LEGUMINOSJE. 241 



subglabrous, branched. Leaves fths of an inch long and half 

 as broad, glabrous, with the middle leaflet the largest. 

 Flowers of a dirty yellow, shortly peduncled. Legumes an 

 inch in length, brown, narrow towards the footstalk, 5-6-seeded' 

 seeds small, compressed, making a noise in the pod. 



According to Vahl, the leaves are subsericeous beneath. 



5. Crotalaria striata. Striated Rattle-wort. 



Stipules none, leaves 3-foliate, leaflets elliptic ob- 

 tuse mucronate subglabrous above puberulous with 

 appressed hairs beneath, racemes terminal, bracteas 

 setaceous deciduous, petals streaked, legumes pendu- 

 lous cylindrical glabrous, stipes very short. 



C. Brownei, Bertero, De Cand. Prod. II. 130. C. Striata, 

 De Cand. Prod. II. 131. Hooker, Sot. Mag. 3200. 



HAB. Common, especially along the roads in mountain dis- 

 tricts. 



FL. October December. 



Suffruticose, about 4 feet in height, erect, not much branched, 

 terete, striated, more or less coloured, minutely puberulous. 

 Leaflets shortly petiolulated, elliptic, acute at the base, subu- 

 lato-mucronate, glabrous, light green above, minutely puber- 

 ulous with appressed hairs and paler beneath, about equal in 

 length to the petiole. Racemes simple, subterminal, sometimes 

 a foot in length, the middle florets only fertile. Rachis angu- 

 lose, puberulous : pedicels short, terete, pruinose, recurved, 

 furnished at the base with subulato-filiform early deciduous 

 bracteas. Flowers numerous, drooping. Calyx puberulous ; 

 lower lip 3-partite, the middle division elongato-lanceolate ; the 

 upper 2-fid, lanceolate, recurved. Petals thrice as long as the 

 calyx, yellow, veined with brownish purple : standard broadly 

 oblong, reflexed ; wings subfalcate, bluntish, not half the length 

 of the keel, which is about the same length as the standard, and 

 very much acuminate. Ovary whitish, puberulous. Legume 

 an inch and a half in length, bearing the persistent style as a 

 beak. Seeds reniform, numerous. 



This is a very common weed, and springs up in the greatest 

 abundance, towards Autumn, along the mountain roads. The 

 leaves retain the drops of moisture for some time after the rain, 

 and is a subject of annoyance to passengers in paths which are 

 but little frequented, and where it is allowed to encroach un- 

 disturbed. It has hence received the name of the Water-bush. 



There is a very good figure in the Botanical Magazine, taken 

 from a plant raised from seed sent from the Mauritius. Ac- 

 cording to De Candolle, it is a native of the East Indies. It 

 is difficult to say whether it was originally indigenous to this 

 VOL. i n 



