126 ANNALS OF THE ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN, CALCUTTA. ([D. sparsiflorus 
portion of a spadix with full-grown fruits; one seed (from  Seortechinis specimen 
in Herb. Beccari). 
PrarE 51.—Daemonorops didymophyllus Bece. Portions of a specimen with 
female spadices from a plant cultivated at Buitenzorg under the name of D. cochlea- 
tus T. et B. (in Herb. Beccari), 
47. *DaEMONOROPS sPARSIFLORUS Becc. in Rec.! Bot. Surv. Ind. ii, 224. 
Description. —Scandent, about 10 m. high (Lobb), Sheathed stem 2-3 em. in 
diam. Leaf-sheaths more or less fugaciously rusty-furfuraceous, thick and almost 
woody, strongly striate longitudinally, gibbous above, powerfully armed with flat, elastic, 
unequal, often  obliquely-inserted spines of which some are small, others large 
and 2—3 cm. long; they have a very broad base and thence narrow rather abruptly, 
to a needle-like light-coloured and often sinuous point; they have more or less 
fringed margins, are horizontal or slightly deflexed, usually individually distinct, but 
more or less aligned in oblique series; the spines at the mouths of the sheaths are 
not larger than the others; the mouth itself is obliquely truncate, Ocrea almost 
obsolete, Leaves elongate (in one specimen 1°8 m. long in the pianiferous part, 
terminating in a cirrus about 1 m. in length) ; petiole elongate, about 50 em. long 
and 1 em. broad (in one Specimen), plano-convex in its basal portion; higher up 
it is somewhat flattened or slightly convex above; underneath it is convex, more of 
less sparsely prickly, or at times clawed at long intervais; the edges are obtuser 
variously armed with very short or 3-7 mm. long, solitary or digitate spines, 
some of the spines even extending on to the upper surface; at the part nearest to 
the edges the rachis in the first portion of its upper surface is slightly convex, and 
rather deeply furrowed at the sides, where the leaflets are inserted ; higher up it is 
bifaced with an acute but not prickly salient angle; underneath it is armed as. 
usual with 3-nate and finally, especially on the cirrus, with half-whorled rather 
slender claws; leaflets very numerous, very closely spreadingly and regularly equidis- 
tant, 10 on each side on a portion of the rachis 12 cm. in length, papyraceous, 
rigidulous, almost equally green on both surfaces, linear, not or only very slightly 
narrowing towards the base, where very abruptly bent backward, acuminate from far 
above the middle to a finely bristly tip which is slightly indented 15—20 mm. below the 
apex; the largest leaflets are 24—25 cm. long, 12 mm. broad ; the mid-costa is sharp. 
and bristly-spinulous aboye towards the apex, and is accompanied on each side by a 
slender, bristly-spinulous nerve; the leaflets, however, appear distinctly tri-costulate 
not so much because of these secondary nerves, as on account of a sharp plica 
running near each margin; transverse veinlets very slender, much interrupted, 
sinuous, not very crowded, translucent, margins remotely ciliated with rather long. 
bristles. Male spadiz......Female spadiz 35-50 cm. long on the whole, apparently 
flattened before flowering, attached to about the middle of the uncovered portion of 
its leaf-sheath and carried on a very short peduncular part (1-4 em. long); the latter 
is clavate, unarmed and flattish with bluntish edges; primary spathes deciduous. 
soon after flowering, laterally flattened, and split ‘longitudinally along one side, 
* See also page 221 for description of variety sarawakensis and page 223 for description of variety crassifolius. 
