LINNEAN SOCIETY OF LONDON. 223 
Murray exhibited sporpene of dace killed by the fungus disease 
iRoprvtariia. feraz), the result of inoculation, and said to be the 
e Poca proof of the communicability of the 
disease ve cs fish.—A paper was read by Mr. H.N. Ridley, “On 
ew and Rare Monocotyledonous Plants from Madagascar.” free 
— described were in part collected by the Rev. W. 
Cowan in Kast Central Madagascar, a sent by him to the British 
re to which were added notes and descriptions of others 
cllected by Hildebrandt and Hilsenberg and Bojer. Among them 
a fine species of Drimia (a genus not hitherto recorded 
ian Se hcunan) solled # ‘Rat-onion”’ by the natives, who use i 
oides, but sir the leaves thickly covered with spines. 
and later by Hildebra ndt are worth n The species si 
described by Mr. Baker in Journ. "Bot. 1803, . 270, as a climbing 
plant with cordate leaves, but these specimens are sate in habit, 
about a foot high, with narrow, oblong, reticulated lea s, looking 
quite unlike a Dioscorea. In some of the other Sopa: such as 
D. pyrenaica, the young plant is at first erect and then trails along 
the ground, ‘but is never more than about an inch in the erect 
growth, whereas D. hexagona grows to = dupe x of one foot erect. 
Among the orchids are two new species of the s ) 
group of Polystachya, and two of the spinal Madagascar genus 
Cynosorchis, one of which is remarkable for its possessing but one 
or two very large handsome green, white and purple flowers. 
Among the Cyperacee, Courtotsia cyperoides, a well- cate Indian 
plant, was collected by Hildebrandt in Madagascar, thus extending 
its range westward. A new species of Fintelmannia was. "obtained 
by Mr. Deans Cowan, and there are also specimens from Hilsenberg 
and Bojer in the British Museum Herbarium. ae genus hitherto 
u ike 
only male aihece the females being u siiallg eee or three together 
in the upper parts of the ies spikelets ; the leaves are setaceous 
and armed with fine spines, There is also a new genus (4 bees 
of the ailciae alli ed in s7 eS to Cryptangium ; of t 
e spikelets. The greater number of the flowers are male, 
the Saige spikelets are very se and placed in the lower part of the 
panicle; indeed these have not been seen in ngolan plant. 
The stamens are provided with a conical apiculus, crimson in 
the Angola plant, covered with short processes, which from their 
shape and position suggest some homology with stigmatic hairs. 
The style is remarkably cleft almost to the base, where it is dilated, 
then contracted so as S appear articulated to the next.—Mr. T. H. 
