THE GUMS AND RESINS OF NEW ZEALAND. 477 
Combes and Daldy, Auckland, and B. W. Gee, of the same place, 
exhibit interesting specimens of this valuable gum. The first men- 
tioned exhibitors are the chiet exporters of kauri gum, and they sent 
to the New Zealand Exhibition a number of large specimens, just as 
they had been dug up from the ground. Mr. Gee's samples are small 
assorted pieces classified into three kinds — clear, cloudy, and dark. 
The application of kauri gum to ornamental purposes was illustrated 
by a rose executed in this material. The Wellington Local Committee 
also exhibited wood, varnished with kauri gum varnish, which imparts 
a clear brilliant polish. 
The rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum), another species of pine, yields 
a gum suitable for varnish. A sample of varnish manufactured from 
rimu gum is exhibited by Chas. W. Hornblower of Wellington, 
who can supply the article at twenty-one shillings per gallon. A speci- 
men of wood, varnished with this material, shows the applicability of 
rimu gum to this ornamental purpose. It has all the appearance of 
copal varnish. 
The Phormium tenaoc yields a gum, which, as the method of treating 
the plant becomes more fully understood, will doubtless prove valuable. 
The root^ends of the leaves of this plant are, at certain seasons, covered 
with a quantity of gummy matter of the consistency and appearance of 
strong size. This glutinous matter more or less pervades the whole 
plant, and in the preparation of the leaves for their fibre, this gum 
might be saved and utilised. James Mackay, of Nelson, exhibited a 
bottle of gum made from the leaves of the Phormium, tenax. It is 
useful for many ordinary purposes in which solution of gum Arabic 
is employed. 
Many other New Zealand trees and plants yield resinous gums, but as 
no specimens were exhibited, and as they have not as yet any commer- 
cial value, no extended notice of them is necessary. The Black Mapau 
(Pittosporum tenuifolium) and the White Mapau (Pittosporum eugenioides) 
yield a gum resin, but not in quantity to make it valuable. Panax 
Colensoi, an ornamental tree with large trifoliate leaves, exudes a gum 
very similar to gum Arabic, and occasionally used for adhesive purposes. 
Kauri gum has been asserted to occur also in, the southern part of 
New Zealand, proving as it is said, that the Kauri pine flourished at 
one time, far south of its present habitat. Up to this time, among the 
numerous specimens of resin obtained from the tertiary formations of 
South Island, not one has been found identical in its physical properties 
with the kauri upon close examination. The greatest difference is found 
in their fusibility. Kauri resin even becoming so plastic at a heat of 
180° or so, as to be capable of being moulded into any form, while the 
other resins uniformly require a much higher heat to affect them in a 
like manner. The specific gravity of kauri gum is 1*047 ; it evolves 
a light and pleasant aromatic odour when heated, burns readily with a 
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