262 
** *'The whole flower was of a very thick 
substance, the petals and nectary being but 
in few places less than a quarter of an inch 
thick, and in some places three quarters of 
an inch ; the substance of it was very suc- 
culent. When I first saw it, a swarm of 
flies were hovering over the mouth of the 
nectary, and apparently laying their eggs 
in the substance of it. It had precisely 
the smell of tainted beef. T» calyx con- 
sisted of several roundish dark-brown con- 
cave leaves, which seemed to be indefinite 
in number, and were unequal in size. 
There were five petals attached to the nec- 
tary, which were thick and covered with 
protuberances of a yellowish-white, vary- 
ing in size, the interstices being of a brick- 
red colour. The nectarium was cyathiform, 
becoming narrower towards the top. The 
centre of the nectarium gave rise to a large 
pistil, which I can hardly describe, at the 
top of which were about twenty processes, 
somewhat curved and sharp at the end, 
resembling a cow's horns: tliere were as 
many smaller very short processes. A little 
more than half way down, a brown cord, 
about the size of common whip-cord, but 
quite smooth, surrounded what perhaps is 
the germen, and a little below it was ano- 
ther cord, somewhat moniliform. 
* * Now for the dimensions, which are 
the most astonishing part of the flower. Tt 
measured a full yard across; the petals, 
which were subrotund, being twelve inches 
from the base to the apex, and it being 
about a foot from the insertion of the one 
petal to the opposite one; Sir Stamford, 
Lady Raffles, and myself, a: immediate 
measures to be accurate in this respect, by 
pinning four large sheets of paper together, 
and cutting them to the precise size of the 
flower. The nectarium, in the opinion of 
all of us, would hold twelve pints, and the 
weight of this prodigy we calculated to be 
fifteen 
"et E have spid nothing ibani the sta- 
mina; in fact, I am not certain of the part 
I Bi ees call stamina. If the moniliform 
istil ( 
ious VE Quran cei vet the 
DESCRIPTION OF MALAYAN PLANTS. 
large germen contained; perhaps there 
might be concealed anthers within it. 
* < It was not examined on the spot, as 
it was intended to preserve it in spirits and 
examine it at more leisure; but from the 
neglect of the persons to whom it was en- 
trusted, the petals were destroyed by in- 
sects, the only part that retained its form 
being the pistil, which was put in spirits 
along with two large buds of the same 
flower, which I found attached to the same 
root; each of these is about as large às 
two fists. 
“ < There were no leaves or branches to 
this plant; so that it is probable that the 
stems bearing leaves issue forth at a differ- 
ent period of the year. The soil where 
this plant grew was very rich, and covered 
with the excrement of elephants. 
“<A guide from the interior of the 
country said, that such flowers were rare, 
but that he had seen several, and that the 
natives call them Krúbút. 
I have now nearly finished a coloured 
drawing of it on as large drawing-paper as 
I could procure, but it is still considerably 
under the natural size; and I propose also 
to make another drawing of the pistil re- 
moved from the nectarium. 
* * I have now, I believe, given you as 
detailed an account of this prodigious plant 
as the subject admits of; indeed it is all I 
know of it, I would draw your attention, 
however, to the very great porosity of the 
root, to which the buds are attached." " 
The specimens sent proved to be male, 
and the drawing alluded to, engraved for 
Mr. Brown’s paper, is here copied (Tab. 
XIV.), together with sections, showing the 
situation of the anthers and their structure. 
The following is Mr. Brown's generic. dee 
racter, derived from the first specimens 
that were sent over :—*' Perianthium mo- 
nophyllum, coloratum; /ubo ventricoso; 
corona acd annulari, indivisa; limbo 
Columna 
