The Palms of British East India, 85 



Spadkes axillary, erect, 14-15 inches long, including spathes ; 

 peduncles adhering to the next sheath, free scarcely an inch long, 

 much armed towards the summit with short prickles. Spathes 

 several, coriaceous, more or less boat- shaped, one to each branch 

 of the spadix. The outermost largest, bicarinate, and with the 

 second and third entirely enclosing the others, armed on the back, 

 especially the outermost, with flat ascending brown spines, tapered 

 at the point (especially the outer) into a long flat beak, which is 

 armed towards the base with a few thorns. The inner ones 

 generally unarmed, all more or less covered with rust-coloured 

 scurf. 



Male spadices 15-18 inches long, of which the beak forms one- 

 half ; branches decompound. Spikes short, scarcely exceeding half an 

 inch in length, flexuose. Cup with the margins nearly entire, about 

 three times shorter than the calyx. Calyx oblong, shortly 3-toothed, 

 margins villous- ciliate. Corolla cylindric - oblong ; petals three,* ob- 

 long, erect. Stamina 6 ; filaments blood coloured, lower halves united 

 into a fleshy mass, (free) subulate ; anthers oblong- sagittate. Pollen 

 1-3 plicate. Rudiment of the Pistillum deeply 3-lobed. 



Female spadix very stout with the internodes swollen at the cen- 

 tre, and having a corky appearance, all sprinkled with rust-coloured 

 scurf. Branches of the female spadix stout, ascending. Spikes short, 

 stout, similarly scurfy, flexuose. Flowers on short stalks, the upper- 

 most about sessile, with one bractea at the base, and two bracteoles, 

 that close to the base of the flower almost cup- shaped, entire. f 



Calyx barrel- shaped, almost entire, striate-veined ; margin fringed 

 with reddish cellular processes. Corolla about ^ longer than the 

 calyx, ventricose from the middle downwards, divided nearly to the 

 base into 3 erect segments. Six rudimentary stamina line the lower 

 half of the corolla. Ovarium oblong, three- celled, covered with 

 scales, continued into a stout short cylindrical style, with three 

 long, revolute, horn- shaped branches, stigmatose on the inner 

 face, which is also longitudinally furrowed. Ovula solitary. 



* The internode is long ; the petals being distinct as far as the base of the rudi- 

 mentary Pistillum. 



f A niche exists between this and the back of the second, (which is sub- bicari- 

 nate) as though there should be another flower. 



