168 ANNALS OF THE ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN, CALCUTTA. M. sagus. 
appressed scarious scales. From variety gogolense it differs by the larger fruits, 
which also have the scales with narrower discoloured margins. 
PLATE 106.—Metroxylon Sagus var. Peekelianum Becc. (The figures on the left 
side on the upper part of the plate only.) Spike and 3 fruits in different 
aspects; from Peekels No. 115 in the Berlin Herbarium. 
le. Merroxyton SaGus var. GoGoLENSE Bece. 
M. leve (non Mart.) Schum. and Lauterb. Fl. Deut. Schützg. in der Sudsee 
(1901) 202 (partly ?). 
Description.—The leaves, in those parts seen by me, are not spinescent. "The 
leaflets are indistinguishable from those of forma typica; those seen are a little over 
1 m. in length, and 7°5 cm. wide; the mid-costa has: a few scales underneath and 
is spinulous above in its upper third as are also the margins. The spike-bearing 
branches, which aré exactly the same as in forma typica, have the spathes unarmed 
¡and covered with a .thin greyish coating in their upper part. The spikes have a 
tomentose appearance from the tips of the spathels, which protrude somewhat above 
the wool of the flower bracteoles, are 9—10 em. long, and 11 mm. in diameter ; 
their pedicellar part is concave on the axial side, with the margins sharp, almost 
‘winged and is densely tomentose, especially at the base. The fruits, which although 
not thoroughly mature in the specimens seen by me, had none the less attained their 
definitive size, are the smallest ‘of all known species or varieties of Metroxylon, 
are globular, 16—18 mm. in diameter, a little broader above than at the base 
which is round and not in the least excavate, are flattish, or slightly depressed 
on the top and suddenly beaked; the beak is narrow, acute, sulcate, 9 mm. long ; 
scales small, the largest 4 mm. wide in the exposed part, their apices triangular, 
uot produced, rathér. broadly grooved along the centre and of a pale straw colour, 
have a slightly darker intramarginal line, and the edges represented by a ,scarious, 
discoloured greyish and relatively broad (nearly 1 mm. wide) band; the extreme 
margins are minutely erose-toothed. The whole pericarp is uniformly about 2 mm. 
thick. 
HanrraT.—German New-Guinea ; on the lower course of the Gogol River, collect- 
ed by Lauterbach, the 4th. November 1890 (No. 861 in Berlin Herbarium). 
' Osservarions.—I have considered this Metroxylon as a variety of M. Sagus, 
but it is not known if the bases of the leaves and the petioles are. smooth or spine- 
scent; in any case it is a very distinct variety if not of M. Sagus, then of M. 
Rumphii, or perhaps a subspecies of one of these, distinguishable by its very small 
fruits and scales having a broad discoloured edge. It is the Metroxylon with the 
smallest fruit known; on this account it approaches JM. Rumphi var. buruense, but 
in the latter the scales have a very narrow scarious margin and the pericarp is 
relatively thick and spongy, whereas the pericarp is cat thin all round in 
VAR. gogolense. 
PLate 106.—Metroxylon fie var. gogolense Becc. (The figures on the right 
hand side on the upper part of the plate only). A spike, and three fruits entire, 
in different aspects; one fruit in vertical section, the seed £n situ entire; from 
Lauterbach's No. 861 in the Berli Herbarium. 
