A6 FLORA VITIENSIS. 
“ Kiliea,” and its fruit, which when ripe is black, but inferior in flavour to any of the mulberries cultivated 
in Hurope, is eaten. The foliage is small, yet in the Sandwich Islands a plant of eight months evowth, 
taken from the fields at random, produced three pounds and a half of leaves, and within six weeks after 
being wholly stripped, it had so much recovered that it could not be distinguished from those which had 
not been so treated. By some oversight this species is omitted in H. Mann’s excellent ‘ Enumeration 
of Hawaiian Plants.’ 
XIV. Broussonetia, Vent. Tab. du Régne Végét. vol. iii. p, 547 ; Endl, Gen. n. 1858. Flores 
dioici. Fl. g dense spicati, bracteati, Perigonium 4-partitum, laciniis ovatis acuminatis, zstivatione 
imbricatis, demum patentibus. Stamina 4, perigonii laciniis opposita; filamenta filiformi-subulata, 
elastica; antherze introrse, 2-loculares, dorso affixe. Fl. 2 super receptaculum globosum dense 
capitato-congesti, squamis pilosis (floribus abortivis) mixti. Perigonium urceolatum, 3—4-dentatum, 
Ovarium ovatum, 1-loculare, gynophoro clavato demum elongato oblique impositum, Ovulum 1, 
parietale, amphitropum, micropyle supera. Stylus filiformis, excentricus, hine stigmatosus, Ache- 
mum subcarnoso-gelatinosum, gynophoro baccato basi perigonio cincto longe exserto clevatum, 
ejusque marginibus ineequaliter productis inclusum. Semen pendulum, uncinatum ; testa tenuissime 
membranacea, Embryo intra albumen parcum carnosum homotropus, uncinatus; cotyledonibus 
oblongis incumbentibus; radicula umbilico contigua, supera.—Arbores lactescentes ; foliis alternis, 
integris y. lobatis.—Papyrius, Lam. t. 762. 
1. B. papyrifera, Vent. 1. c.; foliis 3-5-lobis adultioribus subrotundo-ovatis indivisis, supra 
scabris, subtus villosis—Morus papyrifera, Linn, Sp. Plant. 1899.—Nom. vernac. Vitiens., “ Ai 
Masi” et “ Malo ;” Hawaiense, “ Wauke;’? Tahitense et N. Zeland. * Auti.””—Cultivated throughout 
Viti (Mine! Seemann!). Also collected in the Hawaiian Islands (Macrae! Seemann! n. 1711), 
New Zealand, Northern Island (Banks and Solander! in Mus. Brit.), Tonga (Sir E. Home!), Society 
Islands (Capt. Cook !), and Formosa (Oldham !), 
When Captain Cook discovered New Zealand, he found the paper mulberry cultivated in the Northern 
Island, but only to a limited extent, under the Tahitian name of “ Auti” (identical, making allowance for 
dialectic changes, with the Sandwich Island name “ Wauke ”). The specimens collected on that occasion 
by Banks and Solander are at the British Museum, Since the introduction of cheap clothing, the cultiva- 
tion of the plant in New Zealand has almost entirely ceased; and Colenso doubts whether it is cultivated 
at all at the present day ; whilst Dr. Hooker, in his ‘ Flora of New Zealand,’ does not even allude to it. 
The Vitian name, * Ai Masi,’”’ has evidently no connection with the more general Polynesian; and Viti 
may therefore have received the plant from ‘another source. The cultivation of the plant does not seem to 
extend further westward towards the New Hebrides, New Caledonia, and the Loyalty group; nor does it 
seem to be in vogue amongst the islands of the Indian Archipelago and in India. I believe nowhere in 
Polynesia has the plant been found truly wild, and the question naturally arises, whence was it derived ? 
Tt is said to be indigenous in Japan, and the manufacture of the bark into paper by the Japanese was 
described by Kempfer (Am, ex. Fase. vol. ii, p- 471), and also by Thunberg (FI. Jap. p. 72). But the 
process of boiling the branches, practised by them, is never resorted to in any part of Polynesia; and none 
of the Japan names (Sjo, Ri, Kaadsi, Kaasi, and Kansi) are much like the Polynesian. 
Materials for the scanty clothing worn by the Fijians are readily supplied by a variety of plants, fore- 
most amongst which stands the Malo or Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera, Vent.), a middle-sized 
tree, with rough trilobed leaves, cultivated all over Wiji. On the coast, the native cloth (Tapa*) and 
plaitings are gradually displaced by cheap cotton prints introduced by foreign traders,—a fathom of which 
is considered enough for the entire dress of aman, In the inland heathen districts the boys are allowed 
fo run naked until they haye attained the age of puberty and publicly assumed what may be termed their 
foga virilis—a narrow strip of native cloth (Malo) passing between the legs, and fastened either to a waist- 
band of string or to a girdle formed by one of the ends of the cloth itself. The leneth of the Tapa hanging 
down in front denotes the rank of the wearer; the lower classes not having it longer than is absolutel 
necessary for the purposes of securing it to the waistband, whilst the chiefs let it dangle on the are 
i ae ene th er ed a et ae 
* Panga—Kar > 1; Ms wae : 4 i i 
sue =. apa—Kapa of some dialects, I take to mean originally “ covering ;” Atap, the name for thatch 1 
e Indian Archipelago, doubtless belongs to the same set of words. 
