﻿JANUARY 1 TO MARCH 31, 1916. 85 



42355 to 42376— Continued. 



filled with a glutinous substance which makes water mucilaginous. 

 This is used for inflammation, redness of the skin, and as a remedy for 

 hysteria. The pericarp of the fruit contains a fatty material, a true 

 wax, which is used for making candles that give off a disagreeable odor 

 on burning. Native names, Cay-loi-nhot and Bois cVoiseau. (Adapted 

 from De Lanessan, Les Plant es Utiles des Colonies Frangaises, p. 533, 

 under Tetranthera laurifolia.) 



42371. Lonchocarpus formosianus DC. Fabacese. 



A much-branched tree from Senegal, 5 to 6 meters tall, covered during 

 the rainy season with magnificent bunches of lilac-colored flowers recall- 

 ing Syringa vulgaris by their color and perfume. The natives make a 

 decoction from the bark and administer it for stomach complaints in chil- 

 dren, the tannin it contains probably being the active agent. Native 

 names Koll and Ossani. (Adapted from De Lanessan, Les Plantes Utiles 

 des Colonies Frangaises, p. 801.) 



42372. Ravenala madagascariensis Sonner. Musacese. Traveler's- tree. 

 The so-called traveler's-tree is a magnificent palmlike tree of the 



Musaceae, confined to Madagascar. It grows to a height of 20 to 30 

 feet, having a palmlike trunk and bananalike leaves of gigantic size, 

 arranged in two rows on opposite sides of the arboreous stem, giving 

 one the impression of an immense fan. The leaves when cut yield an 

 abundance of refreshing juice, with which travelers allay their thirst. 

 The flowers are comparatively small, aggregated in the axils of the 

 leaves. The arillus surrounding the beanlike seeds is of a most beautiful 

 ultramarine color and yields an essential oil. A dye is extracted from 

 the capsules. (Adapted from Lindley, Treasury of Botany, vol, 2, p. 

 1192.) 



42373. Spathodea campanulata Beauv. Bignoniacese. 



A tall, erect, bignoniaceous tree found in western tropical Africa and 

 introduced into Java, Ceylon, and other tropical countries as an orna- 

 mental shade tree. It is quite commonly planted about Kandy, Ceylon, 

 where its racemes of scarlet or crimson flowers at the tips of the 

 branches make a strikingly handsome and conspicuous appearance at a 

 distance. The unexpanded flowers retain a quantity of water, and 

 this has led to the name fountain tree, by which it is sometimes known. 

 (Adapted from MaeMillan, Tropical Gardening and Planting, p. 264.) 



42374. Tectona grandis L. f. Verbenacea?. Teak. 

 A large deciduous forest and timber tree, indigenous in both pen- 

 insulas of India. The young branches are quadrangular, having opposite 

 leaves and terminal panicles of white flowers, followed by round fruits 

 about the size of cherries, covered with spongy wool and inclosed in a 

 kind of bladder formed of the enlarged calyx. The valuable wood is that 

 chiefly exported from India, more particularly Burma, and is the most 

 important building timber of the country. (See Watt, Commercial 

 Products of India, p. 1068, and Lindley, Treasury of Botany, vol, 2.., p. 

 1128.) 



42375. Trachylobium verrucosum (Gaertn.) Oliver. CsesalpiniaceaB. 

 This spineless leguminous tree, found on the islands of Madagascar 



and Reunion, grows to a height of about 20 feet and has dense clusters 

 of white flowers. It produces a true copal resin, or anime, which is 



