USES OF CACTI 



By Paul G. Russell. 



TOURING the years 1910, 1913 and 1915 the writer 

 •"""^ accompanied botanical exploring expeditions to Mexico, 

 the West Indies and South America. These expeditions were 

 sent out for the express purpose of studying the cactus flora 

 of the regions mentioned. The information for this paper 

 was obtained partly from personal observations made in these 

 countries and partly from the published experiences of others. 

 The fact that the cacti will grow under such adverse conditions 

 of temperature and soil makes any information concerning their 

 uses of much greater importance when we consider the vast 

 amount of arid land in our great Southwest. Furthermore, 

 throughout Mexico, Central and South America there may be 

 seen great stretches of deserts upon which very little except 

 cacti will grow. The uses of the cacti may be conveniently 

 grouped according to the nature of the use, and this plan has 

 been followed in the present paper. 



Alcohcl. The fruit of the prickly pear known as Opinitia 

 ficus-iiidico Mill, contains about 14% of sugar. By a ferment- 

 ing process, some French industrial chemists in Algeria have 

 succeeded in obtaining 45 to 60% of pure alcohol from 320 

 pounds of this fruit. While this alcohol, produced by fermenta- 

 tion, is of excellent quality and agreeable in taste, it has been 

 found true, in Mexico at least, that if the juice is distilled it pro- 

 duces a "tuna alcohol" which is very injurious as a beverage. 

 However, it is also true in that country that the fermented 

 juice is made into a drink. 



Beverages. While the juice of most of the large cacti is 

 bitter and nauseating, there are two at least, Echiiiocactus 



