456 FORESTRY OF WEST AFRICA. 



Dog's-tooth Grass [Cynodon Dactylon, Pers.). — 

 Annual creeping grass. The long rhizomes or 

 runners and the rapid growth of this species render 

 it an excellent sand-binder. The leaves yield a 

 tolerable fodder for cattle and sheep. In India it is 

 considered the best pasture grass, and is known as 

 Doorba or Durva. From the roots a cooling drink 

 is said to be made, and at Naples they are used as 

 food for horses. This plant has also been recom- 

 mended as a substitute for sarsaparilla. — ' The 

 Useful Plants of Great Britain,' Sowerby, p. 291 ; 

 'The Vegetable Kingdom,' Robert Hogg, p. 821, &c. 



Distribution : Cape Verd Islands. 



Sangala-la (Eragrostis fascicularis, Trin.) — The 

 internodes of this grass are used on the Coast of 

 Angola by the natives for making bird-cages. — Kew 

 Museum. 



Distribution : Lower Guinea. 



FiLICES. 



Maiden-hair Fern {Adianhtm Capillus Vc7ieris, L.) — ■ 

 In Italy a syrup is made from the fronds of this fern, 

 and is known as Capillaire. Many medicinal virtues 

 are ascribed to Capillaire by Dioscorides and ancient 

 writers, but as a medicine it is now obsolete, except 

 as a remedy for coughs. Capillaire is used at the 

 present day as a hair producer, but its chief use is for 



