128 ODOROGRAPHIA. 
the male tree consist of a large terminal, pendulous, compound 
leafy panicle, 16 to 20 inches long; the leaves thereof are white, 
linear-oblong, pointed and concave; in the axil of each there is a 
single thyrse, composed of simple-small racemes of long, pointed, 
depending anthers, which are not sessile, but raised from the rachis 
of these partial racemes by tapering filaments. The flowers of the 
female tree are terminal and solitary, having no other calyx or 
corolla than the termination of the three rows of leaves forming 
three imbricated fascicles of white floral leaves or involucres like 
those of the male racemes, only here they stand at equal distances 
round the base of the young fruit. The fruit is oval, bright 
orange-coloured, from 6 to 8 inches diameter and from 6 to 10 
inches in length, weighing from 4 to 8 lbs. It is something in 
appearance like a pineapple, and contains a rich-looking yellow 
pulp intermixed with strong fibres. In Tahiti the natives prepare 
a fermented drink from the juice of this fruit, called Ava fara, 
Pandanus wine. 
The flowers are produced in the rainy season, the tender white 
floral leaves of the male tree being the most fragrant. Their 
fragrance has been described as “ the most delightful, the richest, 
and the most powerful ”’ of floral perfumes ; it is also permaneut, 
being retained by the flower after complete desiccation. 
This singular-looking tree sometimes covers large tracts of 
country with an impenetrable mass of vegetation. It is particu- 
larly abundant in the Sunderbunds, growing on both sides of 
creeks in such profusion as to render them impassable by its 
thorny interlacing branches and aérial roots. It is very common 
along the banks of canals and backwaters in Travancore, in which 
places it is planted to bind the soil, the superfluous growth being 
cut back. In Mauritius the trees are set to form fences or hedge- 
rows around plantations or along the sides of the many roads which 
intersect them. The tree is propagated readily from branches; 
hence it is not unusual to find extensive hedges entirely composed 
of male or of female trees, owing to there having been originally 
a male or a female tree in the neighbourhood to propagate from. 
At certain periods the trees are trimmed, the fibrous leaves being 
useful for making mats and package-bags for the transport of 
coffee, sugar, and grain. The fusiform roots are composed of 
tough fibres, which basket-makers split and use to tie their work 
