Page:Illustrations of Indian Botany, Vol. 1.djvu/250

128 second 8, and the third 4. This arrangement is nearly the same as Choisy's in DeCandolle's Prod, namely — sepals 4, or 2, or wanting, the last section very unphilosophical. The first step therefore in the process of reducing a species of Calophyllum is easy, not so the subsequent ones, especially where there is a considerable number of forms to be reduced, owing to the characters of the species being generally so loosely constructed that it seems next, to impossible to say to what form they are limited; such, strange to say, are those even of Roxburgh, and not being as usual, aided by full descriptions, leaves the whole involved in doubt and uncertainty. Whether I shall be able to draw more precise characters is uncertain, but to prevent my meaning being mistaken I shall publish figures of all the species of which I have specimens, and trust Dr. Wallich will enable me to add, so far as they extend, the figures left by Dr. Roxburgh.

§ I. Leaves of the Pereanth12— (4 sepals and 8 petals.)

1. C. Walkerii, (R. W.) A large tree, branches terete, leaves nearly round or obcordate, very thick and coriaceous : racemes axillary, congested on the ends of the branches, the extreme ones (from the abortion of the leaves) forming a terminal panicle, exterior pair of sepals much smaller than the interior, inner row of petals smaller than the outer, fruit spherical, about the size of a pretty large cherry, pericarp veiy thick and coriaceous.

Newera Ellia Ceylon, at an elevation of 7000 feet — also on Adam's peak, but there a smaller tree.

This magnificent species, which I have dedicated to my friend Colonel Walker, from whom I first received specimens, is observed to flower only once in three years. The figure I may here remark, which was made from a dried specimen, does not give a very good idea of the magnificence of the inflorescence, owing to its being in rather too young a state.

2. C. Blumii, (R. W.) " Leaves obovate, elliptic, obtuse, or emarginate ; ramuli terete : flowers laxly, racemose; racemes axillary, solitary; pedicels 1-flowered, sub-opposite. (Calyx 4 sepals, caducous : petals 8, unequal, white. Stamens numerous, 5-6 adelphous at the base; anthers oblong, opening by two pores, (apice 2 perforatœ). Ovary 1-seeded: style filiform, infiexed: stigma capitate : nut 1-seeded.") — Blume.

Calophyllum inophyllum — Blume, Bijd. 1, page 217.

The above character is copied from Blume, I do not know the plant, but the 4 sepals and 8 petals prove that it cannot beC. inophyllum.

§ II. Leaves of the Perianth S (sepals 4, petals 4.)

3. C. inophyllum, (Lin.) Branches terete : leaves elliptical, passing into obovate, sometimes emarginate, racemes axillary, loose : exterior sepals smaller, interior about equal to the petals (pure while) all petaloid : stamens numerous, irregularly polyadelphous near the base: ovary globose, (reddish purple) elevated on a short gynophore : fruit sphærical, about the size of a large cherry.

C. inophyllum, Choisy and others, excluding Rumphius' synonym — Ponna marum, Rheede, Hort. Mai. 4, t. 38.

A very beautiful tree, with delightfully fragrant flowers, frequent in Malabar, more rare on the Coromandel coast.

The timber of this tree, though coarse grained, is considered very valuable for some purposes in ship-building, and the seeds afford a good lamp oil.

4. C. Bintagor, (Roxb.Fl. Ind. 2-607.) " Twigs cylindric, leaves oblong, emarginate, base tapering, lucid, finely veined" (Roxb.) fruit large, about the size of a small apple or billiard ball, sphærical, fleshy.

This species I only know from Roxburgh's imperfect character and Rumphius' figure, which Roxburgh says, " is a bad figure of this beautiful tree." Rumphius however is so great an admirer of the tree, that his description is quite poetical, but much too diffuse for quotation, his figure is usually quoted for C. inophyllum.

5. C. tomentosum, (R. W.) Young shoots square, and with the petiols and peduncles of the flowers, thickly clothed with ferruginous tomentum : leaves varying from oval to narrow lanceolate, attenuated at both ends, undulated on the margin, racemes axillary, loose, few flowered : fruit —.

Ceylon. — Colonel Walker.

Of this species there are two very distinct varieties, one with oval leaves ending in a short abrupt blunt acumen, and much undulated on the margin, the other with long, rather narrow lanceolate leaves, tapering to a fine point at each end, and very slightly undulated, but in both the tomentose, rusty coloured, square ramuli are conspicuous, in both the axils of the leaves are furnished with similarly clothed buds, and in both the branches are terminated by a larger oblong bud, like those of trees of temperate climates, indicating that this is a deciduous species from the higher parts of the island, a point however on which I am not informed.

6. C. angustifolium, (Roxb. Fl. Ind. 2-608.) " Twigs cylindrical. Leaves short petioled, lanceolate, with lengthened somewhat obtuse points, lucid, finely veined : flowers in axillary fascicles, pedicels with a cyathi- form apex." Roxb.

A native of Prince of Wales' Island said to be a tree of great size, and to afford the masts and spars known under the name of Peon.

7- C. spetabile, (Willd. and Choisy, in D. C.'s Prod. 1-562.) " Leaves elliptic, lanceolate, or rarely ovate-elliptic, usually acute at both ends : ramuli terete : flowers laxly, racemose : racemes axillary, peduncles 1-flowered, usually opposite.

Rumph. Amb. 2-72, is quoted as a figure of this plant, but I suspect without consulting the description from which I feel disposed to refer the Amboyna plant to the next section. These three are possibly the same species, but the characters of neither of the two last, as here quoted, are reconcilable with mine, nor do they sufficiently quadrate with each other, to admit of my uniting them without reference to specimens.

8. C. decipiens, (R. W.) Young shoots square, leaves from oval to obovate, emarginate, or sometimes obcordate, firm and coriaceous, racemes axillary, or from the scares of fallen leaves, few flowered, pedicels, rather short (about half an inch): sepals 4: petals 4 caducous : stamens numerous : fruit small, oval, some- what attenuated at both ends.

C. calaba, Lin. partly. Lind. Fl. Med. — C. apetalum, Willd. — C. spurium, Choisy, in D. C. Prod. 1-563, W. and A. Prod. 1-103.— Rheede, Hort. Mai. 4-39— not Burm. Thes. Zel.-60.

Willdenow's examination of this plant led him to the conclusion that it had no petals, hence he called it C. apetalum. Choisy on the other hand, but apparently without examining a flower for his own satisfaction, arrived by some means unknown to me (not having his memoir to consult) at the very unphilosophical conclusion that it had four petals and no calyx, and hence he called it C. spurium. Mr. Arnott and I afterwards re-