Leguminosae. 



lobes; stamens exserted, the filaments hairy, broad and flat below; ovary glabrous, 3 to 5- 

 ovuled; style incurved; stigma small; pod broad-oblong or obovate nearly 10 cm long 

 by about !> em wide, with a dorsal wing of 6 to 2 mm in width running along its whole 

 length and ending in an uncinate point, indehiscent, glaucous reddish when young; 

 seeds 2 to 4, pale ovate, flat, 18 to 20 mm x 14 to 16 mm. 



The Uhiuhi is a very beautiful tree with a trunk of sometimes more than 

 one foot in diameter. The bark is rough-scaly and of a dark-gray to brown 

 color. The leaves are pinnate, having 4 to 8 pairs of leaflets of about 1^ inches 

 in length. The flowers are arranged in terminal racemes 1 to 4 inches long, and 

 are of a beautiful dark-red color ; legume is broad, oblong, 3 to 3^ by 2 inches, 

 and is winged on one side ; when young it is pinkish, glaucous, and very pretty. 



The tree, which was first discovered on the Island of Kauai, inhabits the 

 leeward side of the islands, especially the aa lava fields. It is not uncommon on 

 the Island of Hawaii. At North Kona, between Huehue and Puuwaawaa, eleva- 

 tion 2000 feet, the writer observed the biggest trees. They are not, however, 

 very tall, reaching a height of about 30 feet, with short trunks. On Kauai they 

 are very scarce nowadays, only individual trees being found in a gulch belov' 

 Puu ka Pele back of Waimea; on Hawaii they are only found in Kona, where 

 quite a number of trees exist, the latter place being a new locality, as no Vhiuhi 

 had been recorded previously from Hawaii. 



The tree is known by the natives as Uhiuhi on Kauai and Hawaii, while 

 on Maui, along Kaupo, the southern outlet of Haleakala crater, it is known as 

 Kea. It blossoms in the early spring. On Hawaii it is associated with Kokia 

 Bockii Lewton, the native red cotton or Eokio, Erythrina monosperma or 

 Wiliwili, Colubrina oppositifolia, Dodonaea, Sideroxylon, Maba sandwicensis, 

 Osteomeles, etc. It is also found on Oahu in the mountains of Waianae and on 

 Wailupe. It has not been reported from Molokai or Lanai. 



The wood of the Uhiuhi is extremely hard, close-grained, and very durable ; it 

 is of almost black color, with a light-colored sapwood. The natives made their 

 spears from it, as well as the laau melo-melo or laau makaalei, a peculiar imple- 

 ment for fishing. The laau melo-melo had the shape of a club, to which a line was 

 attached at the tapering end. When fishing, the natives used to drop the wood, 

 which previously was besmeared with a sweet, sticky substance, into the water, 

 through which it was slowly pulled in order to attract the fishes, which were 

 then caught by a man with a net, who followed behind. The wood, being very 

 heavy, will sink in the water even if a hundred years old, and was on that ac- 

 count selected by the natives for the above-described purpose. 



The Uhiuhi is peculiar to these islands, outside of which it is not found. 

 A species of Tortrix feeds on the flat seed-pods of the Uhiuhi; it is seldom 

 that perfect pods are met with. 



SOPHORA L. 



Calyx with short teeth; vexilum broad, obovate or circular, often shorter, rarely longer 

 than the carina; alae oblong; stamens free or rarely connected at the base in a ring, with 

 dorsifixed anthers, ovary with many ovules; pod cylindrical often contracted between the 



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