Liberia <^ 



leaves, up to almost i ft. by 2 in. ; flovver-steiiis with slender 

 peduncles (16 in. long) and few-flowered spikes, berries bottle- 

 shaped, 2^ in. long, not grooved ; gregarious, forming extensive 

 reeds ; Cape Palmas, Crummel. 



•Reneabnia longifolia, K. Schum. : a very tall perennial herb, with 

 petioled linear-lanceolate long-acuminate leaves, i — 2 ft. by 

 1 1 — 2 J in., and terminal narrow erect or nodding panicles 

 of bracteate flowers (corolla unknown) and small ellipsoid 

 red or ultimately black capsules ; Kakatown, JV/iyte ! ; in humid 

 forest by the Cestos River near Grand Basa, Dinklage, 

 1945 ! 



*R. maculata, Stapf (sp. nov.) : a perennial herb with distinct leaf- 

 and flower-stems ; leaf-stems, including the blades, about i ft. 

 high, with about 4 elliptic or lanceolate-elliptic shortly acuminate 

 purple-blotched petioled leaves, 7—9 in. by 2 to almost 4 in., 

 flower-stems rather slender, 3 — 5 in. high, representing a shortly 

 peduncled panicle with short few-flowered branches, supported 

 by more or less persistent and adpressed bracts with spreading 

 pedicels, in the mature state \ — | in. long, and oblong-ellipsoid 

 capsules, \ — § in. by \ in , containing numerous seeds with 

 yellow arils ; Kakatown, Whyte ! — ^This is similar to R. africana, 

 Benth., but smaller, with more and permanently adpressed 

 bracts and more oblong fruits. 



Costus afer, Ker. : a perennial herb with slender stem.s, 6 — 9 ft. 

 high, lanceolate caudate-acuminate glabrous or (below) more 

 or less adpressly hairy leaves, 4 — 7 in. by | — 1| in., and dense 

 terminal bracteate heads of white flowers (with a yellow centre) 

 supported by an involucre of large foliaceous bracts, the 

 flowers paired in the axils of the bracts ; Monrovia and 

 Kakatown, Whyte ! ; in humid places in primary forest by the 

 River Cestos, Dinklage, 1640. — The juice of the very closely 

 allied C. lucamisianus, J. Braun and K. Schum., is used by the 

 natives of the Cameroons in the preparation of Funtumia 

 rubber. 



C. littoralis, K. Schum. : similar to the preceding species, but less 

 tall, with larger leaves and solitary flowers in the axils of the 

 bracts; in bush in the littoral near Fishtown, Dinklage., 1701. 

 Scarcely distinct from C. afer. 



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