M ARCH 2, 1885.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



717 



A TROPICAL 



_ splei 

 stems which s 

 massive strcngtl 



WILD GARDEN IN BRITISH 

 GUIANA. 

 Cokekttes am. Ct.csiAs.— The great features of the 

 place are the Cokerite falms (Maximilians Martiana, 

 Karst.), and these arc. as far as my experience goes, 

 tin- must magnificently stately plants in the world. Other 

 Palms and other plants are exqusitiely beautiful— some 

 in one, some in other of a thousand ways; but none, H 

 seems to rap. equals the Cokerite in its stately grandeur. 

 Kveii in its young state t lie splendid mark of its noble- 

 ness is upon it, as is apparent in the group of three 

 young examples, as yet unstemmed, but standing 'ii 1 feet 

 high; and in their old age they are yet more magnificent. 

 Then their splendid crowns of plumed leafage surmount 

 id either tare and unclothed in their 

 or are densely clothed throughout their 

 length with the persistent leaf-stalks. And when theleaf- 

 stalk- are thus persistent they afford roothold for innumer- 

 ahle Ferns, Figs, and other such growths, which add a 

 further grace to the stately beauty of the Palms. 



Phicki.y Palms. — After the Maxmilianas the most strik- 

 ing plants here are the Astrocary ums of various species, 

 all impressively marked by their savage armature of 

 prickles. In the second picture of this series the stem 

 of one, an Acqueeroo (Astrocai yum tucuma, Martins) was 

 well shown. In this the prickles, or rather spines, are 

 often 3 or 4 inches long, flat, and terribly sharp. A story 

 is told of a missionary's wife who, for pure economy, 

 used these spines in place of pins for her dress: audit 

 is a fact that in some of the West Indian islands tins, 

 spines are used as the most apt needless for sowing mat- 

 rasses. In one of the photographs is shown a beautiful 

 group of another species, the Awarra (A. tucumoides, 

 Drude), on the dense dark leaves of which the many 

 wild doves about here love to make their n( sts. The 

 fruits of all the species of this section of the genus 

 Astrocaryum are much relished by Indians, who come 

 from afar and ask to be allowed to pick up the fruits 

 on this hill, famous for their production. 



Lastly, my finest group of .Eta Palms (Mauritia fiexuosa, 

 Linn.) growing among the Bamboos at the river side. 

 It is almost an only native fan-leaved Palms, and is dis- 

 tinguishable as probably of as varied uses as any plant in 

 existence. In proof of this last assertion. I venture to 

 quote from elsewhere some words of my own : — 



■■The leaves of the -lit-' are occasionally, but not very 

 frequently used as thatch; but this only, as far as I know, 

 by the Macoosis. The young leaves, just before they ex- 

 pand from the early spike-like form in which they develope, 

 are shaken till the leaflets fall apart; th.se leaflets are 

 then cut off from the leaf-stalks, gathered into small 

 bundles, and laid on, as thickly as possible, much as straw- 

 is used for thatching in England. 



•A more important product is the fibre, which is also 

 obtained from the young, spike-like leaves. Each ballet. 

 is detached and treated simply. A sharp dextrous rub 

 with the fingers at the top detaches the outer skin, which 

 is then entirely torn away. This outer skin forms the 

 fibre; the rest is waste. The fibre is toiled, dried in the 

 sun. and twisted, un the naked thigh, into string. Leaves 

 from the younger plants are preferred for this purpose, 

 those from older examples giving, it is said, a fibre want- 

 ing in durability. The string is used chiefly for making 

 those most necessary of all Indian properties, hammocks, 

 and is use.l for this purpose by the Arawaks and "Warraus 

 who, however, make their hammocks in two different ways. 

 Eleven or twelve full-sized leaves yield an amount of fibre 

 sufficient for the largest hammock. The string, called 

 tihixeri by the Arawaks, is occasionally, but seldom, used 

 for other purposes also. 



