88 Dr. Francis Hamilton's Coinmentcmj 



that only the species, I suspect, cannot be fully determined ; 

 which probably induced Dr. Roxburgh to give new names to both 

 plants, although it is probable that his F.farinifera is the F.pu- 

 silla of G.urtner. I shall here give a description of the Phccnix 

 acaulis, or Jafiggali Khajur of the Bengalese. 



Radix fibrosa, crassa. Caudex nullus. Stipites plures cum sti- 

 pulis congesti in bulbum imbricatum vix extra terrain emer- 

 gens, rigidi, brevissimi, trigoni, subtus convexi. Frondes 

 pinnatiu, rarius ultra cubitum longa^ Finnœ hinc inde 

 3 — 5 approximatis squarrosae, ima parte complicata in ra- 

 chim insertee, lineares, nudœ, nervis longitudinalibus paral- 

 lelis striata?, rigidœ, apice spinescentes, inferioribus bre- 

 vissimis. Rachis communis trigonus. Stipidce geminse, 

 latérales, maximœ, membranaceœ, margini stipitis utrinque 

 longitudinaliter adnatœ, nervis intus reticulata?. 



Flores dioici. 



In masculina arbore : 



Spadix erectus, e terra exsertus, ramis simplicibus confertis an- 

 gulatis multifidus. SpatJia membranacea, marcescens, vagi- 

 nans, indeterminate dehiscens. Flores duri, angulati, lutei. 



Calyx minutus. Fctola tria, rigida, oblonga, acuta. Filamenta 

 nunc tria tunc sex, brevissima. Antherce oblongœ. 



In fœminina arbore : 



hijlorescentia ut in masculina, sed spadix vix apice e terra emer- 

 gens. Flores virides, squama rigida parva adpressa bracteati. 



Calyx monophyllus, crassus, truncatus. Corolla rigida, laciniis 

 ovatis obtusis adpressis trifida. Germina tria, ovata ; quo- 

 rum duo semper abortiva, cito marcescentia. Stylus vix 

 ullus. Stigmata acuta. 



Bacca oblonga, acuta, nigra, carnosa, mollis, dulcis, pollicem 

 transversum vix longa, calyce multo major. Semen ob- 



longum. 



