bituminosa 3 of Bergius, a Cape plant, quoted by Willdenow 
among the synonyms of the European species, although 
described as having terminal flowers, which in the European 
plant are axillary. 
A branching upright shrub, in the specimen we saw, the 
only one probably in the country, about 3 feet high; 
branches round, striate, softly pubescent. Leaves scat- 
tered, distant, patent, leaflets obovately oblong or lanceo- 
lately oval, mucronate, thinly pubescent, dark green, and 
somewhat glossy at the upper side, silky and whitish at the 
under, with several closish lateral riblike nerves, depressed - 
at the margin, terminal one the largest and sometimes an 
inch and half long, three times~as long as the villous one- 
furrowed petiole, or more: stipules double, equal to the 
petiole, upright, pressed to the branch, lanceolately linear, 
densely pubescent outwards. Peduncles several, solitary, 
axillary in the uppermost leaves, striately round, upright, 
slightly haired, blackish above, furnished at the hase with 
opposite bractes enclosed within the stipules and black- 
furred. Flower-head depressedly hemispherical, many-. 
flowered, with an znvolucre of membranous ovately lanceo4 
late externally black-furred leaflets, which are even with 
the tips of the calyces. Bractes threefold, leaflets quite 
distinct, and like those of the general involucre, but much 
narrower, Calyx large in proportion to the flower, pale 
green, black-furred ; 4 upper segments acuminate, equal, the 
lowermost fifth almost twice the length of these, and nearly 
equal to the corolla, lanceolate, long-pointed, and stretching 
along the keel of the corolla, Corolla about % of an inch 
in length; petals of one length, long unguiculated, pale 
below, violet-blue above, veined and streaked throughout; 
vexillum rounded, obcordate, reflectent, with a deep plait 
along the middle, ungues vaulted: wings and keel compres- 
sedly connivent, bent towards the vexillum, the blades of 
the wings oblong, obtuse, violet above; keel enclosed, with 
very long ungues, blades ovate cohering at the ends, where 
they are of a deep purple violet. Filaments in two bodies, 
one of which is a single sterile one, the others straight as 
far as the length of the keel, thence turned up at a right 
angle: anthers pale yellow, small. Germen compressed, 
short: style long, capillary, smooth, white, bent upwards 
near the stigma at a right angle, thickened at the bend: 
stigma pointed, pubescent, upright, green. 
—>— 
a Calyx. 6 Vexillum. c Alex. d Carina. e Stamens. /f Pistil. 
