2 6 4 ANNALS OF T H E R O T A I , BOTANIC GABDEN, C.TLCUTTA. TENUL'S.
the largest 15-20 cm. long, bearing on each side 7-10 distichous spikelets;
primary spathes as in the male spadix; secondary spathes tubular-infundibuliform,
6-10 mm. long, closely sheathing, unarmed, obliquely truncate and entire at the
mouth, apioulate at one side; spikolets arched, spreading or deflexed, inserted above
the mouth of their own spathe with a distinct axillary callus, 2-4 cm. long
spathels shortly tubular-infnndibuliform, tn;ncato at the mouth; inTolucrophorum
subdiecoid, almost exsert from its own spathel and sometimes subpedicellate, laterally
attached to the base of the spathel above its own, distinctly callous at its axilla
next to the axis; involucre Bubdiscoid or almost flat; areola of the neuter flower
deprcssedly lunate. Flozoers of the young spikelets very distinctly 4-seriate, each
female flower being accompanied by a well-developed neuter flower. Fmale Jloivers
ovate, small, 3 mm. long; calyx shortly 3-toothed; corolla as long as the calyx,
divided down almost to the base into 3 lanceolate acute segments; stamens with
filaments forming a cup by their connate bases and subulate in the free portion;
anthers sagittate. Neuter flowers tbiimer, but almost as long as the female one?
Fruiting perianth distinctly pedicelliform, the calyx callous at the base, cylindraceous,
about 1-5 moi. thick. Fruit globose or slightly longer than broad, 10-11 mm. in diam.
shortly but distinctly and acutely beaked, 12 mm. long, including the beak but not
the pedicelliform perianth ; scales in 15 series, narrowly channelled along the middle,
pale-yellowish, shining, with short, rather obtuse, usually dark tip; margins scarious,
pale or brownish, finely erosely toothed. Seed ovoid, rounded at both ends, about
8 mm, in length and 5-6 mm. thick, irregularly grooved and coarsely pitted on the
back, with a rather deep round clmlazal fovea in the centre of the raphal side;
albumen equable; embryo basal.
HABITAT.—In North India from Kumaon eastwards to Burma and Cochinohina:
N. W. India, Royle in Herb. Petrop.; the Bhdbars in Kumaon, Slrachcy ^ Winterloitom
in Herb. Kew; at Goyalpara in the Pro v. of Rungpura, .Hamilton;
frequent in Oriental Bengal and Assam; West Huars at Muraghat, Gamble; Silhet,
Roxhtrgh; Chittagong, Hooker f . ¿r Thomson. In Burma at Rangoon, MeChlland in H.
Kew J at Scinego on the High Irawaddy, Fea in Herb. Becc.; in Lower Cochinchina,
on the mountains Dinh (Mu-xoai), near IBaria, Fi&rre.
The Rotang of this species is very much used for domestic work. It is called
Jatee Bhet" in Assam aud "May dan" in Coohinchina.
OBSERVATIONS.—Distinguished from the allied species by its numerous equidistant
Hnear-ensiform three-costate leaflets, the y costae bristly above, and beneath only the
mid-costa sparingly spinulous. Peculiar characters of C. tenuis are also the male
spikelets which, when fully charged with flowers, are like those of a Digiiaria; the
male flowers quite exsert from tho involucres and with a corolla with an unusually Jong
tube; the female flowers completely exsert from the involucres and accompanied by a
very well developed neuter flower, so that the female spikelets when young have 4
distinct series of fiowers.
In some specimens of C. tenuis originally coming from Chittagong and cultivated
at Buitenzorg, the spines of the leaf-sheaths have their base so extended at the sides
and the point on the spine so little evolute that one spine being in contact with the
G. tenuis.'] BECCANR. MONOGRAPH o r TIIE GENUS CALAMUS. 26&
next they form continuous transverse and superficial crests or ridges; the leaflets in
these specimens, which seem to form the transition between C. tenuis and C. Imrrem,
are furnished at the base of the mid-costa with the characteristic small spinule.
I entertain no doubt ubout the identification of C. Royleanus Qriff,, with 0. lenuis
Roxb., having seen authentic specimens of both.
I have reduced also C. Heliotropium to C. tenuis, chiefly in consideration of its
native country, though Griffith had compared it with C. Icptospadix. I have not seen
Hamilton's Catalogue of dried plants; Martius himself seems to quote this work on
tho faith of Griffith; but Martius adds that he has seen specimens of C. Ileliolropiim
sent to him by Wallich. According to Griffith, Hamilton I'efers to his C. Heliotropium
the Fhoenicoscorpiuns of Plukenet's Phytographia, pi. 106, f. 2, but I agree with
Ifartius (1, c. p. 334) that this figure is more like C. Rotang (L.) Roxb. than any
other.
Hamilton's Catalogue, where Griffith (Palms p. x) says that 4 species of Calamus
are enumerated, is a manuscript work, and is not mentioned in Pritzel's Thesaurus
I n any case tho first description known of C. llelioiropitm is that published by
Martius in vol. iii, p. 334 of his great work, and consequently if this d,<es not
differ from C. tenuis, this last name has the right of priority. The description of
C. IMofropiim by Martius exactly agrens with the specimens of C. tenuis liavin<5-
young male flowers when the corolla is hardly longer than the calyx, whnreas the
fully developed male flowers have the corolla twice as long as the calyx. After all
I do not know any Indian species of Calamiig, with fully developed male flowers,
where tho corolla is as long as the calyx. Plate cxci of the Palms of British India
with tho namo of C. Royleanus, represents a portion of tho spadix of C. tenuis with
exaggerated pedicellate immature fniit. I also regard C. tenuis as identical with Calamus
cmarvs of Loureiro, judging from some sterile specimens collected by Pierre in Cochinchina
and labelled with the same indigenous name as is assigned by Loureiro to
his C. amarui. Nevertheless I do not think it proper to adopt the name of Loureiro
though more ancient, not having better documents to prove tho identification.
Pierre's Cochin Chinese specimens of C. lenuis have the unsheathed stem 15-17
mm. in diam.; with the surface shining and glassy of a yellowisb-greeu colour- the
leaflets have 3 bristly nerves in the upper surface and are undiatinguishablo from
those of the more characteristic Indian specimens, but they are without the small spinule
at the baso of the mid-costa. The 3-costate and not l-costate leaflets easily distinguish
C. tenuis from C. Rotang.
PLATE 94.-Calamus tenuis Roxb. Poi-tion of a sheathed stem {on the right
hand side) from a specimen collected by Sig. Fea in Burma (Herb. Becc.); portion
of a stem with the ba..es of two leaves and of two spadices ; an intermediate portion
of a leaf (upper surface), from a specimen cultivated in the Botatdc Garden at
Buitenzorg and derived from Chittagong (in Herb. Becc.); au entire leaf tvith a fruit
spadix (of a small plant) from a specimen collectod at Barisat by G. B Clarke (in
Herb. Becc.); a branchlet of a mala spadix with detached flowers, from Falconer's
Mo. 1229 in Herb. Petr.; two female spikelets with young flowers from Chittagong,.
A S S . ROT. BOX. GAR.N. CALCUTTA TOL. XL