146 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I26 



26. Leaf-sheaths dark brown ; sepals 33-34 mm. long, slightly to 

 one-fourth exserted above the floral bracts. 

 27. Blades of the leaves 55 mm. wide, truncate with a soft apiculus 

 that rapidly disintegrates ; sepals free. . . 25. N. leucophoea 



27. Blades of the leaves 30 mm. wide, acute with a persistent 



terminal subulus 5 mm. long; sepals connate for 5 mm. 



24. N. uleana 

 26. Leaf-sheaths green or purplish. 



28. Leaves subentire. 



29. Blades of the leaves 75 mm. wide, green ; petals white. 



25. N. johannis 

 29. Blades of the leaves not more than 45 mm. wide. 

 30. Pedicels 5 mm. long ; leaves wholly green ; sepals slightly 

 exserted; petals unknown. (Fig. 60.) 



26. N. kuhlmannii 

 30. Pedicels elongate; leaves violet-tinged throughout; sepals 



half exserted ; petals violet 27. N. coriacea 



28. Leaves distinctly serrulate or serrate. 



31. Scales of the leaves coarse and conspicuous. 

 32. Sepals T."] mm. long; pedicels to 15 mm. long. 



(7. N. farinosa) 



32. Sepals 35-37 mm. long; pedicels to 30 mm. long. (Fig. 



61.) 28. N. macrosepala 



31. Scales of the leaves minute, completely covering the under- 

 side of the leaf. 



33. Inflorescence few-flowered, about 2 cm. in diameter; leaf- 



blades only 23 mm. wide; sepals subsymmetric, lanceo- 

 late, acute. (Fig. 62.) 29. N. oligantha 



ZZ- Inflorescence many-flowered, ample. 

 34. Spines of the leaves red ; sepals acute, straight ; floral 



bracts cucullate. (Fig. 63.) 30. N. cruenta 



34. Spines of the leaves dark, almost black ; sepals subulate- 

 acuminate, more or less uncinate ; floral bracts straight. 



(Fig. 64.) 31. N. concentrica 



25. Blades of the leaves cross-banded above or beneath. 

 35. Inflorescence few-flowered. 



36. Leaf-blades with irregular purple bands on both sides, two to 

 three times as long as the sheaths, 20-30 mm. wide ; pedicels 

 13 mm. long; sepals symmetric, acute, 26 mm. long; inflores- 

 cence about 15-flowered; floral bracts barely exceeding the 



ovary, serrulate 32. N. zonata 



36. Leaf-blades with regular fine white bands, little or no longer 



than the sheaths ; pedicels 20-25 mm. long ; sepals 20-23 mm. 



long. 



37. Floral bracts shorter than the pedicels ; leaf-sheaths dark 



purple above ; leaf -blades 35 mm. wide ; sepals acuminate. 



(Fig. 65.) 33. N. pauciflora 



37. Floral bracts nearly equaling the sepals ; leaf-sheaths only 

 a little darker than the blades ; leaf -blades 50 mm. wide ; 

 sepals involute-subulate. (Fig. 66.) 



34. N. tnelanodonta 



