580 POLYANDRIA MONOGYNIA. AcgU. 



pretti/ erect. Bark ash-coloured. Branches few and irre- 

 gular. Thorns, axillary, in pairs, sing;le, or none, very 

 sharp, and strong. Leaves temate. Leaflets oblong, or' 

 broad lanceolate, attenuated to a bent point, crenulate, 

 differins? much in size, but the exterior one is always the 

 largest. Panicles small, terminal, and axillarj', flowers 

 large and white, all hermaphrodite, at least, I have 

 not found any other. Calyx four or five-toothed. Corol 

 from four to five petallcd. Filaments about forty, short. 

 Anthers linear, erect. Berry large, sub spherical, smooth, 

 w iti) a hard shell, from ten to fifteen-celled ; the cells con- 

 tain, besides the seeds, a large quantity of an exceeding 

 tenacious, transparent gluten, which on drying becomes 

 very hard, but continues transparent ; when fresh it may 

 b^ drawn out into threads of one or two yards in lengih, 

 and so fine as to be scarcely perceptible to the naked eye, 

 before it ])reaks. Seeds from six to ten in each cell, oblong, 

 a little compressed, woolly, attached to the inner angle of 

 their cell. 



Tliis is the Bilva or Mahira of the Asiat. Res. vol. 2. 

 page 349, from whence the following is an extract. " Uses. 

 The fruit is nutritious, warm, cathartic ; in taste delicious, 

 in fragrance exquisite ; its aperient, and detersive quality, 

 and its efiicacy in removing habitual costiveness, have 

 been proved by constant experience. The mucus of the 

 seed is for some purposes a very good cement." Note " This 

 fruit is called Shreephula, because it sprang, say the Indi- 

 an poets from the milk of Shree, the goddess of abundance, 

 who bestowed it on mankind at the request of Jowarra, 

 whence he alone wears a chaplet of Bilva flowers, to 

 him only the Hindoos ofl'er them ; and when they see any 

 of them fallen on the ground, they take them up with re- 

 verence, and carry them to his temple." 



The root, bark, leaves, and flowers are reckoned refriger- 

 ants by the Malabar physicians. The ripe fruit they 

 esteem most wholesome. 



