958 
Folia 2-3 poll. longa, 1 lin. lata. Perianthii segmenta 2 lin. longa. 
Allied to the widely-spread Cape, Tropical African, and Mascarene 
H. angustifolia, Lam. 
. CCCCXIII.—MADAGASCAR PIASSAVA. 
(Dietyosperma jibrosum, Wright.) 
r nearly twenty years a fibre closely resembling M a t 
Feda ed in Kew Bulletin, 1889, pp. 237—242) "has been obta 
from the island of Madagascar. was moderately long, “of a h 
brown colour, and evidently obtained from the stem of m as 
or va. The quantity produced was never very large, and 
rough, uncombed state. Latterly the quality has much improved, and 
during the period when this class of fibre commanded specially high 
prices the shipments were probably eed wing, however, 
to the discovery of West African piassava or * bass fibre i 
Raphia vinifera (described in Kew Bulletin 1891, pp. 1-5), the prices 
btaine piassava rently fallen almost as low 
as the cost of production, | hence little of it has appeared lately in the 
London market. For the first specimen of Madagascar piassava, now in 
the Kew Museum (No. ii.) we are indebted to Messrs. J. Puddy & Co., 
of Mincing Lane. T a was received in 1890. At that time the plant 
yielding it was not known. The more common palms of Madagascar 
such as species of aia Dypsis, Raphia and Bismarckia, were 
believed not to yield this fibre. Hence it was inferred that there 
existed in the island a palm not yet described. This eventually proved 
to be the case. EN the efforts of Messrs. Proctor Brothers, of 
East India Avenue, E.C. Kew obtained in 1890 specimens of the 
complete plant known locally as Vonitra, with stem and leaves showin 
exaetly the manner in which the fibre was produced. Each plant had a 
slender stem about 5 feet high and 24 inches in diam. This was sur- 
from the inner sheaths and the edges of the petioles. ‘The individual 
fibres were finer and more flexible than Drazilian piassava and also 
slightly shorter; in other respects they resembled it very closely. As 
to the comercial position of the fibre, Messrs. Ide and Christie are good 
enough to inform us: “ Of late, Madagascar piassava has been ‘well 
n 
371. per ton; but as the quantities sent home, even at these rates, are 
small, we are led to oe the preparation as now done is costly.” 
The shipments are made from Tamatave and some of the ports to the 
south. September 1894, Madagascar piassava was reported to be 
“in demand,” and the price had risen to 467. per ton, Fresh seeds 
plants, now about 2 feet in height, have been raised at Kew. They are 
nearest to Dictyosperma album, a well-known ornamental palm from 
Mauritius and Bourbon, but are easily distinguished both from this and 
A species. Many of. the plants raised at Kew have been Monrose 
a 'olonies. 
probably be well represented under cultivation. 
