Asclepias. pentandria dignyia. 53 



Battang-callooee, or poolas (Urtica tenaclssima, R.) are 

 by far the strongest fibres which I have met with in the 

 vegetable kingdom, far exceeding those of the leaves of 

 my Sanseviera Zeylanica. A line made of common hemp, 

 for a standard, broke with 158 pounds when dry, and 190 

 when wet ; the average of several trials. A similar line 

 of this substance broke with 248 when dry, and 343 when 

 wet, while one of Battang-callooee broke with 240 when 

 dry, and 278 when wet. 



27. A. tingens. Buck. 



Leaves cordate. Racemes spiral, sub-axillary. Fructifi- 

 cations cochleari-cylindric. Stigma oval, crowning the 

 tube of the corol. 



A large, twining, shrubby plant, brought from Pegue to 

 the Botanic Garden at Calcutta, by Dr. Buchanan. Flow- 

 ering time the rainy season ; seed ripe the May follow- 

 ing. 



Stem twining-, woody^, with numerous, twining, smooth 

 branches, extending far over whatever supporters they 

 meet with. Bark pretty smooth, when young brownish ; 

 when old,ash-colourcd. Leaves opposite, petioled, cordate, 

 entire, pointed, smooth on both sides, from three to six 

 inches long, and from two to four broad. Petioles about an 

 inchlong, channelled, smooth. f/wi6e/s sub-axillary, short- 

 peduncled, compound. When they begin to blossom, the 

 inflorescence is a perfect umbel, but becomes a long, shin- 

 ing, spiral raceme. Pedicels rather longer than the pedun- 

 cles, one-flowered, smooth, diverging in all directions. 

 Flowers numerous, pale yellow or cream colour when 

 they first expand, but grow gradually darker. Calyx to 

 the base five-cleft. Curol ; tube as long as the fructifica- 

 ti 3n ; on the inside run five double ridges, which are ci- 

 liated with short brown hairs. Border expanding ; divi- 

 sions obliquely oval. Nectary as in the genus, with the 

 cordate divisions of its mouth covering the stamina, and 



