Stipules in the Stellatae, with special reference to Galium . 207 
The particular specimen referred to above was distributed under No. 7093 
of J. Bornmiiller, Iter Persicum alterum. It measures about 4 cm. high, 
and possesses four ‘ leaves ’ at each of the first two nodes, while the third 
node, which is situated immediately below the inflorescence, has six ‘ leaves ’. 
One of the two stipules of the second node has the lamina and midrib 
forked (Fig. 20), while the other is normal. 
It is therefore evident that, so far as our knowledge goes, in Galium and 
in some allied genera, the species with several to many ‘ leaves ’ at each 
node generally start in the seedling with a four-membered whorl, which 
is succeeded by whorls consisting of a larger number of ‘ leaves 
Correlating these facts, it appears probable that in the Stellatae the four- 
membered whorl (composed of two true leaves and an interfoliar stipule on 
each side of the stem) represents the more primitive type, while the whorls 
with more than four members (i. e. with more than two stipules) represent 
a derived type. 
In connexion with the arrangement of ‘ leaves ’ in the seedlings, it may 
be of no little interest to examine the manner in which double stipules 
(i. e. those with a forked or double midrib) are distributed on the stem 
of adult plants, and their relation to the ‘ leaves ’ at the neighbouring nodes. 
Among the three ‘ four-leaved ’ species of Galium above mentioned, 
G. gracile , in which double stipules are frequently met with, produces 
the stipules of this nature generally in the middle and upper regions, 
and only rarely near the base of the stem. If a double stipule is present at 
a node, it is often found that a few succeeding nodes also bear one or two 
stipules of the same character. In some cases, double stipules may be 
found at several nodes on a stem, while in the more usual cases such 
stipules are produced only at one or two nodes. Asperula trijida , Makino, 1 
furnishes us with a more interesting case. This rare species is a perennial, 
and occurs in certain mountainous districts of Japan. The plant was 
described as having ‘leaves four — rarely five — verticillate’, but it occasionally 
produces as many as six ‘ leaves ’ at a node. The specimens examined 
were gathered on Mount Ishidzuchi, in the Province of Iyo, in August, 
1888, and were sent to Kew from the Tokyo Imperial University. They 
bear four, more usually five, ‘ leaves ’ at each of the lower nodes, and often 
six ‘leaves’ to the node in the middle region of the stem (vide infra). 
Towards the upper part of the stem, a six-membered whorl is as a rule 
suddenly succeeded by four-membered whorls. Those whorls which are 
situated in close proximity to the inflorescence have the stipules much 
reduced in size. 2 * The arrangement of the ‘ leaves 5 in one of the specimens 
1 Illustr. FI. Japan, vol. i, No. n (1891), p. 2, tab. 68; and in Tokyo Bot. Mag., vol. xvii 
(1903), p. 72. 
2 See the excellent figures by Makino, 1 . c. This feature is often met with in the Stellatae. It 
is especially noticeable in such a species as Asperula asterocephala , Bornm., above referred to. 
