429 
splintering. But at present little, unless of very second-rate 
quality, goes for that purpose, the bat industry swallowing up 
every bit that can be procured. Fortunately, the cricket bat manu- 
facturer is not wholly depended on British-grown willow, much of 
excellent quality being sent from various parts of the Continent. 
* When we consider that the gue quality of willow timber can 
be grown on land that would be too damp for the videns farm 
crop, that plants and cuttings ca Abe ot at a very nominal rate, 
that the tree is not subject to disease, at least to any hei extent, 
grows with great rapidity, and is perfectly hardy, added to which is 
the commercial value of the timber, it is not surprising that 
farmers and landowners have been turning their attention to it of 
late, and that already a atei acreage is now under that crop in 
various parts cf the country.’ 
Calostemma album, R. Br.—In the Kew Bulletin for 1892 (p. 72) 
the introduction to Kew is recorded of bulbs of this rare an 
ueller who had received them from the Hon. J. Douglas, 
CMG. bs whom they had been collected whilst on a visit to 
Turtle Edd ds. They hous d at Kew in 1894, and proved to 
be Hurycles sylvestris. On being informed of this, Sir F. von 
Mueller took steps to secure bulbs of the true Calostemma, and 
forwarded some to Kew in 1895. These foward in September 
this year and again prove to be the Hurycles. Mr.F. M. Bailey, 
Colonial Botanist, Quee ad writes AS dees 1897. I have 
lately been over Thursday Island, and, although I looked carefully, 
I could not find ob serene i I fancy Hurycles 
sylvestris was sent it." 
othing seems to c known of this interesting species since it 
was collected in 1803 by Robert Brown, on Flinders’ voyage. It 
was figured from specimens collected by him in the Kew 
Herbarium in Hooker’s Icones Plantarum, t. 2371. 
Assam rubber in Egypt —The following correspondence gives 
the promising inpr of an attempt to produce rubber from Ficus 
elastica in Egyp :— 
Mr. Te to ROYAL GARDENS, KEW 
SIR, Cairo, May 2, 1897. 
THANK you very much for the seeds of Fic us elastica. 4 
have put in this 8 spring some 50,000 cuttings, and about 96 p 
cent. are doing well, owing to favourable weather. But, ccc aid 
: : Ag 
e need millions of trees as shade for the new agricultural 
roads, and some of them may well be rubber producers, in view 
of the fact that the present i is obtained in great measure 
through the destruction of the t 
The trees here yield more gius than those of the Chardwar 
experiment. I have posted a smali sample of the poeni weh 
The product is very uniform, and a small sample is as good as 
large one. : 
Will send you shortly some gutta from Calotropis. 
X 
Qus 
(Signed) "ERNEST A. FLOYER. 
