ECONOMIG BOTANY. 131 



straight; the bark is smooth, and of a light olive color; the 

 crown of the tree forms a perfect cone. The Clove-tree is a 

 native of the Moluccas and New Guinea, and cultivated in 

 many tropical lands. The cloves are the unexpanded flowers 

 or flower buds ; these, attached to their pedicels, are collected 

 when they contain the most and best oil, which amounts to 

 from sixteen to twenty-five per cent. They also contain a 

 large amount of tannin. When dry, the stems are broken off, 

 and from them about four per cent, of oil is obtained by dis- 

 tillation. The oil is slightly yellowish or brownish. It is 

 found in drops in intercellular spaces, in all the tissues. 

 Cloves are extensively used as a spice and also in medicine. 

 The oil is used in perfumery and in flavoring liquors. 



23. The Coffee plant, Coffea arabica (family Rubiaceie), is 

 indigenous to Abj^ssinia, and within a few hundred years has 

 come into cultivation in many other countries. It is an ever- 

 green tree, eighteen to twenty feet high ; it has white, papery 

 bark, and slender horizontal branches. The leaves are smooth 

 and shining, six inches long, and nearly one-half as wide. The 

 evanescent flowers are in axillary clusters ; they are pure white 

 and have a rich, fragrant odor. The fruit is a cherry-like berry 

 becoming a dark-red color as it ripens ; the pulp within is 

 yellow and encloses two plano-convex seeds, the Coffee of 

 commerce. The use of coffee was prohibited by the Koran, 

 it being regarded as an intoxicant. Coffee-houses were opened 

 in Constantinople in the sixteenth century, and were met with 

 violent hostility on the part of ecclesiastics. The first coffee- 

 house was opened in London in 1652 ; the use of coffee met 

 with opposition here also. At about the same time cocoa and 

 tea were introduced. Coffee is now used in immense quantities. 



24. The Chocolate -tree of Tropical America, Theobroma 

 cacao (family Sterculiaceas) , is a small tree sixteen to twenty 

 feet high, having large oblong leaves, thin and papery. The 

 small flowers are followed by the elongated, ribbed fruits, each 

 containing fifty or more oily seeds, arranged in five vertical 

 rows. The tree blooms almost constantly ; the fruits are collected 

 twice a year. The almost colorless seeds when dried become 



