156 ANNALS OP THE EOYAL BOTANIC GARDEN, CALCUTTA. [¿J. DEPRP.SSIUSOULUS
most persists and is flat or slightly coucave (at least in its uppor part), is
apathulate-cunoifonu, and gradually narrows from near the upper end towards the base,
internally it is glabrous and polished, estarnally grey and rusty-furfuraceous, armed more
or less on the back, and especially near the base, or at least on its two very obsolete
keels, with solitary or fascicled, spreading, often shortly seriate, hlackisli spiciilaaj inaeispathes
smaller, deciduous, slightly spinulous along the dorsum but quite smooth
in the cultivated plant; the pedicellar pai-t of the epadix is rather short, armed with
fascicled, subverticillate, spreading, needle-like spines; the flowering panicle is strict or
very slenderly cupressiform; all the asial parts are covered with a rusty-furfuraceous
iudumentum; the main axis is aubterete in its lower part, irregularly augular higher
up, and bears 8-10 partial inflorescences which are much branched, appressod to the
mnin axis, 10-12 cui. !ong, and cupressiform on the whole; secondary spathes scale
like, scariouB, extended at one side into a broad triangular point; the branchlets
have 8-9 spikelots on each side, which are bifariously set, but all turned outwardsthe
lower fpikelets are the largest, 1 cm. long, and have 8-10 sub-uiiilaterally set;
flowers in aU, the others successively ehorfcer, and with fewer flowers; thoir axes
are filiform, angular, indented at the insertion of each flower; spathes very small,
very shortly produced at one side into a small rounded limb; the involucre has no
distinct limb and is reduced to a circular rim. Male floioers obbng, obtuse, very
small, 3-3"5 mm. in length; the cal3'x very small aud short, divided almost
down to the base into 3 small triangular acuta teeth; petals oblong, strongly
Btriately veined. Femnle spadiz not seen entire by me; female spikelets 4 cm. long
with comparatively numerous, approximata, bifarious flowers (f-S on each side); the
axes rather slender, sinuius, acutely 3-gonoas and covered with a thin adherent
rusty-brown indumentum; spathels very shortly annular, slightly produced at one
side into a small triangular point; iuvolucroplnrura pedicolliform, short and thick,
about 1 mm. long, with a distinct axillary cillus, and without a distinct limb;
involucre almost on a level with the involucrophorum, discoid, orbicular, slightly-convex,
also without a distinct limb; areola of the neuter flower very small, punctiform.
Fndtin^ perianth almost flat. Fruit rather small, globular-depressed, raucronateumbonate
in the centre, 12-13 mm. in diatn; scales an-anged in 18 longitudinal
series, rhomboidal, almost as broad as long, narro wly grooved along ihe centre,
straw-coloured especially in the central part but reddish at the edges, their point
not produced, obtuse, the margins entire very narrowly scarious. Seed conspicuously
depressed, subreniform, mimitely pitted, slightly aod almost equally convex on both
surfaces, 10 mm. long, 8"o mm. broad, 6 mm. high, very deeply ruminated; the
chalazal fovea small, pit-like, narrow and deep, situated on the raphal side not far
above the base; embryo almost central on one of tae surfaces.
HABriAT.—Sumatra. The type specimen was collected in Sumatra by Teijsmann,
but the exact locality is not known. I considor as belonging to D. depressiusculus,
a fruiting spadix collected in the forests near Mount Sibajak, in the Battak country,
Residency of Deli in W. Sumatra, aud sent by Mr. Vriens to Professor Martelli in
1905,
IS.—I have received the fruits of the true
et Binn. from the Herbarium of Utrecht; these 1 have described, and upon these the
D. Gaudichaudii'\ BECOAEI. THE SPECIES OP DAEMONOBOPS. 1 5 7
-species is established. But I have described the male plant from that cultivated at
Buitenzorg under the name of Calamus depressiusculus, which is almost certainly derived
from seeds of the same gathering as the fruits mentioned above.
In tlie specimen from Mount Sibajak the fruits are not so plainly depressed and
are longer pedicclled, being borne on an involucrophorum 2-3 mm. long; also the
seed is not so conspicuously flattened.
D. depressiusculus is very closly related to J}. Riedelianus aud D. Gaudichaudii, but
distinguishable by its smaller fruit aud the more flattened seed.
PLATE 63.—Daemonorops depressiusculus Bccc. Lower portion of a male spadix
before flowering; male spadix in flower; upper portii.n of a leaf-sheath and base of
the petiole; inteimediate portion of a leaf (upper surface). From a plant cultivated
at Buitenzorg (Herb. Beccari). A spikelet with mature fruits and one seed, from the
typo specimen in the Herbarium at Utrecht.
DAEMOXOUOPS GAUDICHAUDII Mart. Hist. Nat. Palm, iii, 331; Walp. Ann. iii,
481 aud V, 829; Becc. in Ree. Bot, Surv. Ind. ii, 226, aud in
Perkins, Fragm. FI. Philipp, i, 47, and in Wobbia. i. 365, and in Philip.
Journ, of Science, iii, 342.
Cahmiiis Gaudidmidn H. Wendl. in Kerch. Palm. 236.
Daemonorops fuscus Mart. Hist. Nat Palm, iii, 331; Walp. Ann. iii, 481 and
Calamus usiiatus ¡5!anco, Fl. de Filip. 1st edit. (1837) 265 and Gran. Edte, i,
330; Kunth, Eimm. Plant, iii, 595.; Mart. Hist. Nat. Palm, iii, 340-
Walp. Ann. iii, 490 and v, 831 ; Miq. Fl. Ind. Bat. iii, 131.
DESCRIPTION.—Scandeut. Sheathed stem 2-4'5 cm. in diameter. Leaf-sheaiks gibbous
•abofe, more or less rusty-furfux-aceous when young, armed with variable but usually
thin, laminar, approximate, more or less seriate, rather long, blackish, spreading or
deflexed spiues; at times the spines are confluent by their bases, and several of
them are spiculiform; at the mouth the spines are as much as 7-8 cm. in length
and erect. Leaves large, 1-5-3 m. long in the pinniferous part; petiole about
20-40 cm. long, more or leas spinous on the edges, flattish or slightly concave on
the lowest part of its upper surface, where it is usually more or less covered with
erect prickles. Leaflets very numerous, equidistant, closely set, linear or linearensiform,
broadest below the middle, thence tapering towards the base, and
gradually acuminate upwards to a subulate bristly tip, papyraceous, green and
concolorous on both surfaces, 3-costulate; on the upper surface the mid-costa is
somewhat bristly-spinulous near the apex, the side coatae bristly from the
middle upwards at least; on the lower surface the mid-costa alone is rather closely
bristly; margins closely spinulous; transverse veinleta rather numerous, and almost
equally distinct on both surfaces ; the medial leaflets are 35-45 cm. long-, and 15-25
vmrai broad. Male spadix very similar to that of D. oUongus and allied species, about