264 THE XUT CULTURI«T. 



Cola nut, Kola nut or G-ooea nut. — The fruit 

 of a small tree, native of the warmer pa,rts of western 

 Africa, and known to botanists as Cola acuminata, and 

 of the Sterculiad family (SterculiacecB). In its native 

 country it 'grows thirty to forty feet high. The leaves 

 are oblong-elliptical, six to eight inches long,. and pointed 

 (acuminate), and from this it probably derived its spe- 

 cific name. The flowers are yellow, and produced in 

 axillary racemes, and succeeded by simple bean-like 

 pods, each containing several nut-like seeds, which the 

 natives call cola or goora nuts. These nuts have long 

 been an article of trade among the native tribes of Africa, 

 they being valued for their supposed efficacy in allaying 

 thirst, promoting digestion, giving strength, - and pre- 

 venting exhaustion during the performance of hard man- 

 ual labor. This tree was early introduced into the West 

 Indies and Brazil, but its reputation in Africa does not 

 appear to have been sustained it its Western habitat. 



CoQuiLLA NUT. — The fruit of the Piassaba palm, 

 Attalea funifera, a native of Brazil, where it grows 

 about thirty feet high. The fmit is produced in 

 bunches, and are each about uhree inches long, covered 

 with a thin rind. The nut is very hard, and is used as 

 a substitute for bone and ivory in the manufacture of 

 articles for the household. 



CoQuiTO NUT. — This is the fruit of the wing-leaved 

 palm of Chile, Juhma spectabilis. It is a moderately 

 tall species, and closely resembles, in general habit, the 

 date palm. The nuts are edible, but they are of sec- 

 ondary importance, this palm being valued mainly for 

 the sweet sap issuing from the stem when cut down, 

 this continuing to exude from it for weeks after it is 

 severed from the roots. The sap is gathered and boiled, 

 and when reduced to ihe consistency of molasses becomes 

 an article of commerce, under the name of Meil de Palma 

 or palm honey. 



