Foreign Notices. — Asia. 99 



Leche, of the coast of Caraccas. {Humboldt, Personal Narr. p. 212-215.) 

 2. Mauritia Palm, Tree of Life, Arbol de Vida, Murichil, or American 

 Sago Tree ; the bread, wine, lodging, and clothing of the Indians on the 

 northern banks of the Oronoko. 5. I'nga faeculifera, Pois Doux, from 

 the vicinity of the city of Santo Domingo, Hispaniola; with pods about 10 

 inches long, which form an article of diet highly nutritive. 



To preserve the Seeds in a state Jit for vegetation, he says : — Fill an old 

 cask about half full of moist earth ; then put the seeds, those especially 

 which are of an oily nature, and consequently liable to spoil soonest, as near 

 the centre of the cask as possible ; then fill up the remaining portion of the 

 cask with moist earth, ramming it tight, and heading the cask so as to make 

 it as completely air and water tight as possible, and stow it away in a place 

 to which no salt water is likely to reach. In this way, seeds may be 

 brought, with perfect safety, from the East Indies or New Holland. 



To preserve the Flowers. — Gather them in various stages, from the young 

 bud to the full-blown blossom, and press them carefully between several 

 folds of blotting paper, changing them into dry parts of the paper, every 

 second or third day, until all their moisture is absorbed ; and then press 

 them between the leaves of some book of sufficient size, until an opportu- 

 nity of transmitting them to Europe presents itself. The same cautions 

 apply to leaves, which should always be the most perfect. — Fareham, near 

 Plymouth, May 12. 1826. 



ASIA. 



The Silk Tree, Acacia julibrissin, Durukhti ubrishoom, Persian. — This tree 

 droops like the willow ; the flower has silky fibres, of a delicate pink colour, 

 and would resemble a swansdown puff", tinged with rouge. It sends forth 

 a most fragrant perfume, and its name, Durukhti ubrishoom, the silk 

 tree, bespeaks its appearance. It thrives in Teheraun in the open air, the 

 thermometer ranging between 16° and 110° Fahrenheit; but it does not 

 succeed so well at Tabriz, where the temperature is colder and more 

 variable. It grows wild in the forests bordering on the Caspian Sea. There 

 is one in the garden of the Prince Royal at Tabriz, and another in possession 

 of the English officers resident there, .who are obliged to protect it from the 

 winter cold. (Keppefs Jour, from India.) The finest plant in England is 

 in the Bristol Nursery ; it covers the front of Mr. Miller's dwelling-house, is 

 now covered with bloom, and is worth going 20 miles to see. — S. Aug. 20. 



The Rasteraun, most probably the iTibiscus syriacus, is remarkable in 

 its appearance, and resembles a large rose tree. It grows to the height of 

 twenty feet ; the trunk is nearly two feet in circumference ; the flower, 

 though larger, resembles the English hedge rose, and has five leaves ; the 

 calyx is in the form of a bell. The leaf of the tree is small, smooth, and 

 shining. The branches droop gracefully to the ground, and the flowers are 

 so abundant as completely to conceal the stem of the tree. Numbers of 

 this species are to be seen in every garden in Teheraun. {KeppeVs Journ. 

 from India.) 



Botanic Garden of Ceylon. — Sir Alexander Johnston, while President of 

 the Council in Ceylon, was convinced by a long residence in Ceylon, that 

 the nature and value of the different vegetable productions of that island 

 were not sufficiently known, that the quantity of those which were the most 

 useful might be greatly increased, and their quality greatly improved, were 

 the attention of government and the public properly called to the subject; 

 and that the very best way of attaining this object would be for govern- 

 ment to establish a botanical garden in a central part of the island, and 

 subordinate gardens in the several provinces in which there was any 

 material difference of soil and climate. Sir A. Johnston, therefore, in 



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