98 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



LITTLE-KNOWN FIBROUS PLANTS. 



Thcrt' has been of late a consulorable search after plants pro- 

 duciiii; fil)res that couki be advantaireouslv used in the arts of 

 papei-niakini^, rope-making;, and the manufacture of textile lab- 

 rii's. Some of these materials have been discovenul in North 

 and South America; but a lar«2;e majority of those claimin;^ the 

 attention of manufacturers are found in Southern Asia, more par- 

 ticularly in India. 



Among these stands most prominently a plant of the nettle 

 family, called by the natives " Tt-huma,'''' the l)otanical name of 

 whicli is Uriica nivca. In Assam, Ijolh a cultivated and a wild 

 variety are found, and in the Malayan peninsula, Panang, and 

 Siniraporc, another variety grows wild, the libre of which is un- 

 usually strong. This has a Malay name, " i^amee," and is in 

 botany known as the Uriica ienacissima. This plant is identical 

 with the ramie, now cultivated in the Southern States, brought 

 originally, we believe, from Java. 



Mr. Leonard Wray, in a j^aper read before the Society of Arts, 

 in L(mdon, describes the bt-autiful tibre of the " llheea" as being 

 worth in England two shillings anil four pence per lb., and says, 

 " the fal)rics made from it are of so strong and so lustrous a 

 character as to be in universal demand. Pity, indeed, is it that 

 this splendid fibre can be obtained only in such small quantities ! 

 No other supplies can be looked for, except from China, nor can 

 we expect much from that country either. Its growth and prep- 

 aration have been tried by most intelligent Englishmen in India; 

 but they found, first, that tiie separation of the fibres from the 

 plants was a most diflieult and laljorious operation; and, sec- 

 ondly, that the yield per acre, per annum, was exceedingly small. 

 Indeed it is said to yield only one to one and a half hundred 

 weight of fibre to the acre, — a fact which forbids any European 

 from entertaining hope of cultivating it at a profit, which is much 

 to be regretted." 



Mr. Wray also believes the plants called Pederia fostida, the 

 *'Jettee,''^ '" Moorva,^'' and the pine-apple, each and all of them, 

 hold out the promise of amply remunerating any Euro])ean who 

 will attempt in a judicious manner to utilize the beautiful fibres 

 they contain. Their fibres are fine, silken, and strong. He says, 

 '• The Pederia fcetida certainly has the most silky and lustrous 

 filn-e any one can desire, and its being only in lengths from joint 

 to joint seems the sole objection to it. Still, these joints are 

 often 12 inches apart, while the finest Sea-Island cotton is not 

 more than one inch to an inch and a half in staple. Attention 

 ought, therefore, to be directed to this lustrous fibre-yielding 

 plant. 



"The Jettee, again, is jointed, but the joints are sometimes 

 two feet apart, and the fibre proportionably long. It is a most 

 excellent fil)re, and will be sure to make its way. 



*' Tlie pine-ai)ple, with its b(;autiful fil)re, exists in thousands 

 of acres in tlie Straits of Malacca, and mtiy be had at Singapore 



