Apocynaceae. 177 
The numerous very fragrant flowers with strangely overlapping 
corolla-lobes are yellow, or white and yellow, within ; the fruit is a 
linear-oblong or ellipsoid follicle. 
This species is one of forty belonging to the genus Plumiera, all 
of which are peculiar to tropical America. It is now commonly 
cultivated for its fragrant flowers, which bloom nearly all the year 
round, and is very common about Honolulu, especially in cemeteries. 
The Hawaiians make leis or wreaths from the flowers by threading 
them and by pushing one flower into the tube of the other. This 
lei is a favorite with the Honolulu people, who decorate their depart- 
ing friends with it. 
The Plumiera is now cultivated in many tropical countries as an 
ornamental tree. It was found in India growing abundantly as long 
ago as 1787 by a Dr. Hove, who mentions that the natives used the 
bark of this tree for intermittent fever as we do cinchona. The leaves 
when made into a poultice are used to dispel swellings, while the 
milky juice is employed as a rubefacient in rheumatism. In northern 
Bengal the milky juice of this tree has been found to be an effectual 
purgative. Another but rare species, Plumiera rubra L., the Red 
Plumiera, a native of tropical America, has been cultivated by Mr. 
W. M. Giffard. The first specimen was brought to Honolulu from 
Mexico by Mrs. Paul Neumann and was given to Mr. E. W. 
Jordan, who turned the specimen over to Mr. W. M. Giffard on 
whose premises the tree has attained magnificent proportions. See 
Plate LXX. 
The original tree was fertilized in the normal manner by the 
common hawk-moth, the pollen coming from the yellow variety of 
Plumiera acutifolia, produced seeds, which in turn were planted and 
thus were obtained the first hybrids which were distributed over the 
city. Many crosses exist now between the common species and the 
red one. 
Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. 
Alstonia scholaris is a tall, glabrous tree reaching a height of 
over sixty feet, producing an abundance of milky sap. The branches 
are whorled, the leaves verticillate, leathery, about eight inches long, 
oblong-obovate, rounded at the apex and pointed at the base. The 
flowers are arranged in terminal cymes, which are umbellately 
branched. The small white flowers are numerous and crowded. The 
follicles are pendulous, slender, cylindrical and eight to sixteen 
inches long. 
It is a widely distributed species, occurring in Africa, tropical 
