'249 



ible of them is a fan-thatch species, presumably of the genus 

 Thrinax, abundant in the woods covering the limestone hills 

 about Hollymount, which reaches a height of 50 feet with a 

 trunk only about 6 inches in diameter ; its flowers and fruit are 

 unknown to botanists, and are apparently produced only spar- 

 ingly and at long intervals ; examination of several hundred trees 

 [ailed to reveal them, and other botanists have had a like experi- 

 ence, but the old fruit-stalks seen on several trees prove that they 

 do occur at times. Another very interesting species of Thrinax 

 grows in great quantities at the mouth of Priestman's River 

 at the extreme northeastern part of the island ; this is a small 



rs of stalked milk-white fruits nearly half an inch in diameter, 

 he largest native palm on the island is the cabbage-palm, the 

 unk of which sometimes reaches a height of 100 feet ; the 

 )yal-palms of Cuba and Porto Rico do not grow naturally 

 n Jamaica, but are freely planted for ornament. In order to 

 itudy the plants of the wettest part of the island we traversed 

 :he region from Port Antonio eastward to Priestman's River, for- 

 ty on a day with insignificant rainfall ; this brought us to 

 a view of the John Crow Mountains, the other region which I 

 have referred to as least known botanically. but we did not get 

 within five or six miles of the range ; inquiries indicate that the 

 pack-train method will be the only satisfactory way of explor- 

 ing them. 



Parts of several days were spent at the public gardens at Hope, 



idying the plantations and herbarium ; Mr. Harris very 



obligingly gave us great assistance here, allowing us to prepare 



and pack all our collections, and arranging for their shipment ; 



and to this cooperation much of the success of the expedition 



In addition to its function as a public garden and park, Hope 

 a very important center of botanical and horticultural investi- 

 ition, serving also as an agricultural experiment station. 

 The public garden at Castleton located near the center of the 

 land was also visited and the plantations studied with much 

 terest and profit ; this is in a very wet region, permitting the 



