364 A MISSION TO VITI. 



but certainly nothing more save a coincidence, that the 

 ancient Egyptian term for rejoicing was " lali," as in 

 the Arabian song of ' Doos ya-lel-lee' These drums are 

 beaten with two short and thick pieces of wood, and 

 the sound produced can be heard within a circle of se- 

 veral miles. Great praise is bestowed on the Mulomulo 

 (Thespesia populnea, Corr.), a tree common on the sea- 

 beaches of the Eastern hemisphere, on account of the 

 almost indestructible nature of its wood whilst under 

 water. When fully developed it is about fifty feet high, 

 and the stem from one to two feet in diameter, bearing 

 heart-shaped leaves and flowers somewhat resembling 

 those of the hollyhock, but changing their colour as 

 the day advances, a peculiarity they share in common 

 with those of several other Malvaceous plants. Its 

 thick foliage renders it suitable for avenues, and I have 

 seen it planted for the sake of its shade both in Ceylon 

 and the Hawaiian islands. The centre of old stems 

 generally decays in the way our European elms do, and 

 the wood towards that part presents a deep claret co- 

 lour. The Mamakara (Kleinhovia hospita^ Linn.) and 

 the Marasa (StorcJdella Vitiensis, Seem., so called in 

 honour of my able assistant in the botanical explora- 

 tion of Fiji, Mr. Jacob Storck) should not be omitted 

 in a list of timbers. The Mamakara is from forty to 

 fifty feet high, and rather a social tree, indicating its 

 presence during the flowering season by its numerous 

 and large panicles of pink blossoms. The Marasa, dis- 

 covered on the southern side of Ovalau by Mr. Storck, 

 is a noble object, attaining eighty feet or more in 

 height, nine feet in girth, having a remarkably straight 



