﻿18 
  SEEDS 
  AND 
  PLANTS 
  IMPOKTED. 
  

  

  32018. 
  Annona 
  squamosa 
  L. 
  Sweetsop. 
  

  

  From 
  Cuba. 
  Presented 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Roberto 
  L. 
  Luaces, 
  Camaguey, 
  Cuba. 
  Received 
  

   October 
  24, 
  1911. 
  

   Seeds. 
  

  

  32019. 
  Boswellia 
  sp. 
  Frankincense. 
  

  

  From 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  Socotra. 
  Procured 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Charles 
  K. 
  Moser, 
  American 
  consul, 
  

   Aden, 
  Arabia. 
  Received 
  November 
  17, 
  1911. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Moser 
  made 
  a 
  special 
  expedition 
  from 
  Aden 
  to 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  Socotra 
  at 
  the 
  mouth 
  

   of 
  the 
  Red 
  Sea 
  at 
  the 
  request 
  of 
  the 
  Office 
  of 
  Foreign 
  Seed 
  and 
  Plant 
  Introduction, 
  

   and 
  secured 
  two 
  trees 
  of 
  this 
  so-called 
  incense 
  tree. 
  He 
  was 
  enabled 
  to 
  do 
  this 
  through 
  

   the 
  assistance 
  of 
  the 
  British 
  Resident 
  at 
  Aden, 
  who 
  invited 
  Mr. 
  Moser 
  to 
  accompany 
  

   him 
  as 
  a 
  guest 
  on 
  a 
  British 
  Government 
  vessel 
  upon 
  which 
  he 
  himself 
  made 
  a 
  special 
  

   trip 
  to 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  Socotra 
  for 
  the 
  British 
  Government. 
  Two 
  trees 
  were 
  obtained 
  

   by 
  Mr. 
  Moser 
  during 
  a 
  26-hour 
  wait 
  of 
  the 
  vessel, 
  being 
  dug 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  soil 
  by 
  native 
  

   Socotran 
  boys, 
  at 
  an 
  elevation 
  of 
  2,500 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  sea. 
  These 
  were 
  packed 
  in 
  

   kerosene 
  cases 
  filled 
  with 
  Socotran 
  soil 
  and 
  were 
  taken 
  by 
  caravan 
  to 
  the 
  boat 
  and 
  

   transported 
  to 
  Aden. 
  They 
  remained 
  in 
  these 
  tins 
  until 
  October 
  7, 
  1911, 
  when 
  they 
  

   were 
  sent 
  to 
  the 
  Department. 
  The 
  following 
  report 
  is 
  taken 
  from 
  Mr. 
  Moser's 
  letter 
  

   of 
  April 
  29, 
  1911: 
  

  

  "We 
  went 
  into 
  the 
  mountains 
  directly 
  south 
  of 
  Tamarida 
  Bay 
  to 
  a 
  place 
  called 
  

   Adho 
  Dimellus 
  in 
  the 
  Haghier 
  Range. 
  We 
  first 
  saw 
  the 
  tree 
  about 
  9 
  miles 
  in 
  a 
  direct 
  

   line 
  from 
  the 
  sea 
  at 
  an 
  altitude 
  of 
  about 
  2,800 
  feet. 
  The 
  trees 
  were 
  apparently 
  in 
  full 
  

   flower, 
  with 
  immature 
  fruits 
  intermingled. 
  There 
  were 
  no 
  signs 
  of 
  old 
  seeds, 
  and 
  

   the 
  Socotrans 
  pretended 
  never 
  to 
  have 
  seen 
  any 
  seeds, 
  but 
  they 
  could 
  be 
  easily 
  

   gathered, 
  and 
  I 
  have 
  made 
  arrangements 
  to 
  procure 
  some 
  during 
  the 
  summer. 
  The 
  

   soil 
  was 
  very 
  rocky, 
  a 
  red, 
  rich-looking, 
  easily 
  disintegrated 
  granite, 
  out 
  of 
  which, 
  

   higher 
  up, 
  arose 
  limestone 
  escarpments. 
  The 
  temperature 
  during 
  the 
  night 
  was 
  

   about 
  65° 
  F., 
  but 
  at 
  noon 
  it 
  was 
  nearly 
  90° 
  F. 
  All 
  the 
  trees 
  we 
  saw 
  were 
  nearly 
  the 
  

   same 
  size, 
  and 
  I 
  was 
  astonished 
  to 
  find 
  in 
  an 
  area 
  of 
  several 
  miles 
  no 
  small 
  shoots 
  or 
  

   saplings. 
  

