172 THE PLAXT WOTJI.TI. 



alia helcrica furjiislies nuts used in tamiiiii;, and the tl<»\vers of 

 Cananga odorata yield the Ylang-ylani>' i)erfunie of connneree. 



The well-known Teak tree {Tectoiui (/rand is), with its most 

 valuable timber, is represented; as arc also the Jamaica ebony 

 {Bnja Ehemis), the Sandal wood iySanlaluai album), the Ceylon 

 ebony (Diospijros Ehenuin), the Central American Mahogany 

 (Sivieteuia Maho(jaai), and many other timber-producing trees. 



The Peradeniya Gardens have for a h>ng time been a notable 

 centre for botanical study and research. ^lany botanists from 

 England and elsewhere have spent h»nger or shorter periods in 

 the laboratories here, where surronnch'd by all the facilities of 

 a scientific laboratory, an excellent botanical library, and 

 the ample supply of material afforded l)y the garden and the for- 

 ests, they have been able to stud}' tro})ical botany and pursue re- 

 search work to the best advantage. 



Various persons acted as superintendents of the botanic gar- 

 den until the year 1857, when Mr. G. II. K. Thwaites was 

 promoted from superintendent to director. He was succeeded in 

 1880 bv Dr. Henrv Trimen, who did very useful work on the 

 flora of Ceylon until his death in 1896. The present director. 

 Dr. J. C. Willis, has greatly improved the garden and, assisted 

 by a gtaif of scientists, is doing valuable work in the service of 

 science and practical agriculture ; the result of the work accom- 

 plished at Peradeniya is easily noticeable in the flourishing 

 state of the plantation industries of Ceylon. 



There is a standing invitation for botanists to visit Perade- 

 niya and to avail themselves of the facilities offered. Dr. Willis 

 has in an article in the Annals of the Royal Botanic Gardens, 

 Peradeniya (June, 1901,) described the institution as a conven- 

 ient place for study, and in the present year a new building for 

 museum and library purposes is being built, thus giving still bet- 

 ter accommodation for visitors, to whom true Ceylon hospitality 

 is offered with open hands. 



{To he continued-) 



