204 BUM.KTIIN ÜK i/hKKBIBI; BOISSIKH (2'"« SKR.). 1907 



Fa m. 38. M ELI ACE jE 



163. Khaya Senegalensis A.Juss. — Si. Mary's Island (Bowdich). 

 Albreda (Perrottel in Guill. et Perr. FI. Senegamb. Tent. 130, l. 32). 

 Bakkendik in Upper Niumi district (Lester). North bank (Ozanne, n. IX, 

 n. X). Native names « Khaï » and « Caïl ». Known in the timber market as 

 Gambian Mahogany. Ttiis iree is one of the largest and most beautiful of 

 Ihose which grow on the banks of the Gambia. The district in which it 

 was discovered is now within British territory, and not being found in 

 the interior of Senegambia or Senegal, it has, since the year 1820, been 

 introduced by the French settlers into Iheir plantations on the banks of 

 Ihe river Senegal, where it has tloiirished in avenues and on the confines 

 of gardens and cultivaled ground. Its trunk is very straight and capable 

 of being eut into fine planks, with no appearance of knots or shakes, Ihus 

 affording a very valuable wood for joinery and cabinet-making The wood 

 is almost as red as true Mahogany, but rather softer. It is, hovvever, so 

 heavy, Ihat when fresh eut, it almost immediately sinks in water. but 

 rises after a time. The bark is bitter, and an infusion or décoction of it is 

 taken by the natives as a fébrifuge. Frora Bowdich's description, and the 

 note appended thereto, it is undoubtedly identical with n. 27 of his pro- 

 posed new gênera (though, as in the case of several others which bedes- 

 cribed al the same time, he did not give a name to il). In the Kew Museum, 

 Ihere is a fruiting branch mounted in a case to show ils form and struc- 

 ture, a prepared oblong block of wood, also cul from a Gambian tree 

 (G. F. Carter, 1890), a spécimen of young bark of which a décoction is 

 nsed as a tonic (Dr. Daniell). a mass of dried gum known as « African gum 

 kino » from the Edinburgh Foreslry Exhibition (1884), and another récent 

 spécimen of the prepared gum sent by the Gort Development Syndicale 

 (1906), and lastly a pholo-micrograph of the long section of the wood 

 (J. Weale, 1905) showing its close dense structure and compact fibro- 

 vascular bundles. Oliver (FTA. I. 337) had not seen any spécimens, and 

 relied on Perrottel's description and figure of a flowering branch. 



164. Carapa touloucouna Guill. et Perr. — In the Kew Museum 

 Ihere is a boltle of Touloucouna oil from Gambia, originaliy sent to the 

 Edinburgh Foreslry Exhibition (1884). Beyond this, I hâve not seen any 

 Gambian spécimens of this tree. This species is sunk by Oliver in C. Giiia- 

 nensis. The tree under this name, however, in FTA is nol identical with 

 the tree thaï grows in Guiana, but is C. procera Cand., quite a différent 

 species. As to the affînity of the tree yielding this oil with C. Guianensis. 

 the authors write; — « Elle a de grands rapports par son feuillage avec 

 « la Carapa Guianensis d'Aublet, qui n'a été décrit que fort incomplète- 

 « ment. Cependant nous la croyons suffisamment caractérisé par son fruit 

 « pentagone et quinquéloculaire, et par les autres parties de sa fleur en 

 « nombre quinaire». Il is unfortunate that Aublet has also described a 

 genus of Theaceae under the almost similar name of Caraipa, which should 

 hâve been avoided. 



165. Ekebergia Senegalensis Juss. — F S T. 126, l. 31; 



common on clay soil about Albreda (Leprieur). 



