CHAPTER XXII 



THE LIBER f AN FLORA 



AS will be evident from a comparison of the list of plants 

 drawn up in an appendix at the end of this chapter 

 contributed by Dr. Otto Stapf, the flora of Liberia, 

 like its fauna, whilst typically West African, has certain individual 

 peculiarities, is associated nearest with the vegetable products 

 of Sierra Leone, and belongs to the botanical sub-region which 

 might be styled u Upper Guinea." This means a narrow belt 

 of densely forested country along the West African coast 

 beginning to the south of the River Gambia, and extending 

 perhaps as far east as the country of Dahome. This forest 

 belt is of varying width, as may be seen by the appended 

 sketch-map. It is usually associated with a rainfall of not less 

 than ninety inches per annum, usually more. To the north- 

 wards, the West African forest belt (affected by the recent 

 extension of human action in agriculture) changes with more 

 or less abruptness into the park-like region of luxuriant grass, 

 herbs, and rich forest in the river valleys, together with occasional 

 shady trees out in the open. This park-like country in West 

 Africa is not of much greater average width than the forest 

 belt. It is soon affected north of the eleventh degree of N. 

 Latitude by the rapidly decreasing rainfall, which to the 

 north of this eleventh parallel drops generally from sixty inches 

 to an average thirty-five and less. These conditions create a 

 country much healthier for human beings and much more 

 VOL. u 521 i 



