Cyathea 
93 
sympathy my guide laughed and pointed upwards — it 
was a tree-fern! the trunk very slender, perhaps 15 feet 
high, with a lovely spreading top. Not only were there 
thorns on the trunk, but even the lower part of the leaf- 
stalks was similarly provided. 
In the ’eighties of last century the market price for 
tree-ferns in London ranged from £5 to £47. A few 
years ago Maori women peddled young tree-ferns from 
door to door in Auckland, exchanging them readily for 
an old skirt. 
Found also in South-east Australia, Tasmania, and 
several of the Pacific Islands. 
