272 HEP A TICJE. 



large, succubous, opposite or alternate, distichous, patulous or 

 devexo-secund, oblique, rarely acute, usually rotundate or truncate, 

 dentate or spinose, rarely entire ; marginal teeth or cilia acute, 

 ending in a single, sharp-pointed, conical cell ; antical margin 

 decurrent, recurved or revolute ; postical margin arcuate, rotun- 

 date, sometimes semicircular, plane, towards the base reflexed, 

 margin dentato-spinose or ciliate, very rarely entire. Cells 

 medium size or rather large, rarely small, subquadrate-hexagonal, 

 only at the base oblong, very rarely all elongate ; trigones almost 

 always large and conspicuoas ; cuticule smooth. Stipules normally 

 wanting, in some species mere scales, in others everywhere present, 

 small, entire or unequally plurifid, segments often flexuose. In- 

 florescence dioicous. Androecia spicate, linear or fusiform, terminal 

 or at the middle ; perigonial bracts smaller than the leaves, ven- 

 tricose, closely imbricated, in two rows. Antheridia oval, 1 to 10, 

 usually 2 or 3. Female flowers terminal on the chief stem or 

 branches, or axillary from the growth of innovations. Bracts % 

 alternate, imbricate, transverse, erect, ventricose-saccate, 1-4 pairs, 

 free, larger and broader than the leaves. Pistillidia numerous 

 (25-70). Perianth more or less projecting, a little longer than 

 the bracts, free, laterally compressed at right angles to the plane 

 of the stem, campanulate or longer, and obconico-cylindrical or 

 clavate, erect or decurved at the apex, leptodermous, mouth wide, 

 obliquely truncate, rotundate or bilabiate, entire, dentate, or 

 ciliate. Calyptra free, included, about half the size of the 

 perianth, globose or oval-globose, leptodermous, slightly carnose 

 near the base, where it is surrounded by the sterile pistillidia. 

 Pedicel firm, about 10 cells in diameter, usually short, in a few 

 species elongate. Capsule large, globose or oval-globose, cori- 

 aceous, dividing down to the base into 4 valves, valves sometimes 

 bilobed, 3-8 layers thick. Elaters bispiral, long, deciduous, 

 attached to the centre of the valves. 



