BEGONIACEAE 



379 



Schliissel (1866) 66, correctly reduced Palacca Rumph. to Octo- 

 meles, but considered the species to be distinct from O. suma- 

 trana Miq., calling it Octomeles moluccana. Warburg later 

 considered that the oriental Malayan form was distinct from 

 the one found in the Sunda Islands and described it as new 

 under Octomeles moluccana Warb. I believe that K. Schumann 

 and Lauterbach were correct in reducing Octomeles moluccana 

 Warb. to 0. sumatrana Miq. At any. rate, if two species are 

 represented, Teysmann and Binnendyck should be quoted as the 

 authority for Octomeles moluccana, for although they published 

 no description, their name is typified by Palacca as described and 

 figured by Rumphius. 



BEGONIACEAE 



BEGONIA Linnaeus 



BEGONIA TUBEROSA Lam. Encycl. 1 (1785) 393 (type!), excl. syn. B. 

 capensis Linn. 



Diploclinium tuberosum Miq. Fl. Ind. Bat. 1 1 (1856) 685. 

 Empetrum acetosum I album Rumph. Herb. Amb. 5: 457, t. 169, f. 2. 



Amboina, Batoe gadjah and Batoe merah, Robinson PL Rumph. Amb. 65, 

 August, 1913, altitude 15 to 200 meters, on rocks. 



Empetrum acetosum was originally reduced by Linnaeus to 

 Begonia obliqua Linn., in Amoen. Acad. 4 (1759) 133, Sp. PL ed. 

 2 (1763) 1497, in which he was followed by Burman f., FL Ind. 

 (1768) 222. This disposition of it was entirely erroneous, as 

 Begonia obliqua Linn, is an American species. Lamarck, 

 Encycl. 1 (1785) 393, made it the type of his Begonia tuberosa. 

 It is true that Lamarck erroneously gives as the first citation 

 Begonia capensis Linn., but that he intended the Rumphian 

 figure to typify his plant is manifest from his specific name. 

 This was taken from the tuber-like lower part of the plant as 

 shown in Rumphius's figure, which, however, was intended merely 

 to represent a portion of the rock on which the plant grows. 

 De Candolle, Prodr. 15 1 (1864) 323, mentions this tuber-like 

 portion of the drawing thus : "Ex ic. Rumphii tuber 3 poll, 

 crassum et habitus totus Cyclaminis." 



Possibly referable here is Robinson PL Rumph. Amb. 66 from 

 Lateri and Koesoekoesoe sereh, August and September, 1913, 

 on rocks, with smaller leaves than No. 65, cited above, in which 

 the leaves are distinctly purplish when dry. Doctor Robinson 

 thought this might represent Empetrum acetosum rubrum 

 Rumph. Herb. Amb. 5 : 457, but Rumphius describes this form 

 as having leaves a palm wide, which is not true of No. 66. 



