January, 1911 
AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS xiii 
A NEW VEGETABLE 
AUG. CHEVALIER gives an inter- 
esting account of a vegetable of 
the bean variety which grows in 
Africa in the Dahomey region. The grains, 
the size of a very small pea, are formed un- 
derground and appear in pods. There is no 
evidence that this plant is known in Europe. 
Previously we knew two plants of this kind 
in Africa, one of these being an archide 
which resembles South American plants 
and the other is the Voandzon, this latter 
being the only species of the genus 
Voandzeia. The third plant which we men- 
tion here is cultivated for its edible grains. 
M. Eugene Poisson, who is familiar with 
the Dahomey region, pointed out its exist- 
ence in the interior of the country. Such 
grains are sold in the markets of Abomey 
under the name of doi. The author ob- 
served the doi plants both in flower and 
in bearing young fruits, and examined the 
dry grains which the natives obtained for 
him. The doi plant is a new species of 
V oandzeia. 
The pods which are found at the root 
of the plant carry only one or two grains. 
When there are two grains these are sep- 
arated by a complete partition and the pod 
is narrower here. From this description it 
may be supposed that the pod is somewhat 
like the American peanut, in form, at least, 
although it is of smaller size. As we find 
for the bean, the doi has several varieties, 
differing by the color of the grains, and 
these are oftenest white, but can also be 
black, red or variegated. The area occu- 
pied by the plant is very limited, being 
only a restricted region in the central part 
of Dahomey. It can be eaten in the same 
way as the bean, and has a very agreeable 
taste. Owing to the small size of the grain, 
the production is very limited, and it is 
reserved for the chiefs or other favored 
persons. For this reason the Dahomey 
usage forbids the eating of the grains by 
women. 
MAMMOTH cave has been discov- 
A ered in German East Africa in Mt. 
Nangoma, about an hour to the 
south of Nandembo. Though discovered 
in August, 1909, it was not explored till 
February, 1910, when the police officer, 
Weckauf, and a missionary named Ambros 
Mayer made a partial investigation of it. 
The entrance is 43 meters (141 feet) wide 
by 21 meters (68.9 feet) high, and the 
whole cave has a length of 329 meters 
(1079 feet). It is of pipe-like shape and 
has a funnel-shaped opening, caused by a 
cave-in. It is in a chalk mountain and 
made by water erosion. The natives had 
long known of it, but concealed its exist- 
ence from the whites. During the uprising 
of 1905-06 they used it for a hiding place 
for thousands, completely baffling the 
enemy. It contains a spring of fresh water, 
which gives it additional value as a refuge. 
Its entrance lies in the primeval forest. 
Evidence is strong that it has been the 
habitat of thousands of bats through untold 
years. It is hoped that funds will be forth- 
coming to provide for a thorough explora- 
tion, since this can hardly fail to yield pre- 
historic remains and antiquities of great 
interest and value. 
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