132 



in diameter at the base, covered v/ith a yellowish gray, 

 smooth bark, brauGhed crily near the tojj, the limbs terming a 

 depressed, rounded crown, vLeaves large, digitate, clustered 

 at tne ond of the branchlets, the i.etioles claSjjing and dila- 

 tate at the base, straight, 30 to 75 cm. long; leaflets 8 

 to 10, the petiolules 3 to 10 cm. long, the blades ccriacecus, 

 oblong-lanceolate or ovate-elliptic, rounded or aubemsrginate 

 at the base, acuminate, 15 to 40 cm. long, 6 to 18 cm. broad, 

 at first softly tomentose all ever, later glabrous above, 

 golden brown tomentose beneath. Inflorescences terminal, 

 very large, panniculate, the rachis subglabrcais , erect, the 

 flowers umbellate or lateral branchlets; ^.edicels 3 to 7 

 mm. long, minutely j.jubesc;ent; calyjc short, i^-toothed; petals 

 5, ellii.tiG or lanceolate, stamens 5, the anthers large, 

 ovate; ovary 2-Gelled. Drupe ovate-compressed, about 5 mm. 

 long, 7 to y mm. broad, .aore or less costate; x^'^iT^esccnt ot 

 glabrous . J 



■Description of the wood 



Sapwood very narrow and nearly white; heartv/ood slightly 

 darker. Jood moderately hard and heavy, fine-grained and 

 suscej^tible to very good polish. The tree has a very large 

 pith. ^riHual rings of grcnvth usually very narrow, but 

 readily distinguished by means of a hand lens. 



(Pores ( transverse s^eo-tion) numerous, (.14 mm. in diameter j, 

 round, open, ?5nd scattered singly or in small groups or ra- 

 dial rov/s of from £ to 6 . Vessels always smaller in diame- 

 ter than the distance between two pith rays. The vessel 

 walls { leng±tird±nal- aee^ion) where in contact v/ith pith- 

 ray cells have large traiisversely ellijjtical, simple pits, 

 together with slightly bcrdered pits. All other parts of the 

 vessel vvalls oear bordered pits. i;nd v/alls of vessel seg- 

 ments strongly inclined and v/ith simple elli^jtical o^^enings 

 between the segments (simple perforation). V/ood fibers 

 about 1,354 mm. long, v;ith thick walls, small cell cavities, 

 septate, and with very small oblique, slit-like, simple 

 pits. ,70 od -parenchyma fibers only sparingly developed, 

 usually in the neighborhood of vessels. Pith rays very nu- 

 merous, straight, invisible to the naked eye, and f rom" 1 to 

 5 cells wide and from a few to 25 or more cells high.) 