  

  "The 
  natives 
  call 
  the 
  frankincense 
  tree 
  tee-lah-ah 
  (spelled 
  phonetically) 
  and 
  its 
  

   product 
  lu-ban. 
  From 
  the 
  samples 
  which 
  I 
  saw 
  and 
  from 
  the 
  reputation 
  it 
  bears 
  in 
  the 
  

   Aden 
  market, 
  it 
  seems 
  certain 
  that 
  the 
  quality 
  of 
  Socotran 
  lu-ban 
  is 
  distinctly 
  inferior 
  

   to 
  that 
  of 
  Somali 
  and 
  the 
  Hadramaut, 
  and 
  the 
  produce 
  per 
  tree 
  is 
  much 
  smaller. 
  The 
  

   trees 
  we 
  saw 
  were 
  from 
  20 
  to 
  30 
  feet 
  in 
  height 
  and 
  from 
  8 
  to 
  10 
  inches 
  in 
  diameter, 
  

   with 
  scraggly, 
  swollen 
  branches, 
  which 
  scarcely 
  tapered 
  and 
  ended 
  in 
  tufts 
  of 
  sumac- 
  

   like 
  leaves 
  of 
  a 
  general 
  yellowish 
  color 
  clotted 
  with 
  autumnal 
  reds. 
  The 
  leaves 
  were 
  

   multifoliate, 
  7 
  to 
  11 
  leaflets, 
  1^ 
  to 
  2 
  J 
  inches 
  long, 
  elliptic, 
  regularly 
  crenated, 
  and 
  

   medium 
  ovate. 
  The 
  flowers 
  are 
  very 
  thickly 
  clustered 
  on 
  thick 
  stalks, 
  5 
  to 
  8 
  inches 
  

   long, 
  with 
  nearly 
  a 
  uniform 
  diameter 
  of 
  five-eighths 
  to 
  three-fourths 
  of 
  an 
  inch; 
  in 
  

   color 
  the 
  flowers 
  were 
  a 
  deep 
  pink 
  or 
  bright 
  magenta, 
  much 
  resembling 
  a 
  thick 
  cluster 
  

   of 
  double 
  geraniums. 
  The 
  immature 
  fruits 
  among 
  them 
  were 
  one-half 
  to 
  five-eighths 
  

   of 
  an 
  inch 
  long 
  and 
  pear 
  shaped. 
  The 
  bole 
  and 
  branches 
  were 
  of 
  a 
  livid 
  greenish, 
  

   almost 
  translucent 
  hue, 
  smooth 
  and 
  covered 
  with 
  blotches, 
  resembling 
  gangrenous 
  

   human 
  flesh; 
  the 
  outer 
  bark 
  sheds 
  in 
  thin, 
  yellowish 
  white, 
  papery 
  strips 
  or 
  peels. 
  

   When 
  cut, 
  even 
  with 
  the 
  thumb-nail, 
  the 
  bole, 
  the 
  boughs, 
  and 
  the 
  stalks 
  yield 
  a 
  

   clear, 
  sticky, 
  viscous 
  fluid 
  with 
  a 
  rich 
  aromatic 
  odor. 
  This 
  exudation 
  usually 
  remains 
  

   clear 
  until 
  and 
  after 
  it 
  hardens, 
  but 
  I 
  saw 
  some 
  trees 
  with 
  clear 
  'tears' 
  and 
  on 
  others 
  

   brownish 
  or 
  amber-colored 
  ones. 
  Every 
  day 
  I 
  have 
  cut 
  my 
  two 
  specimens 
  with 
  the 
  

   thumb-nail, 
  and 
  with 
  but 
  two 
  exceptions 
  the 
  exudation 
  has 
  been 
  clear 
  and 
  colorless; 
  

   on 
  those 
  two 
  occasions 
  the 
  wound 
  was 
  followed 
  by 
  a 
  milky 
  drop, 
  but 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  

   unable 
  to 
  discover 
  why. 
  

  

  261 
  

  

  