54 PALM TREES 



durable texture. A roof well-thatched with Carana 

 will last eight or teu years without renewing, and the 

 leaves are so constantly cut for this purpose that it is 

 hardly possible to find an entire and handsome tree. 

 Though so closely resembling the Miriti, the epidermis 

 is never used for cordage, and on my asking an Indian 

 the reason, he quite laughed at the idea, saying that it 

 was quite impossible because the Carana " did not pro- 

 duce any thread." 



This tree grows in the district of the Rio Negro and 

 Upper Orinoco, but is not found on the Amazon. It 

 prefers the dry Catinga forests, or the sandy margins of 

 streams out of reach of the highest floods. At Javita 

 I observed it growing within a few yards of the Miriti, 

 but still preserving all its distinctive characters. 



It is called by the natives Carana, the smaller prickly 

 stemmed species being known by the name of Caranai. 



