763 



pronounced; it may be likened, perhaps to that of dried 

 apples, but it is somewhat stronger and the aroma is con- 

 siderably more penetrating. As well as being eaten in the 

 fresh state, the fruit is put to numerous other uses, one 

 of the most important of which is the manufacture of a 

 distilled liquor known as 'licor de genipapo.' This 

 article retains the peculiar and distinctive flavor of the 

 ripe fruit, and is highly esteemed by the Brazilians. Its 

 manufacture is carried on commercially in certain regions. 

 A refreshing drink known as 'genipapada' , is also prepared 

 from the ripe fruit, with the addition of sugar and water, 

 much as lemonade is made in the United States. A dye is 

 extracted from the green fruit, which, according to Bar- 

 bosa Rodrigues, is employed by the Mundurucu Indians for 

 tattooing. It is also used for coloring clothes, straw, 

 hammocks, etc. Various medicinal uses are attributed to 

 the genipap by the Brazilians; the root is said to be 

 purgative, and the juice of the fruit diuretic." (Dorsett, 

 Popenoe, and Shamel introduction.) 



Melinis minutifiora . (Poaceae.) 37983. Seeds of capim 

 gordura from Sao Joao d'el Rey, Minas, Brazil. Nos. 37983 

 to 38041 represent seeds of grasses collected by the 

 Brazilian Exploring Expedition at Joazeiro, Sao Joao d'el 

 Rey, Januaria, Xique Xique, and other points in Bahia and 

 Minas. Among these are various varieties of guinea grass, 

 capim d' Angola, and other forage and pasture grasses, some 

 of them flourishing on pure sand, others of very rapid 

 growth. (Dorsett, Popenoe, and Shamel introduction.) 



Myrciaiia edulis . (Myrtaceae.) 37829. Plants of the 

 Cambuca, from Rio de Janeiro. Purchased of Eickhoff, Car- 

 neiro Leao & Co. "The cambuca,, a native of the state of 

 Rio de Janeiro, and commonly cultivated in gardens for its 

 highly appreciated fruit. In growth the tree is very 

 similar to the jaboticaba, the leaves being considerably 

 larger, however, and the bark a darker shade of brown. 

 The fruits are produced both on the small limbs and on the 

 trunk, though the specimens we have seen do not fruit 

 clear down to the ground as the jaboticaba frequently 

 does. The season is from February to May in this region. 

 In form the fruit is oblate, one and one-half inches in 

 length and two inches in breadth, stem practically none, 

 the fruits being sessile or nearly so; base flattened, 

 calyx persistent, a very small, brown disk not over one- 

 eighth inch in diameter, level with the surface of the 

 fruit; skin smooth, orange yellow in color, thin, tena- 

 cious, fairly tough; flesh divided into two portions, the 

 firm outer flesh one-fourth inch thick, leathery, very 

 acid in taste, light orange in color, the inner flesh con- 



