BOTANY. i89 



A few years ago Mr. Laidlay, the Secretary of the 

 Asiatic Society, discovered that the oil of wood will dis- 

 solve caoutchouc. " The process adopted was simply to 

 cut the caoutchouc into small pieces, and then drop a 

 sufficiency into a bottle of the oil. In the course of a 

 few hours the caoutchouc swells, and must then be fre- 

 quently stirred to facilitate the process. If heat be appli- 

 ed, complete solution is speedily effected, but several days 

 are required at the ordinary temperature of the atmos- 

 phere. The solution thus prepared may be spread on 

 cloth, which is thereby rendered water-proof." Wood oil 

 has been found to answer as a good substitute for nsh oil 

 in currying leather; and it is used for house varnish. 



Large quantities of this oil are used in these Provinces 

 in the manufacture of torches, which emit a brilliant and 

 durable light. A half dozen of these torches planted on 

 an eminence make a splendid cresset, illuminating far 

 over the plains. 



Dipterncarpus Icsvis 



" turbinatus. 



Oil. OF BEN TP.EE. 



The tree which yields the celebrated oil of ben is very 

 abundant, though I am not aware that any oil is pressed 

 from the seeds in these Provinces. But in the West Indies 

 the oil of this tree is used for salad oil, and " because it 

 does not congeal or turn rancid, employed by watchmakers, 

 and for retaining the aroma of delicate flowers. 1 ' 



Moving a ptcrygosperm a. 



Hyper anther a Moringa. 



30DCg« OOJOjJ. OcSsoOjSk 



ILLIEPIE OIL TREE. 



In the southern part of the Provinces a large timber 

 tree is indigenous, from the seeds of which the natives ex- 

 press an oil which they eat with their food, and use for 

 other purposes. It is a species of bassia, and does not 



