JULY 1 TO SEPTEMBER 30, 1912. 



13 



34124. Ananas sativus Schult. f. 



Pineapple. 



From Bowen Park, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Presented by Mr. William 

 Soutter, secretary and manager, Queensland Acclimatization Society. Re- 

 ceived July 17, 1912. 



"Some interesting developments may be looked for with these seeds, as they are 

 from a smooth Cayenne crossed with pollen from the Ripley Queen. The fruit, weighed 

 with the top, turned the scales at 11 pounds. During the past 30 years I have raised 

 upward of 30,000 plants from seed. These have been, for the greater part, discarded 

 as useless. The selected types now number about a dozen, and these show constancy, 

 and some possess high qualities. The smooth pineapple is an exceptionally shy 

 seeder and responds tardily to pollination. Not so the roughs. They are readily 

 pollinated and produce abundance of seed." (Soutter.) 



34125. Calophyllum inophyllum L. Mast wood. 



From Madras, India. Presented by Mr. Jose de Olivares, American consul. 

 Received July 19, 1912. 

 "An evergreen tree which in some localities, especially when near the sea, attains 

 a considerable size. It is indigenous throughout the western peninsula, Orissa, 

 Ceylon, Burma, and the Andaman Islands and is distributed to the Malay Peninsula, 

 Polynesia, Australia, and the islands of eastern Africa. There appears to be little 

 doubt that the true gum tacamahaca, formerly attributed by some writers to C. ino- 

 phyllum, is obtained neither from that nor from any other Indian tree. But when 

 wounded, the stem, and also the fruits of the mast wood, exude a small quantity 

 of bright-green, pleasantly scented resin, soluble in alcohol, which is not collected 

 or made any use of at the present day. Rheede observes, however, that it is emetic 

 and purgative, so that it would appear to have been formerly of medicinal value. 

 From the seeds is expressed a greenish-colored oil known as pinnay or domba oil. 

 According to some, the yield is as great as 60 per cent by weight, and the oil is said 

 to congeal when cooled below 50 degrees. The seeds are collected twice a year — 

 in August and again in February. The oil possesses a disagreeable odor and flavor, 

 but is fairly extensively used for burning and is valued, especially in Polynesia, 

 as an external application in rheumatic affections. The chief centers of production 

 are Bombay, Goa, Travancore, Tinnevelli, Tanjore, Puri, etc. It is said to fetch 

 a little more than half the price of coconut oil and is fairly extensively exported 

 from India to Burma. The timber is moderately hard and close grained and by 

 Sebert (Les Bois de la Nouvelle Caledonia) is believed to be magnificent for cabinet 

 work. All the species, and in particular the poon spar, C. tomentosum, are highly 

 8er\iceable for masts, spars, railway sleepers, machinery, etc., but for these pur- 

 poses are much less in demand than formerly." {Sir George Watt, Commercial Prod- 

 ucts of India.) 



{T. vulgar e Yin.) 



From La Guayra, Venezuela. Presented by Mr. Thomas W. Voetter, American 

 consul. Received July 23, 1912. 

 "The grower of this wheat stated that it came to Venezuela originally from the 

 Canary Islands and that it has been found to be the best variety known here to 

 resist dry weather. The sample sent was from a field that was not irrigated and 

 received no rainfall from the time of sowing until harvested. The name of the 

 variety was not known to the grower." ( Voetter.) 



34126. Triticum aestivum L. 



Wheat. 



