190 USEFUL FIBER PLANTS OF THE WORLD. 



have since been identified by Dr. Jose Ramirez, of the National Institute, Mexico, as 

 77. americanu8 and 77. arboresccns, respectively. Considered as tree basts, they were 

 rated about 75"points out of 100, for strength, color, care in preparation, and utility. 

 The uses of the libers were not learned, though, doubtless, they are only valuable for 

 rough native cordage and mats, and as paper stock. 



Specimens of a tree bast named Tolotzin, or Catena, and referred to 77. mcxicana. 

 were secured by me in the Mexican court, Paris Exp. Univ., 1889, said to make line 

 paper, and at that time claiming special attention. The fiber was sent from Tabasco. 



*Specimens. — Mus. U. S. Dept. Ag. ; a fine example of the yellowish hast of 77. ami ri- 

 canus is preserved in the Bot. Mus. Harv. Univ. 



Hemp. 



The hemp plant proper is Cannabis sativa, or common hemp. It has also been known 

 in different parts of the world by the following prefixes : American, Breton, English, 

 Himalayan, Italian, Japanese, Kentucky, Persian. Petersburg, and Russian (hemp). 

 The many other hemps are : 



Ambari , Hibiscus cannabinus; Bengal, or Bombay , Crotalaria juncea; 



Black-fellow's , Commersonia fraseri ; Bowstring , of Africa, Sanscrieria 



guincensis; of India, S. roxburghiana and S. zeylanica; Florida bowstring , S. 



longiflora; Brown , Hibiscus cannabinus ; Calcutta (erroneously, for jute <, 



Corclt or us spp. ; Cebu , Musa tcxtilis,- Colorado River , Scsbania macrq- 



carpa; Cretan , Datisca cannabina; Cuba ■ , Furcrcpa cubensis; Deccan 



, Hibiscus cannabinus ; False , American, Rhus typhina, not described in 



this catalogue; False sisal , Agave decipiens ; Giant , of China, Cannabis 



gigantea (Bernardin's Cat.), not described in this catalogue ; Hayti , Agave 



fotida (Bernardin's Cat.), synonym of Furcraa gigantea : Jfe (see Sansevieria 



cylindrica) : Indian (see Apocynum cannabinum); Jubbulpore , Crotalaria 



tenuifolia; Ko , Japan (see. Pueraria) ; Konkan — — (see Crotalaria) ; Madras 



, Crotalaria tenuifolia; Manila — = , Afusa tcxtilis : New Zealand (erro- 

 neously for New Zealand flax) Phormium tenax; Pangane , Sansevieria lirkii; 



Pita , Yucca spp., also Furcrcpa; Pua — , India, Maoutia puya; Queens- 

 land , Sidaretusa et spp. ; Rangoon , Laportea gigas (Bernardin's Cat.) ; 



Roselle , Hibiscus sabdariffa ; Sisal , Agave rigida and its varieties, sisa- 



lana and clongata; Sunn — , Crotalaria juncea; Swedish , Urtica dioica ; 



Tampico , Agave lieteracaniha; "Water , Fupatorium cannabinum and Bidens 



tripartita, the latter not described in this catalogue; Wild (see Maoutia puya). 



Henequen. 



The use of agave fiber on this continent goes so far back into the past that there 

 are no records to show when its use began. Among the Aztecs '•' maguey" fiber and 

 the liber derived from palm leaves, known as 'Hcxotle" and " ishuate," were woven 

 into coarse cloths, the maguey being also known as ''nequen.'' the orthography of 

 which is not greatly different from the word "henequen." which is To-day the Mexi- 

 can name of sisal hemp, Agave rigida, which see for description and uses of the fiber. 

 See also Ancient Fibers in Introduction. 



Hibiscus. 



A very large genus of plants, containing many important fiber-yielding species, 

 and' belonging ;td theHaivacea which includes commercial cotton. The plains are 

 tall shrubs distinguished by their large showy llowers, the Rose Mallow and Okra 

 being representative American species. The species of this genus abound in all 

 countries, and no fiber list may be examined that does not include from one to a 

 dozen. While the fibers of some of the foreign species are classed as hemps, the 

 native forms yield hardly more than jute substitutes, as the liber resembles jute 

 more than hemp. 



It is unimportant to treat specially the manj species of the genus which have been 



