CALCUTTA. [C. Kingianus 
the middle beneath with small solitary claws; rachis acutely bifaced above, rather 
convex beneath, where armed scantily and irregularly with scattered and solitary or 
2-3:nate claws; leaflets very few, very inequidistant, approximate into a few 
remote fascicles of very few leaflets each; 4 leaflets are grouped at the apex, digi- 
tate and free at the base; they are all almost of the same size and shape, 25-26 
cm. long, 3 cm. broad, lanceolate, almost equally tapering towards both ends, with 
an acute bristly penicillate apex, green even when dry, dull and almost of the same 
colour on both surfaces, papyraceous, rather rigid, distinctly and acutely 3-costate, 
with another rather distinct nerve near each margin and therefore sub-5-costate, the 
3 larger costz on the upper surface spinulous from the middle upwards; beneath all 
the nerves more slender and naked; margins finely and appressedly spinulous near 
the base, more spreadingly spinulose towards the apex; transverse veinlets more dis- 
tinct on the lower surface than on the upper. Male spadiz not very large and rather 
rigid, simply decompound (not seen entire); lowest primary spathe tubular, elongate, 
closely sheathing, flattened, two-edged, armed at the sides with horizontal straight 
spines and, especially in its basal portion, with small often hooked prickles, obliquely 
truncate at the mouth, being prolonged at one side iuto a rather short obtuse point; 
attenuated axial portion between two partial inflorescences flat towards the base on 
the inner side, and convex on the back, where rather densely armed with un- 
equal scattered solitary claws; partial inflorescences (only on» seen and it the lowest) 
attached with a distinct axillary callus and transverse rima above the mouth of 
its spathe, 25 cm. long with 4-5 spikelets on each side and with a terminal 
spikelet larger than the side ones; secondary spathes tubular, slightly infundi- 
buliform, closely sheathing, unarmed, flattish on the inner side near the base, 
obliquely truncate, entire and naked at the mouth, where slightly prolonged at 
one side into a short point; spikelets attached outside their own spathe with a 
distinct callus and axillary rima, horizontal or arched downwards, slender, elon- 
gate; the lowest, the largest, 8-9 cm. in length with 20-22 flowers on each 
side, the upper ones gradually shorter; spathels asymmetrically infundibuliform, finely 
striately veined, truncate, entire and naked at the mouth, prolonged at one side 
into a triangular sometimes cleft rather acute point; involucre dimidiately cupular, 
attached to the base of the spathel above its own, acutely two-keeled and 
bi-dentate and with the margin deeply excavated on the side next to the axis. 
Male flowers rather remote, ovate-lanceolate, acute, about 5 mm. long; the calyx 
eylindraceous, obscurely striately veined, with 3 broad triangular acute lobes which 
form a third part of the length of the entire calyx; corolla about twice as long as 
the calyx with narrow acute externally polished segments.—Other parts unknown. 
Hasitat.—North-East India: found by Sir G. King’s collectors in Assam at an 
elevation of about 500 m, in February 1893 (Herb. Calc.). 
Ossrrvations.—Of this I have seen only one specimen of the stem with leaf 
and the basal portion of a male spadix; this probably was flagelliferous at its 
apex. It seems allied to ©. floribundus, from which it differs in the more diš- 
tinctly grouped leaflets and in the much longer male spikelets with remote flowers ; 
but its true affinities are somewhat uncertain in the absence of the female spadix 
