184 ZAMBEZIAN FLORA 



with these the surface of the marsh, a curious 

 member of the Limnaceae order, the bright green, 

 lettuce-hke Pistia may be seen, its long semi- 

 transparent roots reaching deep down into the 

 water. It is not unhke some gigantic form of 

 duck-weed, and no Zambezian inland water or 

 marsh is complete without it. In the backwaters 

 of the great river itself it is not uncommon, and 

 when torn from its moorings by some freshet of 

 the early rains, small floating islands of pistia heads 

 may be met borne upon the current on their way 

 to the sea. 



But the glory of the marsh is the Papyrus, and 

 some of these great rushes grow to an immense 

 and most impressive size. I have found them in 

 the Bungwes, or vast expanses of marsh south of 

 Luabo, nine or ten feet high, their pellucid, tubular 

 stems, full of transparent juice, five or six inches in 

 circumference, and of a pale apple-green. Over- 

 hanging the water at a variety of angles and curves 

 the papyrus displays its large green head, often so 

 heavy as to rob the plant of any rush-like straight- 

 ness. These are all sizes, the larger attaining to 

 the dimensions of the largest-sized household mop, 

 from the rounded surface of which long, gossamery 

 filaments, reminding you of diaphanous, apple- 

 green, silky threads, and cleft at the extremities, 

 stick out like soft bristles. It was from the pith 

 of this remarkable growth that the writing paper 

 of the ancient Egyptians was made, although we 

 can only form hazardous guesses at the processes 

 through which it passed to emerge in the form 

 which then did duty for paper. 



