SU RUB RES AND OROTINA 39 1 



freely about habitations on the Pacific slope and although not 

 actually cultivated is encouraged on account of its handsome 

 red and yellow flowers, as well as its usefulness in the native 

 pharmacopoeia. 



At the west of the house-clearing was a cane field, where 

 several "calabacero" trees {Crescentia ctijete) were growing. 

 These are small trees with thick trunks, rounded or slightly 

 flattened heads and exceedingly stiff" spray. The large 

 tubular flowers are borne on older branches and are followed 

 by globular or elongated fruits six to ten inches in diameter, 

 which have an extremely hard woody rind and numerous 

 dry seeds. The fruits are very useful to the country people. 

 Those of globular form, known as "guacals," are cut in two 

 and when the seeds are cleaned out are used as bowls, or 

 holes are bored and the shell becomes a sieve or colander. 

 The elongated ones, called "jicaras," have one end cut off 

 and serve as chocolate pots, bowls, cups or dishes, according 

 to size and shape. These vessels are often beautifully orna- 

 mented by cutting away the dark outer rind in patterns so 

 that the lighter inner wood is exposed, and sometimes they 

 are painted in addition. They all have round bottoms, 

 however, and must have a little wooden stand, the "conejo" 

 or "salvillo," to keep them upright. 



There seemed to be a difference in the shapes of the leaves 

 of the trees in this clump bearing the jicaras from those 

 producing the gaucals. The jicara had entire leaves, eight 

 to ten inches long, slightly acuminate; occasionally the 

 margin was indented a little at the end of a vein. The leaves 

 of the guacal were usually three-lobed at the tip, although 

 some were entire. The lobing was irregular, sometimes only 

 two lobes being present, or the margin might be entire on one 

 side. However in January, P. saw, in the yard of the hotel at 

 Filadelfia in Guanacaste, a jicara and a guacal tree, both laden 

 with shining green gourds. The leaves of these two trees 



