3IorUS. MONOECIA TETRANDRIA. 597 



leg. Branches numerous, spreading in all directions. Wood 

 pale, yellowish, hard, close-grained. Bark smooth, ash-co- 

 loured; the whole height of the largest trees I have seen 

 about twenty feet. Leaves deciduous, alternate, petioled, 

 ovate-cordate, long, tapering, entire, pointed, with the lateral 

 margins serrate, and sometimes lobate and even deeply so, 

 smooth on both sides, very various in size on the larger trees 

 not kept cut, as in the plantations for feeding silk-worms, 

 where they are larger and more divided, from two to four 

 inches long, and from one to two and a half broad. Stipules 

 sub-lanceolate, caducous. Female aments from the axills of 

 the first leaves or from the scales of the envelope of the bud 

 of the young shoots, solitary, short-peduncled, nearly oval, 

 or oval. Ca///.v of four, fleshy, cuneate leaflets. »S'<?//e single, 

 half two-cleft ; divisions tapering and villous. Berry about 

 the size and shape of a small field bean; when ripe black. 



This is the species cultivated in Bengal to feed silk- 

 worms. It is kept down by frequent cutting that the branches 

 may become more numerous, consequently the foliage more 

 abundant, and more easily gathered. The cultivators of 

 these bushes, do not always rear the worm. When they do 

 not, they sell the leaves upon the tender branches to the ryots 

 who rear the worm, but do not cultivate the mulberry, by the 

 basket, a measure called in some parts a Koopee, weiohino* 

 on an average, one hundred pounds avoirdupois. The ave- 

 rage price is about three Koopees for the Rupee. While the 

 worms are very young they not only strip the leaves from 

 the twigs but cut them small. Afterwards when the worms 

 are larger, the whole leaves upon the twigs are given, and 

 the sticks are removed when the leaves are consumed. 



The annual value of the b?'ga which is a third of an Ene-- 

 lish acre, taking the general average of markets, and also the 

 general average of lands in point of quality of soil, may be 

 about eight Rupees; deduct for the rent of the land two Ru- 

 pees, this leaves a profit of six to the ryot for his labour. 

 The plant is usually cut four times in the year, and strip- 



