Cassia.] 
XLIII. LEGUMINOS.F. 
457 
Section II. Cham^efistula. — Sepals obtuse. Stamens 10, 3 upper ones small 
and imperfect, 7 perfect, the 2 or 3 lower ones often larger or on longer filaments 
than the others ; anthers oblong-linear, the cells opening in terminal pores. 
Pod terete or turgid, or if compressed thick, woody coriaceous or membranous, 
indehiscent or 2-valved. Seeds some or all more or less flattened and lying 
horizontally in the pod (at right angles to the valves), separated hy complete or 
incomplete partitions or pulp. — Shrubs, or in species not Australian, tall herbs. 
Flowers in axillary pedunculate racemes or terminal panicles. 
3. *C. alata (winged), Linn; DC. Prod. ii. 492. A shrub attaining the 
height of 8 to 10ft., glabrous or subglabrous, the stipules deltoid, persistent. 
Leaves 1 to 2ft. long, rhachis acutely margined above when dry, glandular, with 
a prominent transverse ridge connecting the opposite leaflets Leaflets in 9 to 12 
pairs, oblong, obtuse, 2 to Gin. long, minutely mucronate, rigidly subcoriaceous, 
with an oblique truncate base, subsessile or petiolulate. Racemea pedunculate, 
^ to 1ft. long ; bracts large, membranous, f to lin. long, caducous, coloured, 
imbricate at first. Sepals coloured, membranous. Corolla yellow, veined. 
Stamens very unequal, the two anterior ones with enlarged strongly curved 
anthers. Pod membranous, linear, apiculate, 5 or Gin. long, about fin. broad, 
each valve with a very prominent crenate longitudinal wing extending the entire 
length of the valve. Seeds about 50, rhomboid-cuneate. 
Hab : This widely spread tropical shrub has of late years become naturalised in the Barren 
Biver district. — E. Cowley. 
4. C. laevigata (smooth -leaved), Willd.; Toy. Syn. Cass. 19 ; Benth. FI. 
Austr. ii. 282. An erect glabrous shrub of several feet. Leaflets 3 or 4 or rarely 
2 pairs, ovate to lanceolate, usually acuminate, If to Sin. long, with an oblong or 
slender gland between those of each pair. Racemes axillary, pedunculate, short 
and almost corymbose, the upper ones forming a short terminal panicle. Sepals 
unequal, the inner ones 4 or 5 lines long. Petals broad, very obtuse, varying 
from 4- to fin. Perfect anthers 4, almost sessile, 1 on a short and 2 on much 
longer filaments. Pod 2 to 3in. long, membranous or slightly coriaceous, 
cylindrical or more or less inflated when ripe, 2 to 3in. long, opening at length in 
2 valves. Seeds crowded and horizontal or the upper ones less crowded and 
almost vertical. — F. v. M. Fragm. iv. 14. 
Hab.: Near Brisbane, Kockingham Bay, F. v. Mueller. 
A common species in tropical America, occurring also in tropical Africa, but probably 
introduced there and perhaps not really indigenous in Australia. — Benth. 
5. C. Sophera (an Egyptian name), Linn.; Voy. Syn. Cass. 20, var. schini- 
folia (Pepistra-leaved) ; Bentli. FI. Austr. ii. 288. An erect shrub or undershrub 
of several feet, usually glabrous. Leaflets 4 to 10 pairs, lanceolate, mostly acute, 
1 to 2in. long, with an obovate or ovate acute gland on the petiole near the base. 
Racemes short and few-flowered, on short peduncles in the upper axils, and 
forming a narrow terminal almost raceme-like panicle. Sepals 3 to 4 lines 
long. Petals broad, obtuse. Perfect anthers, 2 larger than the others, all on 
short filaments. Pod 2 to 4in. long, at first flat but thick, when ripe terete or 
turgid, 2-valved. Seeds crowded and mostly or all horizontal. — C. schinifolia, A. 
DC. 7th Not. PI. Rar. Hort. Gen. 35 ; C. Barclayana, Sweet, FI. Austral, t. 32 ; 
Vog. Syn. Cass. 45 ; F. v. M. Fragm. iv. 14. 
Hab.: Burdekin River, F. v. Mueller; near Fort Cooper, Thozet; Moreton to Rockingham 
Bay, Dallachy, C. Stuart ; Ipswich, Nernst. 
Var. puhescens. Branches, petioles, and inflorescence more or less pubescent. Petiolar gland 
occasionally disappearing. — Broadsound, It. Broivn, Bowman. 
This species, in its glabrous form, is common in E. India and the Archipelago, and in tropical 
Africa. It is there often confounded with C. occidentalis, of which I had formerly considered it 
a variety, and under which it is included in Hooker and Thomson’s Indian distributions. The 
latter species is, however, annual, with the few leaflets of C. laviyata, but with the petiolar gland 
of C. Sophera, and the pod remains flat, although thick when ripe. — Benth. 
