ROSALS. 447 
tree one hundred feet high; its timber is valued for its solidity ; its 
seeds, of a lively scarlet, are highly polished, and the leaves, 
powdered, are used in some of the religious ceremonies of India. 
Several kinds of Prosopis yield edible fruits. Gum-arabic is the . 
produce of several species of Acacia, the most important being 
A. vera and A. Arabica. All the Acacias yield gums, and many 
of them are valuable for their timber, and for turning purposes. 
A. melanoxylon, called Black wood, is a hard, close- grained, dark, 
and richly-veined cabinet-wood of South Africa, much used by 
the colonists. 
The pods of Castanospermenum Australe contain four seeds as 
large as a Spanish chestnut, which are eaten by the natives of 
Moreton Bay. Brya ebenus, asmall tree, called American Ebony, 
le =. >. 
. Oe 
ee 
4 | 
PAN a 
\ 
Fig. 416.—Branch and Flower of Robinia pseud-acacia. 
is the ebony in common use. Its slender branches are flexible, 
and used as riding switches in the West Indies, where it was 
formerly used to punish refractory slaves. 
The Acacia, or rather Robinia (Robinia pseud-acacia), which 
_ Will serve us as a type of the Papilionacee, was origi y from 
North America. It was first cultivated in France by Robin in the 
