Xyris] XIII. XYRIDEA, 69 
which bears only a short stiff apiculus ; spikes several-flowered ; 
bracts membranous, dirty brown, the lowest broadly ovate with 
a median keel ending in a blunt apiculus, becoming orbicular, 
through elliptical, to obovate with gradual disappearance of the 
keel upwards; lateral sepals when opened elliptical, emarginate 
with a small central mucro, sides subequal, pale brown, becoming 
translucent and almost colourless towards the margin and deeper 
towards the glabrous keel; fruit trigonous, obpyramidal with a 
rounded rostrate apex, containing a few perfect reddish-brown 
obovate seeds in the upper part and numerous aborted seeds on 
the three parietal placentas ; testa marked by fine ridges into 
longitudinal rows of rectangular areas. 
Leaves 3 to 8 in. long by 4 to 2 5 line broad, peduncle 82 in. 
long, barely } line wide, sheath 13 in., apiculus 1 line. Spike 
(broken) about 22 lines long by 3 ‘ines broad. Bracts 1 to 14 
lines by about 1 jine ; lateral sepals 14 line by 2 line; fruit 7 
line long. 
Described from a single specimen bearing fruit only. Appar- 
ently near X. capensis, but distinguished by its flattened peduncle 
and smaller elliptical sepals. 
Hvitia.—Leaves rigidulous, not fenestrate ; peduncles thin, erect. 
Near the chief stream of Morro de Lopollo, where at the end of 
November 1859 two sparsely fruiting tufts were seen, but afterwards 
sought in vain. Apparently liked by cattle. No. 2459. 
6. X. nivea Welw. ms. in herb. 
Glabrous, cespitose, base slightly bulbous, root-fibres very 
slender and flexuose; leaves stiff, erect, filiform-subulate, flexuose 
from a short sheath, about half the length of the slender, flexu- 
ose, wiry, subterete, faintly angled peduncle ; peduncular sheath 
short, leafless, ending in a short stiff awn; spikes few-flowered, 
subglobose with a somewhat flattened top; bracts broadly ellip- 
tical to broadly obovate, very obtuse, coriaceous, 3-nerved, entire, 
a rather dull brown with stramineous scarious easily broken 
margins ; lateral sepals rather broadly falcately navicular, blunt, 
obovate when vpened out, keel pale brown, scabridulous except 
near the base ; corolla a splendid white, lobes obovate-elliptical, 
concave, margin finely plicate-denticulate ; stamens exceeding 
the pilose staminodes ; style tripartite to the middle; ovary sub- 
obovate becoming markedly obovate as it ripens ; seeds pointed 
elliptical, red. 
Leaves 3 to 5 in. long including sheath (2 to 1 in.) by about + 
line in diameter. Peduncles a span to scarcely a foot, sheath 14 
to 1#in. long, spikes 23 to 3 lines long and about as broad. Bracts 
13 to 2 lines long by 1} to 13 broad. Lateral sepals 2 lines by 
a little over 4 line when folded; odd sepal crimson above. 
Anthers 2 line, filament 4 line, together about half the length 
of the petal. 
A distinct species recognised at once by its slender wiry 
peduncles and stiff filiform leaves. 
