22 SEEDS AND 1*1. AN is IMPORTED. 



23519 and 23520— Continued. 



••The wood of G. benthami Is reddish brown and very mucb esteemed. 

 ii is used for the same purposes as Hi.it «•!' c. ferrea and differs from 

 it very little, if we consider what Rumphius says about that of Q-. cele- 

 bica I... we may regard it as established thai all the Garcinias with a 

 white juice have reddish brown or honey-colored wood superior to that of 

 the other species of Garcinia. This observation is Important for forest 

 cultivation." {Extract from Pierre's Forest Flora of Cochin China.) 



23520. Gabcinla celebica L. 



■•This tree grows very quickly and without difficulty. The leaves have 



an acid flavor; the fruits remain acid a long time; their taste when 

 they are perfectly ripe is somewhat like that of the cultivated mango- 

 steens. An excellent jelly is made of them and a refreshing pectoral 

 sirup which Lamarck s.iys is in daily use a1 Malic. Its fruits are used 

 in dyeing, and their rind has astringent properties and serves to make 

 Vinegar. A viscid, milky, yellowish juice runs from incisions made in 

 the tree, which gives a species of gum. This mangosteen grows naturally 

 in the Fast Indies and is also found in the island of Bourbon and in 

 several of the Antilles. 



" It is not a very tall tree and has a large tufted top. The branches 

 are glabrous, a little striate, slightly tetragonal, and covered with a 

 grayish or dull red bark. The leaves are opposite, numerous, oval- 

 lanceolate, pointed at the two ends, glabrous, green on both sides, much 

 narrower and less thick than those of the cultivated mangosteen. The 

 flowers are unisexual and borne on different plants. The female flowers 

 are terminal, solitary, hardy pedunculated. The fruit is globular, of a 

 yellowish red or saffron color, sometimes violet, crowned by the stigma ; it 

 is a little bit larger than the ' pomme d'api,' which it resembles in form. 



" The yellow juice which comes from incisions in this mangosteen 

 gives a kind of aromatic resin, sought after for medicinal purposes. The 

 fruit furnishes a balsamic acid, and the bark tannin." (Extract from 

 the Medical Flora of the Antilles, by Descourtilz.) 



" These two species of Garcinia were introduced for testing as stocks on 

 which to grow the mangosteen, which is notably one of the weakest rooted 

 plants of this genus." (Fairchild.) 



23522 to 23525. 



From Chungking, west China. Presented by Rev. J. F. Peat. Received 

 August 24, 1908. 



Seed of each of the following. Varietal descriptions by Mr. H. T. Nielsen. 



23522. Glycine hispida (Moench) Maxim. Soy bean. 

 Greenish yellow with dark hilum. 



23523. Glycine hispida (Moench) Maxim. Soy bean. 

 Black. Similar in appearance to No. 19183. 



23524. Vigna sesqlipedalis (L.) W. F. Wight. 

 Red. 



23525. Pisum arvense L. Field pea. 



23526. Gossypium hirsutum L. Cotton. 



From Caracas, Venezuela. Presented by Dr. E. Andre, Port of Spain, 

 Trinidad, British West Indies. Received August 28, 1008. 



"A" curious variety." (Andre.) 



" Lint medium short staple length, drag very fine, of great strength. Prob- 

 ably a tropical cotton adapted to only tropical regions." ( D. N. Shoemaker.) 



23527. Musa paradisiaca L. Banana. 



From Ambos, Camarines, P. I. Presented by Mr. William S. Lyon, 

 Manila, P. I. Received September 8, 1908. 



" Seed of an edible species. The fruit is large and well flavored and the fari- 

 naceous seeds are quite tender and eaten, not rejected, when the fruit is ripe. 

 They do not harden until the fruit begins to decay. It is one of our many 



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