The Palms of British East India. 465 



The trunk of this palm is in much request for making 

 posts. Jack (1. c.) says, that there is only one spathe, and 

 that the flowers are one male to two females. He does not 

 notice any obliquity of the fruit. 



82. (13) A. horrida,* (n. sp.) arborea, pinnis 2-3 peda- 

 libus patentibus, spathis pedunculoque spadicis armatissimis, 

 floribus congestis, fsemineo inter duos masculos, petalis 

 lanceolato-oblongis in setas attenuatis, fructibus globuli 

 sclopeti majoris magnitudine. 



A. Nibung.f Mart. Palm. t. 153,/. VI 



Habit. — Common in densely wooded valleys and ravines, 

 Ching. On wooded hills, Laydang Soobubi, but rare. In 

 woods at the base of Battoo Bakar, Malacca. Malayan name, 

 Bhyass. 



Descr.J— An elegant Palm, 30-40 feet in height, sending off offsets 

 at the base. Trunk annulate, the spaces between the rings much armed. 

 Crown rather thin. Leaves spreading in every direction, 14-16 feet long, 

 5 feet broad ; sheaths leathery, much armed, 2 feet long ; petiole 

 bearing pinnae nearly from the base, green, stout, flattened at the base, 

 compressed at the apex, otherwise trigonal, covered with brown irre- 

 gular scales, armed throughout, but especially underneath, with black- 

 brown flat not very strong spines§ ; pinna alternate or sub-opposite, 

 nearly linear, 2-3 feet long, subulate-acuminate, coriaceous, dark-green, 

 above keeled along the centre, with two lateral plaits on either side, 

 spreading or oblique, never pendulous, as in A. tigillaria; a few scales 

 attached by the middle along the central vein underneath. Threads very 

 fine, pendulous, at length deciduous. 



Spadix axillary ; peduncle stout, yellow, flattened at the base, much 

 armed on the spaces between the insertion of the spathes, above these 



* A third species of the section, with the habit of this species but smaller, is com- 

 mon on the cliffs of the sea-shore a little to the North of Koondoor, near Malacca. 

 Its Malayan name is Nibong Paddy. I have not seen it in flower or fruit. 



f This name is scarcely tenable, the true Nibung being Areca tigillaria, Jack. 



X Partly from dried specimens : perfect spadices at time of opening of the 

 spathes not seen. 



§ This is the general character of the armature. 



