Fibres 



327 



this fibre, they are practically useless for textile purposes since the ultimate fibres are circular 

 in section and lack the characteristic " twist " of the cotton fibres. 



The most important of the silk cottons is " Kapok," the seed hairs of Eriodendron anfractuo- 

 sum, the white silk-cotton tree of the East Indies. Various unsuccessful attempts have been 

 made to employ it as a textile, and it is chiefly used for stuffing upholstery. It has also been 

 employed as a buoyant material for packing life-belts. The best qualities of kapok are obtained 

 from Java. The red silk-cotton tree, Bombax mala-paricum, is a native of India, but the 

 floss, although of good quality, is considered to be inferior to kapok. 



The Down tree of tropical America and Jamaica, known botanically as Ochroma bagopus, 

 affords a beautifully soft fawn-coloured floss, which is densely packed in the long angular pods. 



Cochlospermum Gossypium, an East Indian plant, also yields a good silk cotton, but it has 

 no recognised position on the market. There are many other vegetable flosses or " silks," 

 as they are sometimes called, and space permits the mention of but a few. The well-known 

 " mudar " floss (Calotropis gigantea) is beautifully silky, and the natives of India affirm that 

 it has a soothing effect when used in pillows. " Yachan " floss is obtained from Chorisia 

 insignis in Argentina, and other flosses are yielded by species of Asclepias and Beaumontia, 

 that of B. grandi flora, a plant growing in Bengal, being especially fine. 



MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES 



The Tapa cloth of the Pacific Islanders has been referred to under " Paper-making Fibres." 

 The famous Uganda Bark Cloth is prepared by beating the bark of a species of Ficus with 

 curious grooved mallets of hard wood until the debris has been got rid of and the material 

 rendered supple. The Lace Bark of Jamaica is the bast of Lagetta Untearia, and is well 

 known as a fancy material for cravats, frills, fans, and wall ornaments. The popular 

 Panama hat is plaited from strips of the young leaves of Carludovica palmata, a palm- 

 like plant growing in Central and South America. The less well-known Ippi-Appa hat 

 of Jamaica is made in a similar way from the leaves of C. jamaicensis. The Mallow 

 family (Malvaceae), to which the cotton plant belongs, is particularly rich in fibre-yielding plants, 

 and some of the most in- 

 teresting occur on the genus 

 Hibiscus, a group of plants 

 distinguished by their large 

 showy flowers. " Deccan " 

 or " Ambari " Hemp is 

 obtained from the stems of 

 H. cannabinus, cultivated 

 for its fibre in most parts 

 of India. 



The inner bark of H. elatus, 

 a tree occurring in the West 

 Indies, affords the Mountain 

 Mahoe, sometimes known as 

 "Cuba Bast," used for hats 

 and for other millinery 

 purposes. 



COTTON 



Cotton is the most im- 

 portant material used for 



man's Clothing, having Photo by W. H. Johnston, Esq., F.L.S. 



during comparatively recent labolabo cotton farm, gold coast 



