99 
NOTICES OF BOOKS, 
Monographieen Afrikanischer Pflanzen-Familien und Gattungen. 
III. Combre retum. Bearbeitet von A. Eneier 
und L. Dmts. Mit Tafel i-xxx und 1 Figur im Text. 4to. 
Oct. 1899. 
ROBABLY the most amponee’ peg of plants in the African 
forests is the Leguminose, and next to this may be reckoned the 
Combretacee: we therefore 2. gindts welcome the present work, 
which contains a concise and carefully elaborated account of Com- 
bretum, the largest genus in this latter order. The Combretaces in 
Oliver’s Flora of Tropical Africa were published in 1871; Lawson 
Cacoucia. In the present volume there are 184; so that it will be 
seen that our increase in knowledge is considerable. 
The authors unite with Combretum the genera Cacoucia, Campy- 
logyne, and Campylochiton. The first of ices was established by 
Aublet, in 1775. He described and figured the fruit as 5-angled 
— ae aS which has been called in pcan ” which is 
borne out by Guiana specimens in the Kew Her m (Jenman, 
355). Cacoucia is here employed as a ectioa to include the 
American plant and four African species—C. velutinum (S.Moore 
and C. bracteatum, C. erent) and C. Lawsonianum of the present 
ma raph. But C. bracteatum (Comey toctsion platypterus 
Hiern), a plant of which the structure of both flowers and fruit 
is well known, the upper portion of the receptacle is ey an entirely 
different shape, being cylindrical, campanulate, and inflated and 
sulcate from the base nearly to the middle; within, horizontal 
scales shut off the lower portion as a separate conga The fruit 
is conspicuously winged, the wings being 1:8 cm. bro We are 
surprised to find that the soto consider this ieiseate in accord 
with that Aublet’s gen 
nus gfe sii was separated by Mr. Hemsley from 
Cacoucia, tor which it differs in the absence of horizontal scales 
forming a diaphragm, and especially noticeable on account of the 
adherent geniculate style. In the work before us it constitutes the 
twenty-sixth section of Combretum, eight plants being referred to 
it. The style is adnate to the receptacle, sometimes near the base, 
as a & wap apenas C. Hensii, and C. Poggei ; sometimes higher 
iflor 
Welw. in this eon p. It has not the long generally curved recep- 
tacle which is usual, and the style is not pire so its position 
ere seems to need reconsideration, The genus P cae be 
founded by Dr. Engler ASE Svagestoa ‘Ost-Afrika, Theil ¢ p. 293), 0: 
a single species, P. variifolia. The racemes have Viliensbord sehidiey 
ree slenderly pedicelled flowers below, and a few hermaphrodite 
ers above; the fruit is there referred to as pints pet 
ees 8-alate. The authors now refer to this genus CU. aniso- 
pterum Welw. and C. dipterum Welw., and C. myrtifolium Laws. 
The pteleoid sees of the fruit is very ‘apparent in C. dipterum, but 
