Lactuca.^ lxxytii. compositj!. (J. D. Hooker.) 411 



nari'owly elliptic-lanceolate narrowed into a brown beak ^-^ as long as the body, 

 aarke Comp. Ind. 271. ObondriUa (Crepis?) gracilis, Wall. Cat. 3267. 



NiPAL, Wallich. Khasia Mts., alt. 3-5000 ft., Se Silva, &c. Bhotan, Griffith. 



A flaccid annual ? Leaves 4-6 ty ^-J in., erect, usually quite entire. , Flowering 

 stems 6-18 in., few solitary or many from the root. Heads 3-8-fld., erect ; outer invol, 

 bracts minute, inner 4-8 linear ; ligules yellow. Aolienes ^^ in. including the slender 

 beak, pale red, much compressed, many-ribbed ; pappus deciduous, more scanty, brittle, 

 and coarser than in L. sagittarioides and polycephala. — The small heads, pappus, and 

 cauline leaves simple at the base, at once distinguish this from L. polyeephala,, than 

 ■which this has usually far more heads. It appears closely allied to a Jara plant of 

 Horsfield's named by Miquel Aracium IcBVigatum, -which is the Prenanthes Imvigata of 

 Blume (not of Wallich), and Ladnca l<svigata, DC. 



Var. Ichasiana, Clarke mss. ; heads ^ in. long, achenes ^ in. beak shorter. — Khasia 

 mts., alt. 3-8000 ft., J. D. H. # f. T.' 



DOUBTFUL SPECIES. 



L. Benthamii, Clarke Comf. Ind. 273, from Kashmir (Kavang and Karnag, alt. 

 12-15,000 ft., Stoliczka') is unknown to me. Clarke describes it as a glaucous herb, 

 ■with dichotomous scapes 4-6 in. high, spathulate oblong entire or obscurely toothed 

 3-nerved leaves, cylindrie heads -with many purple flowers, 8 equal oWong inner 

 invol. bracts, small outer, and a 1 -seriate dirty-white pappxis. — It is not Bentham's 

 ue-w species of Chorisma, ■which is Crepis gracilipes (p. 396). 



115. PRENAKTKES, Lmn. 



Glabrous or hispid milky herbs, often tall and slender, sometimes subscan- 

 dent. Leaves alternate, ■usually petioled, sagittate or cordate, pinnatifld or lyrate, 

 membranous, petiole often winged, upper narrow sessile or stemTclaspiDg. Seads 

 small (slender pendulous and few-fld. in the Indian species), loosely panicled or 

 racemed, of various colours, homogamous ; fl. all ligulate. Involuci-e cylindrie ; 

 inner bracts long and narrow, 1-2-seriate, equal, thinly herbaceous, imchangedi 

 after flowering, outer few small ; receptacle flat, naked. Achenes narrovyly ob- 

 long or contracted at both ends, slightly compressed or 3-5-angled, usually ribbed , 

 tip -with a pappiferous disk ; pappus hairs 2-3-seriate, simple, slender or rigid, 

 separately deciduous. — Distkib. Species about 16, N. temperate regions. 



The Indian species referred here to Prenanthes by Bentham (in Gen. Plant.) and 

 Clarke (Comp. Ind.) are identical in habit with Section V. of Laciuca, from which 

 they are distinguishable only by. the achene less suddenly contracted at the tip, and 

 less flattened. X. rapunculoidea (p. 407) is perhaps a Prenanthes. 



1. P. Khasiana, Clarice Comp. Ind. 273; slender, erect, glabrous or 

 sparsely hairy, leaves long-pedimcled, radical deltoid base cordate lower pinnate, 

 lateral pinnules petioled terminal simple or 3-lobed, panicle elongate branches 

 Tery slender, heads narrow pendulous cylindrie glabrous, flowers 1-4 blueish 

 purple, achenes contracted slightly above and below, pappus brown brittle. 



Khasia Mts., alt. 5-6000 ft., Griffith, &c. 



Stem 1-4 ft. Leaves membranous, cilia'te-toothed, lower 8-10 by 3-4 in. ;. pinnules 

 2-3 pair, alternate, oblong or ovate-cordate, base equal or very oblique, acute and 

 apieulate ; terminal lobe ovate or deltoid, base cordate or hastate ; upper pinnatifld ; 

 petiole of the radical leaves very slender, 4-8 in., of cauline shorter. Panicles 1-2 ft., 

 strict; branches erect, ultimate and peduncles filiform with few small bracts. Heads 

 J-§ in. long ; outer invol. bracts minute, inner 3-4 linear obtuse. Achenes very nar- 

 row, J in., compressed, truncate, brown, ribbed, equalling the scanty pappus. — Habit 

 of Ldctuca graoiliflora. 



.2. F. Brunoniana, Wall. Cat. 8278; erect, subhispid or glabrous, l^a.ve3 

 polymorphous simple lobed pinnatifld or pinnate ovate or cordate or deltQid or 



