290 ANNALS OP THE EOYAL BOTA:iiIC GARDEN, CALCUTTA. [Q, perakensis.
HABITAT Borneo: on mount Matfcang, near Kuching in Sarawak, Beacari P. B.
No. 1933 (male specimen).—Malay name " Rotang Champaka." Used to make walkingsticks.
The s plant found by Dr. Haviland also in Sarawak (No. 437 in Herb. Kew.)
OBSERVATIOSS.—Apparently related to C. ramosissimus and perakenis, but the spathes
are tubular and not open flat.
I have described the female spadis from a specimen preserved at Kew and collected
by Dr. Haviland in Sarawak, which has only a portion of a partial inflorescence with
flowers during the anthesis, To this specimen is joined a single detached fruit, which,
however, I have described as that of this species on account of its peculiar perfectly
cylindraceous mucro resting on the top of the sphaeric f r u i t ; this mucro exactly corresponding
to the columnar style of the flowers in the said specimen. The characteristics
of C. lacularu are:—the erect stem; the loaf-sheaths armed with long spines, open
on the ventral side and gradually passing into the petiole, this long and armed at the
base with long horizontal spines; the leaflets equidistant, narrowly lanceolate, shining,
3-co8tate; the spadices erect, unanned, the spathes tubular; male flowers narrow and
PLATE 107.—Calamus bacularis Becc. Upper part of a leaf-sheath with the base
of a leaf; an intermediate portion (under-surface) and the terminal part (upper
surface) of a leaf; male spadix.—From Beccari P. B. No. 1933.
90. CALAMUS PF.RAKENSIS Becc. in Hook. f. Fl. Brit. Ind.
Bot. Surv. Ind. ii. 207.
4.51, and in
DESCRIPTION.—Not scandent, with a very short erect stem. Leaf-sheaths not flag-
«lliferoua, open longitudinally on the ventral side, 2-5 cm. in diam., passing
gradually into the petiole, rather densely armed, chiefly on the back, with solitary
spreading ascendent or slightly deflexed, rigid, elastic, narrow, subulate, reddish
brown, polished, 1-2 cm. long spines; near the margins and mainly near the
mouth at the base of the petiole the spines are longer, some of them attaining
the length of 6-7 cm. Ocrea inconspicuous (or soon deciduous ?). Leaves
not cirriferous, rather large, 1-1'3 m. in length; petiole rather long (30-35
cm.), robust and rigid, in its upper surface smooth, channelled near the base
and flattish or slightly convex upwards; the margins obtuse, very powerfully
armed, chiefly near the base, with approximate horizontal elastic subulate straight
long spines, which have a base swollen above and sometimes are even 6-7 cm.
in length and are often intermingled with small straight prickles; the lower surface
of the petiole is round and very closely armed along the middle with a series
of small solitary claws; the rachis on its upper surface, near the base, is channelled
at the sides and bif aced and smooth upwards; the under-sutf ace is
round in its lower portion, where armed with 3 lines of small approximate solitary
claws, and is flattish upwards where the claws are confined to along the
middle; leaflets very numerous, equidistant, and very regularly set at a wide
angle, 2-0 cm. apart or less in smaller specimens, rather rigid, papyraceous,
almost shining on both surfaces, slightly paler beneath, ensiform, lanceolate-ensiform
or even narrowly lanceolate, slightly narrowed to the base, where suddenly plicate,
C' puahems.'\ beccaei. monogeaph or t h e gexds calamus. 291
gradually long-acuminate at the summit into a setaceous and bristly ciliate apex,
acutely tricoatate, the mid-costa slightly stronger than ihe side ones, the three
bristly-spinulpus above, beneath the central costa very finely and closely, and
the side ones more sparingly spinulous; margins rather cloiely ciliate with
erecto-patent spinules; transverse yeinlets rather sharp, numerous, much interrupted;
the largest leaflets in vigorous specimens 30 em. long, 17-18 mm. broad, but
sometimes only 10 cm. long and 1 cm. broad; the upper ones suddenly
shorter; the two of the terminal pair quite free at the base. Male spadia
• erect, rather rigid, 0'6 to 1-3 m. long, with 3-4 partial inflorescences partially
ultradecompound, with an elongate flattened plano-convex acutely two-edged
peduncle, the edges spinulous or unarmed ; it terminates in a partial inflorescence
or in the more robust specimens in a slender, flattened, unarmed, more or
less elongate, tail-like appendix ; primai-y spathes rather closely sheathing in their
lower portion, ^mrsting longitudinally upwards and prolonged into a reddish-brown,
finely striate, unarmed, rigid, papyraceous, Hnear-Ianceolate, long-acuminate limb
which is almost polished inside, opaque and more or less scaly-furfuraccous
outside, longer than its own inSorescenco cr even one-third or one-half
shorter and explanate in the lower spathes and auriculiform in the
upper ones ; the lowpst primary spatho has a closely sheathing, strongly flattened,
plano-convex, acutely two-edged basilar part, which is a good deal longer in
the upper ones ; the edges smooth or armed with slender needle-like ascendent
spines and the back prickly or smooth; partial inflorescences laxly panicled
erect, very conspicuously callous at their insertion, with a straight rigid axis'
the larger 30 cm. long with 3-4 branchlets or compound spikelets on each side
in its lowest part and some simple distichous spikelets upwards; the branchlets
and the spikelets also with a very large axillaiy callus; the lowest branchlets, the
largest, 8-10 cm. long with 10-12 gradually f'iminishing spikelets oo each side;
axial portions between two partial inflorescences straight, rigid, obsoletely angular o-j
somewhat flattened, smooth or more or less furnished with small claws on the
outer side ; secondary spathes membranous, exsuccous, smooth, lubular-infundibuliform,
sheathing only a portion of the axis, entire and obliquely truncate at the
mouth, prolonged at one side into an acuminate patent point ; simple spikelets
rather thick, horizontally inserted with a distinct axillary callus, the largest, the
lowest ones, about 2 cm. long with 6-8 flowers on each side; those of the
summit very few-flowered ; spathels very closely packed, concave-bracteiform with a.
broadly triangular pateut or deflexed acute point ; involucre subtended by its spathel,
more or less irregularly cupuîar, rather deep, entire or obsoletely bideutate on the
aide next to the axis. 3Icile jlowers elongate, cvlindraceous, moro oi* less narrowed
et the summit, 4-Ô-5 mm. long, 1'5 mm. thick; the calyx cylindraceous, flat at
the base, obsoletely striately veined, its teeth short, broadly triangular; corolla
twice as long as the calyx; the segments narrowly lanceolate-acuminate, shining.
Femak spadix like the male but simply decompound ; partial inflorescences few
(3-4), attached to the axis with a very conspicuous callus and a transverse rima
erecto-patent, with a rigid and rather thick slightly sinuous axis, which is more
or less marked by the impressions of the flowers when in the bud, the largest
ones 15-30 cm. long with 5-6 spikelets on each side; secondary spathes as in the
male spadix, but sometimes with the point more prolonged and exsuccous ;
ÁNH. BOY. B o i . GAKU. C