270 NATURAL HISTORY. 



number one hundred, are about the size of grains of 

 wheat, and lie embedded in a rich, juicy pulp, somewhat 

 acid, but of fine flavor. In a wild state the pomegranate 

 is only a shrub, but under culture becomes a tree, often 

 twenty feet in height. Originally native of the East 

 Indies, Persia, and Lesser Asia, transplanted thence to 

 south of Europe. The taste of the fruit is pleasant, 

 sub-acid, and cooling, like that of the currant. Both 

 the rind of the fruit and bark of the root are considered 

 as an excellent vermifuge. 



Dwarf Pomegranate (P. Dana), shrubby ; leaves 

 lanceolate, acute. Native of West Indies, where it is 

 used as a hedge plant. Four to six feet high ; flowers 

 purple, smaller than the foregoing, often double. 



TwEXTY-XixTH FAMILY. MYRTACE^. MYRTLE 

 BLOOMS. First of this race is 



The Clove or Nail Tree (Caryophyllus aromaticus). 

 A beautiful, ornamental tree, about thirty feet high : in 

 shape resembles the bay tree ; the leaves, however, are 

 rather smaller. The branches are four-cornered, instead 

 of round ; flowers reddish-white : the fruit, divided into 

 two compartments, contains about forty seeds, each over 

 an inch in length ; color dark brown. Every part of 

 the plant is highly aromatic ; the buds taken off before 

 blooming and dried are the well known cloves of com- 

 merce ; they are pulled while green, and dried by smoke 

 or heat, which turns them brown. 



The Clove (clou, Fr., a nail) is in common use, every- 

 where known as a favorite spice, and useful in medicine, 

 as it yields a pungent volatile oil. 



The Melalcuca Cajiputi and Eucalyptus resin if era, 

 natives of India, belong also to the family of Myrtaceae. 

 Cajeput oil is obtained from the first, Gum Kino from 



