454 T). Prain — Some additional Legnminosfp. [No. 2, 



on Indian vegetation in the statement that P. indicus, even in the sense that makes 

 the species include P. dalbergioides, is a native of India. Wight and Arnott, extremely 

 careful and accurate authors, -who have not confounded P. indicus with P. duller- 

 gioides, are at pains, in describing P. dalbergioides, to say of it " Our specimens are 

 from the Madras Herbarium and were perhaps from the Missionaries' garden.'* 

 And CoL Beddome in figuring P. dalbergioides, which he does under the belief 

 that he is figuring P. indicus, says of it " a very handsome tree said to be indi- 

 genous in Southern India, but I have never met with it wild." Even as a cultivated 

 tree, P. indicus proper is so rare in India as to be practically unknown. When it is 

 planted it goes as a rule under the name P. sazatitis, and is not usually supposed, even 

 by botanists, to be the same as P. dalbergioides which has appropriated the name 

 P. indicus though it has no special claim to it. The only distributed " Indian " ex- 

 amples of true P. indicus (except those grown in the Calcutta garden), that the 

 writer has seen, are from the herbarium of K. S. Naidoo, who was formerly in 

 Dr. Wight's service, and from Dr. Wight's own Herbarium (K. D. 809) ; curiously, 

 Naidoo has labelled his specimens " Andaman red-wood tree " which is precisely 

 what P. indicus is not. The diagnosis between the two trees so often con- 

 founded is as follows : — 



Leaflets finely- veined throughout, pedicels longer than the calyx, 



beak of pod distinctly raised above the outer base... ... P. indicus. 



Leaflets with 5—7 pairs of distinctly raised veins beneath, pedicels 

 shorter than the calyx, beak of pod not raised above the outer 

 base ... ... ... ... ... ... P. dalbergioides. 



The distribution of P. indicus, as shown by specimens of the plant 

 preserved in Herb. Calcutta is as follows : — 



Tenassebtm ; Moulmein, Falconer I Brandis ! Amherst, Falconer ! 

 Tavoy, King's Collector ! Malaya ; Penang, Wallich, 5843 Gr. (erroneously 

 named P. dalbergioides) ! Malacca, Griffith ! Maingay 550 ! Perak, 

 Kunstler 1513! 8713! Scortechini 503! Wray 2003 ! 2280! Sumatra, 

 Teysmann ! Java, Horsfield ! Koorders and Valeton. ! 



There are also specimens, from planted examples only, from Rangoon, 

 but the tree seems as thoroughly a stranger in Burma, north of Martaban, 

 as it is in India. Mr. Kurz does indeed say that it is " very rare along 

 the eastern slopes of the Pegu Yomah ; " neither he, nor any one else, 

 has ever communicated any specimens from there. 



Some vague opinions have been held regarding this tree, as to points other 

 than its geographical distribution. Thus it has been usual to say that Pterocarpus 

 Jlavus Lour, is probably the same species. It is exceedingly difficult to understand 

 why, for when one consults Loureiro one finds that he bases his species on a 

 picture given by Rumphius of the Kayu Malapari of the Malays, the fruit of which 

 Rumphius does not figure, and on another tree of which Loureiro knew the fruit but 

 did not know the flowers. Moreover the description that Rumphius gives of the 

 fruit of his tree does not even remotely agree with the description given by 

 Loureiro. When one takes the trouble to look at Rumphius' figure and to read his 

 description, one finds that his Malaparius has opposite leaflets and a wingless pod, 

 and learns in fact that Rumphius' account of Malaparius is an excellent and un- 