"I have elsewhere pointed out that the preparation of 

 string or thread, by thigh-twisting, from the fibre of the 

 .Eta Palm seems to have been the characteristic of the 

 Arawaks, Warraus. and possibly of other 'native tribes* 

 of Wuiana, just as the preparation of string or thread by 

 spinning, from cotton fibre, seems to have been charac- 

 teristic of all the Carib or 'stranger' tribes.* 



"As the leaflets, so the leaf-stalk, which, when dried, 

 is extremely light and buoyant, is turned to a variety of 



uses. It is used by the Warraus and the few Creole 

 squatters toward the mouth of the Orinoco for the shafts 

 of the harpoon, with which they capture fish, and especi- 

 ally manatees. The leaf-stalks are also placed side by 

 side to form walls and partitions in houses by the Creoles 

 of the colony. The Macoosis occasionally raise three or 

 four of t lit- parallel fibres from the outer skin for a dis- 

 tance of about 3 feet, their ends being left attached; 

 those fibres are kept away from the main leaf-stalk by a 

 bridge, like that of a violin, inserted under them attach 

 .lid; and the whole is then fast. in-. 1 upright on the tops 

 of the house, where the wind playing through the strings 

 produces a very musical sound, like that from an .roliiui 

 harp. Sandals are cut by the .Mac. osis and Arecoonas, 

 who have to walk much on th. often stoney savannahs 

 of their districts, from the tough outei part of the sheath- 

 ing part .if the leaf-stalk ; and the strings which fasten 

 these sandals on the feet are procured", as above describ- 

 ed, from the leaflets of the seme leaf. The pith of the 

 leaf-stalk, tough and durable, is cut up and used in 

 various way ; cut into long lath-like strips, which are 

 then fastened side by side like the laths of aj 'Venetian 

 blind,' it is made into very effective canoe sails. Smaller 

 strips are made by the Creoles into neat and often 

 elaborate birdcage*. Stoppers for bottles are cut from 

 the same substance. 



" The pith of the trunk itself is used by the Warraus 

 as Farine or Sago, and a tree having been cut down for 

 this last purpose, a liquor ,much appreciated by the Indians, 

 and really very palatable, is obtained from it in the 

 following way;— A hollow is scooped in the uppermost 

 part of the stem, as it lies prone, which hollow, having 

 been protected from the sun by a covering of leaves, is 

 found after a few hours to be full of sap, which presently 

 ferments and forms a pleasant drink. It is said that 

 sugar is occasionally prepared by the Indians from the sap. 

 Moreover, when the felled tree begins to decay, the very 

 large grubs of a beetle (Calandrai are found abundantly 

 in the pith, and are greedily eaten by the Indians, and 

 even regarded as a great delicacy by the older colonists. 

 "The 'Cabbage' of the -Eta is perhaps superior to that 

 of auy other Talm. 



"The ripe fruit is largely used as food by the Indians, 

 who, after scraping off the Fir-cone like scales, place the 

 whole remaining part of the fruit in water, whereafter a 

 few hours, the fairly abundant yellow pulp round the seed 

 become soft, in which state it is readily detached, pressed 

 into small cakes, this pulp has somewhat the flavour of 

 rather strong cheese. A drink is also prepare.! by the Indians 

 from the ripe fruit, but I am not sure bow this is done "— 

 <;. K\.r.R.u,i. Im Tini'N. British Guiana.— -Gardeners' 

 1 ln-"~ • 



*Among th<' Indians of British Guiana, London. IS88- 



MAM KES. 



Time '.'..is when, with few exceptions, manure waslook- 

 ed on simply as manure, aud provided it was of a suffici- 

 ently potent nature to be visibly effective in the increased 

 development of some or other of the parts of the plants 

 to which it was applied, it was considered sufficient, and 

 all that was required. Manures of the commonest kind, 

 rich in ammonia, and consequently conducive to the pro- 

 motion of leaf-growth, were often supposed as all that was 

 necessary; and unfortunately it may he set down as a 

 certainty that too much of this happy-go-lucky sort of 

 proceeding is still followed with many of the ordinary 

 ganbn crops — fruits, as well as common vegetables. This 

 especially applies to the last of amatner gardeners, and 

 to the doings of the so-called gardeners who are intrusted 

 with the management of the smaller run of gardens; 

 not but that such mistakes are often to be seen where 

 better things might be looked for. Yet, that the 

 majority of cultivated plants are not only benefited by. 

 but absolutely require more variety in the food supplied 

 to them than has hitherto been generally supposed 

 necessary, is exemplified by the marked results that 

 invariably follow a mixed diet in the shape of different 

 kinds of manure, when these are applied with judgment — 

 that is. with sufficient knowledge of the requirements of 

 the particular kind of plant to be .halt with. Amongst 

 those engaged in the cultivation of garden produce there 

 are few. if any. whose practice goes so far \o confirm 



