46 NATURAL HISTORY READER. 



and of a bright green. It* foliage is so dense as to afford a 

 cooling shade and effectually prevent the growth of under- 

 brush. It produces an abundance of mild, insipid, tig-like 

 fruit, which is used both for food and for medicinal purposes. 

 3. At the end of the first century of its life the banyan 

 begins to exhibit its eccentric propensities. Its arms have 

 grown so long as to be no longer capable of supporting 



Banyan-Tn 



themselves, and they bend downward until their ends rest 

 upon the earth. Now, the little twigs, which have hitherto 

 been contented with producing leaves, send forth rootlets 

 which find lodgment in the ground ; the sap, changing its 

 direction ami flowing upward, converting the small stems 

 into trunks, and affording an effectual support to the over- 

 weighted branches. The great horizontal masses are now 



