164 AKNALS OF THE EOYAL BOTAKIC GAEDEN, CALCtnTA. [(J, S c h w e ' i n f u r t hH
broad conic rather obtuse point, 16-18 mm. long, 11-12 mm. broad; scales in 15-18
series, shiuing, deeply channelled along; the middle, yellowish-brown with a darker,
narrow, rusty-reddish, intramarginal line, the tip ratlier acute and, like the margins,
•erosely toothed. Seed ovoid or oblong, 10-12 mm. long, rounded to both ends or
slightly apiculate, convex and obsoletely furrowed longitudinally on the back,
slightly flattened, with an elliptic, not very deep central chalazal fovea on the rapha]
side; albumen bony, equable; embryo basal.
HABITAT.—Central Africa : discovered by Dr. Schweinfurth in the Niam-Niam
country at Maosilli (No. 2860, 7th February 1870), and at Nabambisso, 6th May
1870 (No. 3703); at Lado on the White Nile, collected in fruit by Dr.
Emin Pasha,, 1883 (Herb. Schweinfurth); Ussororo, collected by Dr. Stuklmann (Emin
Pasha Exp., 1891, No. 2531 in Herb. Schweinfurth).
OBSEEVATIONS.—I have been able to write an almost complete description
of this, Dr. Schweinfurth having most liberally placed in my hands all his
specimens of Calamoid. palms from Central Africa, which apparently belong to only
•one species (that described above) and to an Eremoapatha, apparently new but allied
to E, Sookerii {E. Schwdnfitrtkii Becc.; S Schweinfurth No. 3675). Sohweinfurth's
specimens of C. Sahweinfurthii are of a few entire leaves detached from full-grown
plants and of the terminal portion of some young leafy shoots ; while those of
Dr. Emin Pasha consist only of some partial inflorescences with ripe fruit without
leaves. There is not therefore any absolute evidence that the leaves described by
me and the fruit belong to the same species, still I hare little or no doubt about
it as both fruit and leaves are very similar to the corresponding parts of the
other true African Calami and especially to C. deerratua and C. H&udehtii.
C. Schieeinfurthii differs from C. deerratm in its leaves having a very long petiole
and in its fruit having larger not fimbriate scales; from G. Reudelotii in its larger
and thicker spikelets with broadly infundibuliform spathels and in the different omamentation
of the ocrea. The fruit and the seed in the three mentioned species are
very similar; certainly they are very nearly allied specics. I first assigned the
name of C. Schweinfurthii in 1892 to a specimen (Schweinf. No. 2860) which I had
seen in the Herbarium at Kew. Now Prof. 0. Drude in a paper on the Palms of
Tropical Africa in Englex's " Boianiscke JahrMcher xxi, 1896," mentions my C.
Schweinfurlhii and insists on referring it to Ancisirophyllum secmdijlorum, basing this
opinion on the supposition that all non-ciiriferous leaves in Calamus must belong to
young plants, and adding that these leaves ought not to be collected and preserved
in good collections ; but it is quite certain that entire sections of Calamus never have
cirriferous leaves, and to this class belong all the African Calami known to me.
Moreover, the leaflets of Anoistrophyllum • are slightly sigmoid, while in C.
Schieeinfurthii, as in all true Calami (African or Asiatic), the leaflets are straight.
The diagnostic characters of C. Schweinfurthii are the elongate leaves with the
petiole very long, flat above and round beneath; the numerous inequidistant, not
distinctly fascicled, narrowly ensiform leaflets: the ocrea prolonged externally and
spinulous on the ventral face ; the female spikelets thick, with broad infundibuliform
C. paehystemonus] BECCAEI. MONOFFBAPH OF THE GENUS OALAiiua. 165
epathels; the fruit scales broad, in 15-18 longitudinal series, with narrow erosely
toothed margin.
PLATE 26.—Calamus Schweinfurthii Becc. Basal portion of leaf from a young
plant (Schweinfurth No. 3703) on the right hand side; basal portion and apex of a
leaf from an adult plant (Schweinfurth No. 2860 ); partial inflorescence with mature
fruit from a specimen collected by Emin Pasha (Herb. Schweinf.); seed from the
dorsal side; seed longitudinally cut through the embryo.
21. CAIAMUS PÄCUYSTEM0NÜ8 Thw. Enum. PI, Zeyl. Addenda, p. 431; Hook. f.
Fl. Brit. Ind. vi, 443; Becc. in Ree. Bot. Surv. Ind. ii, 201.
C. gracilis (not of Roxb.). Thw. I.e., 330.
DESCBIPTION.—Scandent, very slender. Shtatksd stem about 7 mm, in diam.
Zeaf-skeaths slightly gibbous above, sparingly armed with straight, solitary, scattered,
unequal, very short and conical spines, which are occasionally 5-8 mm. long,
horizontal and subulate. Ocrea in full-grown leaves very short, horizontally truncate,
unarmed. Leaves short, 30-40 cm. long, not cirrjferous, pauci-jugatej petiole very
short, 3-4 cm. long, sub-terete, obsoletely channelled above, or less armej
beneath and at the sides with scattered unequal, mostly conical, straight, very short
spines; rachis slightly furfuraceous, acute and bifaoed above, more or less convex
below where aculeate throughout up to the apex mainly along the middle; the lower
aculei usually straight, the upper ones shorter and hooked or transformed into claws-
Lujlets very few, 3-3 on oach side, with a terminal pair, the side-leaflets
irregularly set, 3-7 cm. apart, chartaceous, rigidulous, concavo-convex, almost shining
above, slightly paler beneath, lanceolate, ovate-laooeolate or lanceolate-elliptic or
oblanoeolate or sub-obovate, 12-lS cm. long and 3 cm. broad (the lowest the
smallest), tapering towards and acute at the base, rather suddenly narrowed upwards
into an acuminate and bristly tip, end fm-nished with 3-5 fine and acute costa! which
run from the base up to the apex with minor nerves between them, all naked above •
the mid-costa stronger than the side ones, usually furnished with very few, short erect
spinules beneath, where the other nerves are smooth; margins acute, smooth (not ciliate
or spinulous), the lower one usually bordered on the upper surface with a rather broad
brown, polished band which is occasionally accompanied by a few others muning along
the main nerves; the two terminal leaflets larger and broader and more suddenly
acuminate than the side ones, connate up to about the middle. Male spadiz as in
0. iigitaim, with very few partial inflorescences (only two in the spadices seen) and
prolonged into a slender aculeolate flagollum; primary spathes very narrow and long
cylindrical, strictly sheathing as in C. digitaim; partial inflorescences 10^14 cm
long, narrow, dense, of equal breadth at the base and at the apex, ascendent at first'
then arched and nodding, insetted inside their own spathe; secondary spathes tnbnlarmfundibuliform,
finely striate, produced at the apex at one side into a deSexed pointspikelets
short, l - l - o cm. long, strongly arched downwards or subseorpioid, inserted at
the mouth of their own spathe with a distinct axillary callus and bearing 5-15 very
closely packed flowers on each side; spathels scale-like, concave, strongly veined acuteinvolucre
cupular, shorter than the spathels, obscurely and broadly 3-toothod, 'strongly
veined. Male Jlower, slender, cylindrical, 0 mm. long and 2 mm. thick, slightly
curved, obtnse and somewhat callous at the top; calyx campanulate, strongly striately