198 ON THE ECONOMIC USES OF LEAVES. 



wift, as in a regular loom. They also dye the string of many brilliant 

 colours, which they work in symmetrical patterns, making the " redes,'* 

 or " maqueiras," as they are called, among the gayest articles of furni- 

 ture to be seen in a Brazilian house on the Amazon. Beautiful speci- 

 mens of these hammocks were shown in the Brazilian, British Guiana, 

 and other Courts of the International Exhibition this year. 



The women of the island of Mahe, one of tha Seychelles group, work 

 largely at making hats of a superior description from the leaves of the 

 celebrated coco-des-mer (Lodoicea Sechellarum), found only at Praslin 

 and Cunense. 



The leaves open like a fan ; they are of large size, often attaining 

 a length of twenty feet, with a breadth of ten or twelve, and in some 

 few cases, thirty feet in length, including the petiole, which is of suffi- 

 cient strength to support the weight of a man. In 1859, 3,310 of these 

 coco-nuts were exported, valued at 331L, and 11,800 cups made of 

 them of the value of 5901. The foliage is employed to thatch the roofs 

 of houses and sheds, and even for walls. With a hundred leaves a com- 

 modious dwelling may be constructed, including even the partitions of 

 the apartments, the doors, and the windows. In the Isle of Praslin 

 most of the cabins and warehouses are thus made. The down attached 

 to the young leaves serves for filling mattresses and pillows ; the ribs 

 and fibres of the petiole constitute baskets and brooms. The young 

 foliage affords the material for the hats. For this purpose, the unex- 

 panded leaves only are taken, dried in the sun, and cut into longitu- 

 dinal slips, two or three lines in breadth, which are then plaited, and 

 scarcely any other covering for the head is worn by the natives of the 

 Seychelles. 



The leaves of many plants yield excellent fibre, such as the agave, 

 the pine apple, the New Zealand flax, and others. The fine white 

 fibres of the pine apple leaves have been formed into the most delicate 

 fabrics, as well as fishing lines, ropes, &c. Unlike other fibres, they 

 are not injured by immersion in water, — a property much increased by 

 tanning, which process is constantly used by the natives of India. In 

 Malacca and Singapore a trade is carried on with China in these 

 fibres, which are there used in the manufacture of linen stuff. As 

 a substitute for flax, they are, perhaps, the most valuable of Indian 

 fibres. 



Plantain leaves (Musa) are converted in Africa into spoons, plates, and 

 even bottles. They are also made into thatch, fuel, and a substitute 

 for wrapping papers. From their cooling nature, the leaves are gene- 

 rally used in the tropics to dress blisters. The leaves of Abelmoschus 

 esculentus are used for poultices. In Africa, the leaves of Adansonia 

 digitata are also made into poultices and fomentations for rheumatic 

 affections of the limbs and irritable inflammatory ulcers. The natives 

 eat the leaves with their food, and they are considered cooling and 

 useful in restraining excessive perspiration. The leaves, too, are used 



