Dichopais. ] 



SAPO'I 



243 



C':n:liar, Chittagong and Arracan. 



Weight, 68 Ibs. per cubic foot. M"u<-h valued in Caclinr and Chittagong. Maun 

 says it does not final, hid he must ivfei- \ <_MV.-M wood. Kurz says it yields a good 

 quality of gutta-percha in laruv i|ii;m1ii y. Major Lew in says it is used in Chittagoug 

 for making lieds, tools, A.C.. and is sawn into boards lor Ilie Calcutta market. 



127-1, 



UiM. 



I'.tr/j. 



C.-.rl.ar .... 



Svl'u.-t .... 



Chittagong 



llinkl'eon-; IJ. -serve, Chittagong 



Iba. 

 53 



53 



4. BASSIA, Ron. 



Contains 3 species of Indian trees with milky juice, useful for their timber as well 

 as for many other products. 



Wood moderately hard, heartwood red. Pores moderate-sized, in 

 short radial lines. Medullary rays equidistant, the distance between the 

 rays less than the transverse diameter of the pores. 



1. B. latifolia, Roxb. Fl. Ind. ii. 526; Beddome t. 41; Brandis 289. 

 Vern. Mahwa,mowa,mahua, Hind.; Mahwa, ma7iula,maul,J$eng. ; Moka, 

 Uriya ; lllitpij elupa, Jcat illipi, Tarn. ; Ippi, yeppa, Tel. ; Mahu t Saigas ; 

 Irup) irrip, irfiu, Gondi ; Mohu, Kurku ; Moho, Mar. ; llonge, Kan. ; 

 Poonam, Mai.; fyiindah (the oil). 



A large deciduous tree. Bark inch thick, grey, with vertical cracks, 

 exfoliating in thin scales. Sap wood large ; heartwood reddish brown, 

 from hard to very hard. Annual rings indistinct. Pores moderate-sized, 

 not numerous, in short, sometimes oblique, radial, wavy lines between the 

 numerous, fine, medullary rays, which are joined by numerous parallel, fine, 

 transverse bars. 



Indigenous in the forests of Central India, Cultivated and self-sown throughout 

 India. 



The weight and transverse strength have been determined by the following experi- 

 ments : 



The wood is not much used, as the tree is so prized for its flowers that it is rarely 

 felled ; it has been tried for railway sleepers in the Central Provinces, and Beddome says 

 it is used for the naves of wheels, for door and window frames and panels, for furniture 

 and 'country vessels. The flowers are an important article of food in many parts of 

 India ; they are eaten raw or cooked, or made into sweetmeats. They are also distilled 

 into a coarse spirit. Mr. V. Ball, quoted in Dr. Hunter's Statistical Account of 

 Bengal, Vol. XVI., page 48, has described the collection and use of the Mahua flowers 

 in Chota Nagpore. He says that first class trees often yield about 30 maunds. The 

 right of collection is usually sold both in the Government forests and by private 

 owners, at a rate per tree varying from 4 annas to 2 or 3 rupees. The maliua 



