SECTION II: JAPANESE COTTON 123 



is there called roji. That name may, therefore, be usefully employed Origin of 

 to denote the plant in question, but examples of it appear to be Chl ^ ese 

 quite as numerous in Africa as in India, though it would seem to be 

 always a more local plant than either nadam or bani. 



Lastly, I have proposed the name soudanensis for a special form 

 that seems peculiar to Africa and Egypt, and which appears, 

 moreover, to be a very ancient type, which in some respects supports 

 the oft-repeated opinion of China having obtained its original supply g ou) j an 

 of this cotton from Egypt. It is a perennial bush much like the cotton. 

 roji, but quite glabrous, and the leaves more deeply segmented 

 (approximating to G. arboreum) ; the flowers are yellow with purple 

 spots, and the bracteoles broad ovate, much united below and deeply 

 laciniated around the margin. 



As exemplifying still other special forms I may mention that I 

 have had the pleasure to receive an interesting series of botanical 

 specimens of the cottons at present experimentally grown in the 

 Testing Garden, Washington, under the supervision of Mr. Lyster 

 H. Dewey. Among these are the following examples of this species : 



From Japan. 1. Murasaki Cotton, a plant with long, spreading Japanese 

 white hairs on the shoots, petioles, and peduncles, and with co on ' 

 exceptionally broad leaves, 3- to 5- lobed, having very often teeth 

 in the lateral sinuses, leaf-stalks long rigid, glands below very 

 inconspicuous and usually only one. Bracteoles purple-coloured, 

 large, oblong, with two or three large irregular teeth. Flowers 

 axillary, borne on short peduncles one-third length of petiole, large, 

 yellow with purple claws, and limbs turning purple with age. Fruit 

 globose, completely enclosed within the accrescent bracteoles. 



2. Kawasaki Cotton. This differs from the preceding in the 

 stems, shoots, petioles, and peduncles being very minutely pilose. 

 Flowers extra-axillary, borne on peduncles equalling the petioles. 

 Bracteoles very large, ovate cordate, coarsely (5-9) toothed, and 

 flowers yellow, apparently not turning purple. 



3. Aoki Cotton. Might be described as an intermediate form to 

 the two previous. It has the short pubescence of kawasaki and the 

 short peduncles of the murasaki. 



From Korea. 4. The Korean cotton is much like a large-leaved Korean 

 kawasaki. The stems, &c., are strongly furrowed and angled, the 

 leaf-stalks have a woolly texture, but the plant is otherwise almost 

 glabrous, and glands obscure. Flowers extra -axillary, yellow with 

 strong purple claws. Bracteoles ovate oblong, acute, 3-5-toothed 

 (see Plate No. 15 E). 



