THE PALMS OF ASIA. 133 



has attained a height of five or six feet, it is 

 covered with sharp spines, which afford it pro- 

 tection against the attack .of the wild hog or 

 other depredation. When, from the strength 

 and maturity of the wood, this protection is no 

 longer necessary, the spines drop off. Before 

 the tree has attained its full growth, and pre- 

 viously to the formation of the fruit, the stem 

 consists of a thin hard wall, about two inches 

 thick, and of an enormous volume of spongy 

 medullary matter, like that of alder. It is this 

 medullary matter that affords the edible flirina, 

 which is the bread of the islanders. As the 

 fruit forms, the farinaceous medulla disappears ; 

 and when the tree attains full maturity, the 

 stem is no more than a hollow shell, affordin"- 

 a striking example of the physiological fact 

 already mentioned.* The utmost age of the 

 tree does not exceed thirty years. The sago 

 palm is an inhabitant of low, marshy situa- 

 tions, and does not grow in dry or mountainous 

 places. A good sago plantation, or forest, is a 

 bog knee-deep. There is but one species ot 

 this palm, but four varieties, namely, the culti- 

 vated, the wild, one distinguished by the 

 length of the spines on its branches, and one 

 altogether destitute of spines. The first and 

 * See I'p. 19—21. 



