362 VOYAGK IN SEARCH 



The water charged with the pith is received 

 into troughs formed of the lower part of the pe- 

 tioles of the fago-palm leaves. Thefe troughs 

 are a meter long. At the extremity of each is 

 fixed a lieve, which retains part of the pith that 

 falls, and there remain floating the ligneous fibres 

 have efcaped the firlt wafhing. 



This fieve had alfo coft little trouble in the 

 preparation ; it was of the fame nature as the 

 other, and exhibited a web of crofled fibres, 

 which differed from that of our cloths by the 

 woof being fimply laid acrofs the warp through- 

 out its whole length ; but a few fhort fibres 

 which ran from one layer to the other confined 

 the warp and woof together, and formed of them 

 a clofe fubfiance. 



To remove the ligneous fibres that arc met 

 with in the pith of the fago, after it has been 

 warned in the bags, it is again run into troughs, 

 difpofed commonly to the number of four, one 

 above the other, in order that what has not fet- 

 tled in the firft, may be received in the fecond, 

 and fo on with the reft. 



The texture of the fago- pa 1 m well defcrved to 

 be examined ; accordingly I cut a flump of it, in 

 h I remarked a grain common to many other 

 as Citizen Desfontaines has fo ably de- 

 scribed in a memoir on monocotyledonous plants. 



On the two following days I could not go far 



from, 



