17 



were among the lot, and several of these have already flowered, 

 revealing new and interesting species. Living material is especi- 

 ally desirable in this family of plants, as the color and shape of 

 the flowers play a large part in their classification, and these 

 characters are difficult to determine from dried material. The 

 genera Pleiirothallis, Elleanthiis, and Zygostates, have each already 

 yielded one species new to science. The new species of Zygo- 

 states is a particularly interesting discovery, as it not only proves 

 to be a species hitherto unknown but also brings into the flora 

 of North America a genus known formerly only from Brazil and 

 Peru. Among other things worthy of note are : Warscezviczella 

 Wendlajidi discolor, originally described and known only from 

 Costa Rica ; Maxillaria iridifolia, found throughout tropical 

 America but certainly differing much in general appearance from 

 the other members of the genus ; and CycnocJics Rossiamim, 

 originally described from a plant that flowered in cultivation in 

 the Garden of Mr. Ross, at Florence, Italy, in 1889. The origin 

 of this plant was unknown, and it is now interesting to have its 

 home revealed by this collection of Mr. Maxon's. The remarks 

 were illustrated with living plants of the species referred to, sup- 

 plemented with herbarium specimens, drawings, and material 

 preserved in formalin. 



"The Sedges of Jamaica," by Dr. N. L. Britton. 



Dr. Britton exhibited specimens of all species of Cyperaceae 

 known to occur on the island of Jamaica, including several species 

 new to that island, collected by Professor Underwood or by him- 

 self during a visit to Jamaica in the month of September. He 

 remarked on the distribution of many of these species and on the 

 fact that a number of them are found in the West Indies, only in 

 Jamaica, their further distribution being in Central and South 

 America. This distribution of these sedges is paralleled by that 

 of a considerable number of species in other families, so that the 

 South American relationship of the Jamaica flora is more intimate 

 than that of Cuba, Hayti, or Porto Rico, and it is suspected that 

 this may be an indication of a former land connection between 

 Jamaica and the continent to the west or southwest. Dr. Brit- 

 ton's paper included a complete enumeration of the species now 



