LEAFLETS OF PHILIPPINE BOTANY 
EDITED BY A. D. E. ELMER, A. M. 
Vol. IV. Manila, P. 1., February 26, 1912. Art. 7i 
A FASCICLE OF PALAWAN FIGS 
By 
A. D. E, Elmer 
The island of Palawan or Paragua is about 275 miles long 
and varies from 6 to 26 miles wide. It extends in a southwest- 
erly and northeasterly direction, and seems to indicate a geo- 
logical connection between Borneo and the Philippines along 
the western side. To the north of the island of Palawan are a 
number of irregular islands called the Calamianes group. The 
two largest of these are Busuanga and Culion, and in between 
them on the eastern side is a characteristic small triangularly 
Shaped island called Coron. The geological formation and 
the vegetation of the two larger islands are the same, namely, 
of hills or low well worn down mountain ranges covered with 
cogon or lalang; and their depressions or moist slopes and 
the higher summits are covered with woods. On the island 
of Culion is the Government Leper Colony. Coron is very near 
to these two islands and yet so different geologically and botan- 
ically. This whole island is nothing but a mass of rocks stand- 
ing out perpendicularly from the sea from 500 to 1500 feet above 
its level. The summit portion is more or less worn into sharp 
edges and narrow depressions down its sides. "There is no cogon 
on it and here and there in the crevices of depressions or sheltered 
places are scrubby plants chiefly of a different kind than is found 
on the other islands. While the “Garcia Pitogo" was slowly 
steaming through the narrow channel between Coron and Bu- 
suanga, I could easily discern a slender species of palm standing 
