38 MEMOIR OF 



is inserted by numerous membranaceous sbeatbs 

 which surround it in successive layers, and expand 

 as the bud enlarges, until at length they form a cup 

 round its base. These sheaths or bracts are large, 

 round, concave, of a firm membranaceous consistence, 

 and. of a brown colour. The bud before expansion 

 is depressed, round, with five obtuse angles, nearly 

 a foot in diameter, and of a deep dusky red. The 

 flower, when fully expanded, is, in point of size, the 

 wonder of the vegetable kingdom ; the breadth across, 

 from the top of the one petal to the top of the other, 

 is three feet. The cup may be estimated capable of 

 containing twelve pints, and the weight of the whole 

 is from twelve to fifteen pounds. The inside of the 

 cup is of an intense purple, and more or less dense- 

 ly yellow, with soft flexible spines of the same co- 

 lour. Towards the mouth, it is marked with nu- 

 merous depressed spots of the purest white, con- 

 trasting strongly with the purple of the surrounding 

 substance, which is considerably elevated on the 

 lower side. The petals are of a brick-red, with nu- 

 merous pustular spots of a lighter colour. The whole 

 substance of the flower is not less than half an inch 

 thick, and of a firm fleshy consistence. It soon af- 

 ter expansion begins to give out a smell of decaying 

 animal matter. The fruit never bursts, but the 

 whole plant gradually rots away, and the seeds mix 

 with the putrid mass. 



" There is nothing more striking in the Malayan 

 forests, than the grandeur of the vegetation. The 



