MECHANICS AND USEFUL ARTS. 101 



of the long fibre; and chiefly because the leaf, being shaped like 

 a sword, has its edges armed with prickles, similar, in fact, to the 

 Aveapon harmed from itzli, or obsidian, used by the Aztf'cs. 

 Hence til'' terra. The pita, on the other hand, although obt diied 

 iVoni a variety of the same plant, is a coarser and shorter fil)re, 

 wh'Kth gvowiiiw the. tier rastempladas. The name comes from the 

 word pittes, which is given to the plantations of the pulque plant in 

 the uplands of Mexico. But the peculiarity of the ixtle is, that it 

 grows almost exclusively on the southern shore of the jNIexiean 

 gulf, or in what is known as the * sota vento,' that is to say, be- 

 tween Alvarado and Tabasco, and extending as far inland as the 

 northern slopes of the dividing ridge which separates the Atlantic 

 from the Pacific. The points generally selected for its cultivation 

 are the edges of a thick forest, from which the small undergrowth 

 is removed by cutting and burning. The roots of the plants are 

 then set out at a distance of 5 or 6 feet apart ; and at the end of 

 a year the leaves are cut and ' scraped.' The chief object is to 

 obtain a constant shelter from the rays of the sun, which would 

 otherwise absorb the moisture, and so gum the fibres together as 

 to make them inseparable. 



♦' The average h-ngth of the leaf is 6 feet, and the time to cut 

 it is clearly indicated by the upward inclination it makes. In 

 other words, the radical leaves cease to form curved lines with 

 their points downward, but stifi'en themselves out at an angle, as 

 if to guard the source of efflorescence. When the ixtle is young 

 its fibres are fine and white, but as it grows in age they become 

 longer and coarser; and in a wild state the thornsare very numer- 

 ous, but bj'' cultivation they are diminished both in size and 

 number, and in many instances there are none at all. Where 

 any quantity of leaves require to be handled, a pitchfork would 

 be very useful, especially if gathered for paper stock. A few 

 days after cutting, the sun would dry them out, the thorns would 

 drop off, and then they could be easily baled. Independent of 

 the great va^ue which the ixtle has for textile fabrics, and for 

 paper, it po^esses many valuable medicinal properties, to which 

 I need not allude. It requires no labor to cultivate it, and no in- 

 sect is known to feed upon it. It grows everywhere in the pri- 

 meval forests of the Gulf coasts, and, in my opinion, is far superior 

 to any of the textile fabrics. But as yet no mechanic has suc- 

 ceeded in devising a means of effectually extracting the fibre, 

 and until this is done I presume that its real commercial value 

 will remain unappreciated. 



" You Avill readily discover the superiority of the ixtle over the 

 jenequin of Cuba, or the hemp which comes from Sisal and 

 Campeche." 



SIGNALLING ON BOARD THE CABLE FLEET. 



The London " Gazette " gives the following interesting descrip- 

 tion of the manner of signalling through the caljle on board 

 the Great Eastern : — 



0* 



