1869.] The District of Ludidna. 85 



mon as the Firozptir boundary is approached, but nowhere so abun- 

 dant as in the Multan division. In the neighbourhood of Machiwara, 

 I have noticed numerous clusters of a shrub 5 or 6 feet high, called 

 " Samalu." It seems always to grow in such clusters, forming a 

 natural kind of hedge or coppice ; I have not seen detached shrubs. 

 The leaves are in triplets with two smaller below. They are long 

 and narrow at both ends, darker above and whitish beneath. I believe, 

 this is the Vilex trifolia. 



Bat the three shrubs abovenamed, are not in any sense character- 

 istic of the district. Much more common are the following. The 

 bher, a species of Zizyphus or jujube, is almost as general as the 

 kikar tree. Many parts of the country are covered with a smaller shrub 

 like the bher, and I presume also a species of Zizyphus. This is called 

 " jhari." Its small leaves, mixed with white bhusa, are given as 

 food to oxen. Of course the omnipresent " ak" or " madar" is found 

 in abundance here as everywhere else. Royle has devoted two or 

 three pages of his book on the fibrous plants of India to the economi- 

 cal uses of this plant, Calotropis gigantea and Hamiltonii. So far 

 as this district is concerned, I believe the only use made of it is 

 to apply the milky juice externally to stings or parts suffering from 

 rheumatism. Its soft but pungent down makes an admirable stuff- 

 ing for pillow-cases. 



Besides the Ak, there are three weeds, which deserve separate men- 

 tion from their abundance. First the " chtiris roz." This shoots up 

 during the autumn rains in every field. In the winter, the stalk 

 becomes dry, contrasting in colour with the small tuft of canes at its 

 base. At this time, the flower spike, when rubbed, gives out a 

 very pleasing cinnamon-like scent. This, no doubt, is a species of 

 Andropogon. Another troublesome weed goes by the name of 

 "piyazi," on account of its resemblance to the onion. The leaves 

 and stalk are like those of an onion, but it has no smell, nor does 

 it seem to produce a bulb. The flowers which grow in a spike, 

 are small and pretty, bell-shaped, white in colour with light brown 

 stripes. This weed is a constant intruder in the corn fields. 



There is a third very common leguminous weed, which seems 

 to bear several names, among which are " maha" and " malula." It 

 looks like a wild vetch. Between Samrala and Machiwara, and 



