MISCELLANEOUS PRODUCTS. 161 



The same plant is used for making the Chinese matting 

 which has been imported into this country, and so largely 

 used for bed-room and drawing-room floors during the last 

 six or seven yeai-s. 



The so-called BRIAR-ROOT PIPES, which have now become 

 such a large article of trade, were first introduced to this 

 country about thirty years ago. For some time their 

 origin was quite \inknown, and they were made only in small 

 quantities. A flourishing industry is now established at 

 several places in Italy and France, notably at Leghorn, 

 Siena, and Grossitto. The roots of the "briar," which 

 word is a corruption of Bruyere (Erica arborea), are col- 

 lected on the hills of the Maremma, where the plant grows 

 luxuriantly and attains a great size. When brought to the 

 factory, the roots are cleaned of the earth which is attached 

 to them, and the decayed parts cut away. They are 

 then cut roughly into pipe-shapes, placed in a vat, and 

 gently simmered for twelve hours, by which time they 

 acquire a rich yellowish-brown colour, for which the best 

 pipes are noted. The rough blocks are then put into sacks 

 containing from forty to a hundred each, and sent to France, 

 where they are bored and finished off ready for exportation. 



Under the name of LOOFAHS, our chemists have ex- 

 bited in their shops for the last few years natural flesh 

 brushes, consisting of the vascular tissue of the fruits of 

 Luffa cegyptiaca, a climbing cucurbitaceous plant, native of 

 Egypt and Arabia, bub grown also in the West Indies and 

 Western Africa, where it is generally known as the Towel 

 Gourd. In the countries where the plant grows, the 

 vascular network of the fruit is commonly used for 

 straining palm wine and other fluids, as well as for 

 scrubbing-brushes, and making light ornamental articles, 

 such as baskets, hats, etc. Quite recently a large fac- 

 tory has been established in Germany for converting the 

 Lufla fruits into useful domestic articles, of which soles or 



