SUBSTITUTE FOE COTTOtf. 23 



in this colony and in other parts of the world for stuffing mat- 

 tresses. This plant is not, strictly speaking, a sea-weed, al- 

 though it grows under water and has some of the characteristics 

 of an Alga ; bnt it is really a phanerogamous plant of the 

 Linnoean class monandria, order monogynia, or of the natural order 

 Zosteraceae. It is partly described in Brown's Prodromus as in- 

 digenous in New South Wales; but it does not appear that 

 "Brown ever had an opportunity of examining the flower, so that 

 he was not sure whether our species was really identical with 

 the European one or not. In England, the sea-wrack is said to 

 flower in August, but as I have recently noticed several plants 

 in a state of fructification, I conclude that in this part of the 

 world it flowers in the spring. In addition to this species, which 

 abounds in our estuaries, there is another which may sometimes 

 be noticed on the sea-shore (probably Z. maritimd), but the flower 

 of the one in question is very much like that of Z. Noltii figured 

 in Lindley's " Vegetable Kingdom." The flowers are so minute 

 that they can scarcely be recognised without the aid of a micro- 

 scope, but they are nevertheless true flowers, notwithstanding the 

 difficulty of accounting for the mode of fertilisation in some of 

 the species. 



Hitherto the sea- wrack, when dried, has been used for bedding, 

 and Withering says that the lower part of the stem contains 

 much saccharine matter, and is chewed by the Hebridians. It 

 has also had its place in the Pharmacopoeia as a remedy fo'r in- 

 flammation, gout, and tumours ! Mr. Harben, however, is the first 

 person who has discovered that the fibre of the leaves may be 

 made available for cotton spinning machinery, and he is so 

 sanguine as to its qualities that he thinks the strength, elasticity, 

 and silky texture of the plant will render it not merely a substi- 

 tute for cotton, but that the sea-wrack will be preferred to it. 

 In this age of discovery, it is impossible to predict how far Mr. 

 Harben's anticipations may be realised, for not many years since, 

 the Isonandra, which has afforded employment to so many per- 

 sons in the manufacture of articles from gutta percha, was as 

 little regarded as Zostera is now. Should the discovery prove 

 successful, it is satisfactory to know that abundance of raw ma- 

 terial may be procured on these shores, and therefore that Aus- 

 tralia, if necessary, may render assistance to the Lancashire 



