SUMACH FAMILY 
nessee it becomes a tree. The leaves are pinnatc, six to 
twelve inches long, the rachis is wing-margined ; leaflets nine 
to twenty-one, ovate-lanceolate, acute, margins entire excepta 
few serrate teeth near the apex. ‘The fruit consists of crim- 
son hairy drupes borne ina dense terminal panicle. The leaves 
and bark contain much tannin and are collected in large quan- 
tities 1n the southern states and used for tanning leather. 
The family AAvs is widely distributed throughout the 
temperate regions of the world ; more than a hundred species 
have been distinguished and these are in Africa, Asia, North 
America, South America, Indian Archipelago, Australia and 
the Sandwich Islands. Its traces are also abundant in the 
late eocene and the miocene rocks of Europe, but rare in the 
arctic tertiary. Many species possess useful properties, and 
some are of commercial importance. The bark and leaves 
of all are rich in tannin, and one species, Aus cortaria of 
southern Europe, ts cultivated expressly for the tannin of its 
leaves, which, dried and powdered, are used in curing the best 
qualities of leather. 
The famous lacquer of Japan which has made the cabinet 
work of the Japanese unequalled for centuries, is produced 
by a sumach tree which is cultivated expressly for its milky 
juice. The tree is allowed to reach the age of ten years and 
then incisions are made on the trunk and large branches, the 
sap collected, the small branches cut off and soaked in water ; 
the tree in short is killed for its heart’s blood. ‘The yield is 
surprisingly small, only two or three ounces from a single tree. 
It seems that the tree cannot be tapped year after year as 
we tap maple trees, the product of the second year is poor 
and that of the third year nothing whatever; so the tree is 
killed outright. 
Cottnus cotinon’es belongs to the Rhus family and is the 
cultivated Smoke-tree of the gardens. The flowers are very 
small, purplish, and borne in loose panicles. After calyx and 
corolla drop, the pedicels lengthen, become hairy and form 
great feathery bunches, green or dull red, which cover the 
tree and transform it into a misty, cloudy, billowy mass. 
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