164 AX>-ALS OF EOYAL BOTANIC GAED1Ì:>-, CALCUITA.
2 to 4-5 in. broad. Flowering stem stout, 4 to 8 in. long, leafless, but with 4 to 6 blunt
spathaceous bracts. Floieers spicate. Calyx tubular, pubescent, membrauous, with tha-ee
short subequal sub-acute lobes shorter than the corolla-tube. Corolla in two whorls of 3
each; the outer whorl pinkish, with a dorsal ovate segment and two lateral shorter and
naiTower segments, all subacute; inner whorl yellowish, shorter than the outer, the two
lateral segments broad, obovate, eniarginate, the middle lobe rhomboidal, coacave with a
central thick ridge from base to apex ; at the base a ti-ausverso recurved process, and at
t h e sides of the base two purple divergent fleshy processes (staminodos). FerliU siamen
incurved, shorter than the inner whorl of the corolla; the filament thick and fleshy; anther
broadly elliptic, emarginate at base and apex, 2-celled, with longitudinal lateral dehiscence.
Ocary inferior, obliquely and nan-owly ellipsoid, striate, l-cclled; placentas 3,
p a r i e t a l ; style filiform, lying in a groove on the face of the filament and between the
anther-cells; stigma projecting slightly above the apex of the anther, minute, cup-shaped.
Cajmtle fusiform, TSo in long, 8- to 10- ribbed, piibesceut, crowned by the withered
segments of the perianth. Seeds broadly ovoid, -25 in. long, with a short white fleshy
arillus.
Sikkira Himalaya; growing in sand by the sides of streams from 800 to 3,">00 feet.
R. Pantling.
This interesting genus was founded by Kiirz ia the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal in the
volume for 1873, pt. 2, p. 108, t. YIII, Kurz regarded tha periantti as consisting of a tubular calys
in a singlo whorl, ¡md of a corolla in two whorls. But he did not observe (at least he did not describe)
the two staminodes at the base of the odd lobe of the inner whorl of the corolla which compete
the symmetry of the staminal -whorl. As a faot these stamiuodes do not appear to be well developed
in the only species which he knew, viz. S. Burmanica. In the plant now figured and described,
these ore most distinct ; and I venture to think that their existence invalidates the theory of the
flower ander which the lateral lobes of the inner whorl of the corolla are in this genus regarded as
staminodes.
PLATE 198. EemiorchU Panilingii, Kiog. 1, tliizon
flowerins stem; 2 outline of one of the Urgest leave:
PLATS 193. He,morcMs PantlinQii, Eing. B, tbizoi
7, side view of flower; 8, stamen, and middle lobe of ii
. slioi7ÌDg the relation o£ the bnd of tlie lcaf;-stora to the old
0/ natiral »ize-, 3 & 4, leaFy-stem : reiudi in >ite.
and flowering scape : of natural lizc \ 6, front view of flower ;
r whorl of corolla with the stiminodea at its base; 9, base o£
middle lobe cut off at ils junction with the tute; 10, part of OTary, tabe of corolla aad fertile stamen; II, fertile antbec
with stigmas projecting from its apex ; li, ripe fruit ; 13, a seed ; 14, section of the same : all enlarged.
P L A T E 200.
M i l u l a , nov. gen. Prain.
i^at. Ord. Liliaceae.
Tribus XII. Allieae ((fc/zíiVw«« parwn ampliata—hmctQQ.Q 1—=o, flores rarissimo spicati).
Siibtrihii» 1.* Mihdeae. (Sub-trib. nova próxima EiMltieis antepon e nel «ì. Bulbus tunicatas;
spica in scapo simpUci aphjllo termit>alis. Bractea membranacea subspica 1, braoieolue 0;
perianlhium gamophyllum ; androccium regulare. Capsula loeulidde dehiscens.
M i l u l a gen. nov. Prain in SE. Meni. Med. OS. Army India. Part IX, t. 1. Bulbus
t u n i c a t u s ; folia liguliformia ; inflorencentia spicata, bractea solitaria meaibranacea obtecta;
perianihiim gamophyllum C-partitum, lobis rotunclatis; stamina breviter epiphylla 6, petalis
opposita; ovarium syncarpium 3-loculare, stylo siinplice filiformi, ovula in ioculis
DESCRIPTIONS OP NEW AND RARE INDIAN PLANTS. 165
smgulia 2; capsula loculicide dehiscens, semimbus 2—3; testa corrugata et minutiasime
punctulata.
