415 
in width, trunk 10 ft. high, Madi; plentiful at 34° N. lat., leaves 
smelling heavily of honey and covered in December with the honey 
bee; flowers creamy yellow, fall off readily and cover the ground 
(Grant, Trans. Linn. Soc. xxix. p. 105); the most striking 
tree—handsome, spreading like an oak—from Fatiko to Nimule 
on the Nile (Dawe, Rep. Bot. Miss. Uganda, 1906, p. 33); common 
from the Assua River to the Uma River—the boundary between 
the Bari and Madi countries (l.c. p. 34); a small tree characteristic 
of the open forests, Ashanti (Thompson, Col. Rep. Misc. No. 66, 
1910, p. 90) almost universally distributed in the hinterland, Gold 
Coast (l.c. p. 73), and common in many parts of the Bahr-el- 
Ghazal, Sudan (Bull. Imp. Inst. 1911, p. 202). 
demand for which is likely to increase—owing to the present 
shortage of fats and oils of many descriptions. The deman 
` however, for some considerable time may be readily met in the 
supplies being made more accessible by the railway extension in 
Nigeria. Transport seems hitherto to have been the main draw- 
back but with this provided the large quantities that have evi- 
dently gone to waste for many years can now be claimed. Proof of 
this is advanced in various reports by successive administrators— 
‘Shea trees are abundant [in Borgu] but with a small quantity 
sold to the Niger Company, the fruit is allowed to rot on the 
ground ” (Lugard, Col. Rep. Ann. No. FAL 1905, p. 75); ‘‘ Shea 
and many tons of nuts have hitherto been allowed to rot on the 
ground for want of transport’’ (Hesketh Bell, Col. Rep. Ann. 
No. 674, 1911, p. 11). 
More instances might be quoted, but the above will be sufficient 
to show that conservation is desirable and that full advantage will 
be taken of the improved conditions favouring the trade in the 
purely forest product. Meantime to ensure a continuance of the 
Dominica, 1912-13, p. 3). In the Upper Chari region—where th 
conditions would correspond M Usu ta to those in N. Nigeria 
— the tree loses its leaves usually in November and December, the 
