214 THE TREE BOOK 



both sides. It is to this tree that credit must be 

 given for one of the world's greatest industries 

 — silk manufacture. For it is upon the leaves 

 of the white mulberry that silkworms have been 

 fed, since time immemorial. 



The paper mulberry is a Japanese relative 

 that has escaped from cultivation, and may fre- 

 quently be found about old homesteads. It gets 

 its name from the fact that in China and in its 

 native land paper is made from its extremely 

 fibrous bark. The leaves of this species are 

 much like those of the red mulberry. The fruit 

 is club-shaped and far from edible. 



The wood of the mulberry is light yellow and 

 soft. It is a favorite for piles and posts, be- 

 cause of its durability when exposed to mois- 

 ture. The early Indians of Louisiana wove 

 ro^es and suits from the fibers of the tree's 

 inner bark. 



