540 BOTANY. 



the Paraguay tea, sometimes called Mate. It contains Caffeine, the 

 active principle in tea and coffee. 



Order Olacineae. Trees and shrubs, about 170 species, almost en- 

 tirely of the tropics. 



598. Cohort XXX. Geraniales. Flowers often zygo- 

 morphic ; ovary superior, entire, lobed, or sub-apocarpous. 

 Order Chailletiaceas. Tropical shrubs and trees. 



Order Meliaceae. Trees (rarely undershrubs),with mostly pinnately 

 compound leaves ; stamens united into a tube ; ovary entire. Species, 

 270, nearly confined to the tropics. 



Several trees yield valuable timber. 



Melia Azedarach, the Pride of India Tree, indigenous throughout 

 Western Asia, now naturalized in all the Mediterranean region, and 

 the Southern United States, is a fine tree, whose reddish wood is sus- 

 ceptible of a beautiful finish. 



Swietenia Mahogoni, a native of tropical America (barely reaching 

 South Florida), yields the well-known Mahogany wood. The trees 

 are of great thickness, sometimes being as much as two metres in 

 diameter. 



CedreLa odorata, of Jamaica, yields Jamaica Cedar. 



C. Toona, of India, produces Chittagong wood. 



C. australis, an immense Australian species, resembles the Jamaica 

 Cedar. The wood of the three foregoing species of Cedrella is fine 

 grained, and well adapted to many uses. 



CJiloroxylon Swietenia, of Ceylon and Western India, is a large tree, 

 whose fine-grained satin-like wood, called Satin Wood, is much prized 

 in cabinet and furniture making and fine turnery. 



Order Burseraoeee. Trees and shrubs, abounding in resinous or 

 oily secretions ; species, 145, nearly all tropical. 



Balsamodendron Myrrha and B. Kataf, small Arabian trees, yield 

 Myrrh. 



B. Africanum, of Eastern Africa, produces African Bdellium. 



Olibanum, an incense resin, is obtained from Boswellia thurifera, & 

 lofty tree of Central India. 



Bursera gummifera, West Indian Birch, of South Florida and the 

 West Indies, yields a gum resin called Chibou or Cachibou. 



Order Ochnaceee. Tropical shrubs and trees with a watery juice. 



Order Simarubaceae. Shrubs and trees, with scentless foliage ; 

 leaves generally compound and alternate ; stamens distinct. About 

 112 species, almost confined to the tropics, are known. The bitter bark 

 and wood of many species are made use of in medicine. That from 

 Quassia amara, a small tree of tropical America, is the Quassia of 

 pharmacy. From a West Indian tree, Simaruba amara, the drug 

 Simaruba Bark is obtained. 



