554 REPORT OF THE COM.MtSSTONErv OF AGRICULTURE. 



Oil tlic Africaii product. A manufacturer iu Volusia County, FluviUliv, 



t bus writes : 



There is a very great hiudrauce to the Buccessful luauii fad lure of tlits iJbcr bure by 

 tlio iraportatioirof the African fiber, which is the product of convict l;ibor in a Freuch 

 priiiou at or near Algiers, and the only means of encouragement * * * would bo a 

 heavier duty on the imi)orted article. 



The palmetto also makes a fine sample of paper, and a patent is held 

 by Mr. J. P. Herron, of Washington City, for a process for reducing 

 the leaves. I have examined samples of the paper, but can give no 

 fiicts as to the extent of maunfacture. 



Astrocaryiim ancumai — I question this specimen of Brazilian fiber, 

 as it was only labeled ^^Auciijn ou AicumJ'* The fiber, however, is 

 that of a ])ahn, and agrees in description with that of the Tucimi of 

 Brazil, the species given above. The fiber is obtained from the young 

 leaves, and is readily secured, as it lies just under the epidermis of 

 the leaf, which is so exceedingly thin that it is easily rubbed off, leav- 

 ing the fiber white and clean. In strength it is said to be equal to flax, 

 and the filaments are so fine that it has received the name of vegetable 

 wool. In the specimens received by the department the fiber has not 

 been cleaned, yet in some portions the bundles of filaments are clear 

 and white, showing off the fiber to the best advantage. 



This fiber seems sufficiently strong Ibr fine weaving, and from the 

 ease with which it is separated might be obtained very chea])ly. Its 

 use in Brazil is for the manufacture of nets, fish-lines, and hammocks. 



Another species, A. vulgare, is found in British Guiana, Triiiidad, and 

 other portions of South America. 



(?) Accompanying the specimen described above was 



a bundle of reddish fiber, resembling coir in color, but very soft and fine, 

 which was gathered from an unknown palm tree by S. L. da Costa Leite, 

 Minas Gtraes, Brazil. 



The specimen is a tangled mass of fiber, the filaments of which, when 

 carefully extracted and twisted into pack;thread, are tolerably strong. 

 I do not know in what form the fiber appears upon the tree, or how it is 

 produced: nor can I find any reference to its preparation, uses, or value 

 other than a mere mention in a little brochure t issued by the Brazilian 

 commission (Exhibition, 187G). The author states that the tree grows 

 upon Doce Kiver, and " from its leaves and petals there come filaments 

 which, seen in a mass, have the appearance of wool. * * * Facto- 

 ries should be considered fortunate to be able to count it in their treasury 

 of materim primas.^^ The fiber is not to be compared with the preceding 

 in tenacity, though the filaments are finer, softer, and more glossy. 



21.™PA"NDANACEiE. 



Garluclovica palmata.—This is a stemless species of screw-pine found 

 in Panama and on the coasts of New Granada and Ecuador. It grows 

 in shady places, and its leaves, which are shaped and plaited like afim, 

 are liorne upon three-cornered stalks to 12 feet high. 



It is interesting as furnishing the material from which the Panama 

 hats are made. Those of the best quality are plaited from a single leaf 



*■ While authorities agree that Tucnm is an Astroearyum, Bactrls sdosa is mentioned 

 as the Tucum in a volume on the resources of Brazil distributed at the Exhibition of 

 187G, and Astroearyum is called the Tucunian. In the list of fibers by JBernardin, Bac- 

 iris is called Te.cian. 



t "Historical Notes concerning tlic Vegetable Fibers exhibited by Scverino L. da 

 Costa LeitCj" by Nicalau J. Moreira, M, D. 



J 



