274 
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS. 
fruit exhibited as a paper mittia sa ie it is said to be 
produced in almost unlimited quantities. Considering the very general 
practice of Betel chewing in the East, and the abundance of fruits pro- 
duced, the adaptation of this apparently useless material for paper- 
making would seem to bea very probable benefit to the countries where 
the Areca Catechu is common. 
INDIA. 
A very ae collection of fibres was sent from India to the Exhibi- 
tion, and from these a typical set was selected for Kew. Among the 
more aoai of them may be mentioned the following :— ; 
Jute (Corchorus capsularis, and C. olitorius). The former species 
yields the Jute fibre of Central and East Bengal, while the isaer is that 
cultivated in the vicinity of Calcutta. Jute is an article of large and 
increasing importation to Great Britain, being chiefly used in the 
manufacture of carpets and other fabrics. The people of India use a 
large quantity of this fibre a for agricultural and internal trade 
purposes, added to which an immense number of gunny bags leave India 
filled with sugar, wheat, rice, ot other grains. : 
Sunn Hem > (Crotalaria juncea). This plant is oxtonnit culti- 
vated in Tata for its fibre, which by careful preparation becom ft, 
fine, and white, bearing comparison with flax. The waste is ntilised i in 
the manufacture of paper 
Deccani Hemp (Hibiscus cannabinus). A small shrub with fees 
for nets and ropes, and in the Dacca district , Bengal, it is the chief fibre 
used in the manufacture of paper. It is also stated to be sometimes 
met with as an adulterant of pa 
Bauhinia Vahlii, an enormous and perhaps the most ee of the 
climbing plants of the Indian Retest Its uses are almost more eet 
ose of any other forest plant except the home The is 
made into strong cordage, which is used for AEREE we acd the 
fi as been employed as a material for pa ki e large 
rethe 
rain-caps. The pods are yondiad: and the seeds eate 
Cocoa-nut (Cocos nucifera). The valuable coir fibre of commerce is 
obtained from the fibrous pericarp. A fibre is also prepared from the 
leaf stalks, but compared to the coir it is unimportant. Coir is very 
largely used in the manufacture of mats and matting. The net of 
fibres at the base of the petioles is ods into bags and paper, and is 
also used in Ceylon for straining toddy. 
Udal (Sterculia villosa), a moderate sized tree, common in the 
forests throughout India and Burma. The tree is so highly valued for 
its fibre, that in the more accessible forests, it may be said to occur 
chiefly as a bush from its branches being constantly lopped for the fibre 
mak ee The fibre is coarse but strong, and is made into ropes and 
and in Bengal, Dou and South India, into ropes and 
eantbande for dragging tim 