" M i l u l a spigata Prain, 1. e. Berla bulbo elongate dimidio inferiore squamis (foliorum
" veternm reliquiis) fibrosis vestito radicibus numerosis ; foUis lineari-laneeoiatis scapum
" fistulosum bulbo duplo longiorem aequantibus excedentibusue ; spica cylindrica bractea
" basali spathaoea ovato-acuminata inclusa, floribus viridi-rubescentibus parvulis plurimis
" campanulatis, scgnientis perianthii aoqualibus margine undulato-fimbriatis ; staminibus
" in seriebus duabus esteriòribus 3 carpollis alternantibus filameritis dimidio inferiore
" expansis petaloideis, interioribus 3 carpollis oppositis pardlo brevioribus iilamentis
" prorsus filiformibus, antheribus versatilibus omnibus perfectis ; ovario subgloboso ovulis
" ad angulum loculi interiorem parum supra basin afBxis ; capsula globosa ovulia in
" loculo quoque semper 1 nonnunquam ambobus abortis ; seminibus nigris.
" In HlJlAt-iYA 0KIKNTALI : Chumbi, apud Do-tho, Kingii mercenar. .'
" Bulbus 'prasinus' 4—7 cin. longus ; squamai fibrosfc — c m . ; ruclices
" 4—5 cm. ; folia viridia 10—15 cm. longa, hicc ^—^ cm. lata ; scaptis viridis liber
" 6—9 era. longus, i—^ era. cras.sus ; spica 2—5 cm. longa, 1 cm. diam. ; bractea 3 cm.
" longa hrec 2 era. lata; floiculi mm. lati periaathio 3^ mm. fìlamentis 4—5 mm.
" longis ; ovarium l-g inm. diam. stylo 2 mm. longo stigmate minimo; capsula 3 mm.
" lata tenui» ; semina 2^ mm. longa l-J mm. diam."
"Thia plant is ooe of the most interesting which the botanical inva.stigntion of the Eastern Himalaya,
conducted during the past twenty years ou behalf of the Governmeut of Bengal by the Superintendent
of tha Eoyal Botanic Garden, Calcutta, has revealed to science. It was obtained by one of
the native collectors of that garden in Cbmnbi, the valley which lies immediately to the east of Sikkim.
Polilieally, this valley is Tibetan; geographically, it forms part of the Himalayan region, since the stream
that drains it finds its way southwards through Bhutan and Assam to the Brahmaputra. lis Flora,
however, indicates that, though so near to Sikkim, it enjoys a comparatively dry climate. This is duo
to the fact that, in place of lying open, as does the basin o£ the Tista (which practically constitutes
Sikkim) to tbe moisture-laden currents that sweep up from the sea of Bengal to precipitate on the
Sikkim Himalaya the heavy rainfall which characterises this ares, the Cbombi Valley has a narrow
southern outlet, and the lofty ridges which enclose it piactically deprive those currents of their moisture
ere they reach the depression beyond.
"Tha facies of thia singular plant, which bears out to some extent the comparative dryness of its
habitat, is so completely that of an AlHuni that at first sight one feels inclined, in spite of its spicate
in flore see G ce and its solitary bract, to treat it as the t}"pe of a somewhat aberrant section in that compreliensiTe
genus. Both characters, repugnant though they ba to our generic couaeption of Allium, might be
looked upon as incidental. Already AUium includes species with heads of sessile florets, while in some
other genera the passage from a head to a spike is of the simplest the difference, moreover, between
one bract and two, among plants like the AUÌCIB, -where the bracteal variation is admittedly 2—co, is
no mere tlian arithmetical. But when wa find these cliaracters associated with such apparently essential
ones as a distinctly gamophyllous perianth and a decidedly 2-seriate andrò ecium, it becomes at least inadvisable
to fui'thcr expand the limits of a genus already so unwieldy as Allium. A secondary reason
for excluding the plant from Alliunt is that the specimens show no trace of the garlio odour so characteristic,
even in dried examples, of most if not of all the species of that germs.
"The localisatioa of the genus does not appear to be difiicult ; an overwhelmiag majority of characters
indicato its tribal position to be among the AUicce, (tribe XII of Liliaccre in Bentham and Hooker's
Qenern Ftantarum). It its true that none of the Alliem hitherto described ha\'e a spicato inflorescence or
a solitary bract. But it must be reraorabered that both characters may be merely incidental; the main
•.-.t/r. Praii 10 üímla.) Ni'll UUiy, S 1S5 C1S90J.