XX THE FORESTS OF ALAUSI 239 
Unfortunately, the trunk never exceeds a few inches 
in diameter, so that only small articles can be made 
of it. I have secured a specimen of the wood, 
and of spoons made from it, for the Kew Museum. 
One of the most frequent trees at Lucmas, and 
the most valuable for its hard wood (though the 
young branches are brittle), is an Escalloniacea 
called Ignia. It grows to a good size ; the 
leaves are narrow-lanceolate and very long — the 
lower ones always red — and the reddish flowers are 
borne in long pendulous racemes ; so that the tree 
has a very pretty aspect. It abounds along the 
western slope of the Cordillera, and grows at 
from 5000 to 9000 feet. It is accompanied by an 
Amyrideous tree called Alubilla, which the people 
hold in great dread, as they believe that to 
touch it or pass beneath its shade is enough to 
cause the body to swell all over. I had already, 
at Bafios, gathered flowers and fruit of it, and 
stained my hands with the milk, to the great horror 
of those who saw me, but without experiencing any 
ill effects; and I believe that the swelling attributed 
to it is owing more to sudden changes of tempera- 
ture, or to alternate scorchings and wettings, for 
I have seen such an effect follow where there was 
no Alubilla. Be this as it may, the young man 
I took as guide felt one of his eyes begin to swell 
the day we left Lucmas for Guataxi, and in a few 
hours he was swollen from head to foot. In two 
or three days he was quite well again, but there 
are cases of the swelling lasting a month. As 
might be supposed, the blame was laid on the 
Alubilla. 
Lucmas takes its name from the abundance of 
