35 
\ I 
40  to  60  or  more  feet  long  and  with  the  sheaths  3 Inches  through, 
light  dull  green.  The  rattan  beneath  the  sheaths  inch,  through 
dull  green.  The  male  inflorescence  is  very  long,  about  20  feet, 
produced  at  the  top  of  the  long  full  grown  stem,  the  female  is  only 
about  half  as  long.  The  fruit  is  small  and  dark  brown. 
The  Malacca  cane  occurs  all  over  the  Peninsula,  but  is  not  now 
by  any  means  common.  It  occurs  however  still  in  Johor,  Selangor, 
Perak  and  also  in  Borneo  and  Sumatra  whence  it  is  imported  into 
Singapore.  The  canes  cleaned  of  their  sheaths  and  washed  and 
then  smoked  over  a wood  fire,  for  some  time.  Common  canes  are 
tied  in  bundles  of  25  to  smoke,  specially  good  ones  are  smoked 
singly,  after  this  they  arewashe  l and  rubbed  and  finally  rubbed 
with  oil  and  made  into  walking-sticks.  These  canes  are  imported 
into  Singapore  at  about  12  dollars  a thousand  chiefly  from 
Palembang,  and  after  being  cleaned,  smoked  and  made  up  into 
sticks  sell  according  to  qualitv  from  one  to  100  dollars. 
I have  no  clue  at  present  as  to  what  plant  the  white  Malacca 
cane  is  derived,  but  it  appears  certainly  to  be  a distinct  plant,  and 
is  obtained  with  the  other  from  Palembang.  Some  years  ago  plants 
of  C.  scipionum  were  obtained  with  considerable  difficulty  from 
Malacca  and  planted  in  the  Botanic  Gardens  in  Singapore.  One 
of  them  flowered,  a male,  this  year.  The  other  is  figured  in  Plate 
V.  The  single  stems  which  have  as  yet  developed  to  full  size  are 
about  60  feet  tall. 
A very  large  species  allied  to  the  Malacca  cane  is  C.  or'natus,  Bl. 
It  differs  in  the  leaflets  being  grey  underneath,  and  the  stem  thicker 
than  in  the  Malacca  cane,  has  much  shorter  joints,  9 inches  long, 
the  cane  itself  is  i^inch.  through.  GRIFFITH  gives  the  name  “ Rotan 
Ruga  Bodak  ” evidently  a miscopy  for  Segah  Badak,  but  it  cannot 
be  the  plant  commonly  known  by  that  name. 
Blume  says  it  is  used  for  bridges  and  such  work  on  account  of 
its  great  size  and  strength.  It  occurs  all  over  the  Peninsula. 
Rotan  Bakau,  Calamus  nquatilis.  Ridl.  is  a large  very  thorny 
dark  coloured  rattan  common  in  tidal  swamps.  It  is  about  30  feet 
long,  the  sheaths  covered  thickly  with  black  bri-^tle-like  spines,  the 
leaves  large  with  numerous  equidistant  linear  leaflets  a foot  long 
and  an  inch  across,  and  ending  in  a long  flagellum.  The  inflores- 
cence is  very  large  and  stout,  with  ver}’  thornv  tubular  sheaths. 
The  fruit  is  small  globular  beaked  half  an  inch  long  yellow,  or 
brownish  yellow. 
The  rattan  is  moderately  stout,  white,  ^ inch  through  the  joints 
6 to  7 inches  long. 
It  is  used  for  making. legs  of  chairs,  walking  sticks  and  for  split 
rattan. 
Rotan  Segar  Perak,  Calamus  coesius y Bl.  has  a very  slender  stem 
j inch  through  light  green  covered  with  a grev  bloom  easily  rubbed 
off,  and  armed  with  short  sharp  thorns.  The  leaver;  are  about  4 feet 
long  with  a slender  rachis  ending  in  a fine  flagellum  armed  with 
thorns.  \ he  leaflets  in  distant  alternate  pairs  or  fascicles  of  3 or 
4 together  lanceolate,  narrowed  at  both  ends,  edged  with  bristles 
at  the  tip,  light  green  above  and  white  beneath. 
