718 
Aleurit s montana. ( Euphorbiaceae . ) 36897. Seeds of 
Chinese wood oil from Hongkong, China. Presented Dy Mr. 
W. J. Tutcher, Superintendent, Botanical and Forestry De- 
partment, Hongkong. "The three species of Aleurites, 
A. fordii Hems ley, A. montana Wilson, and A. cordata 
R. Brown, from very early times have been almost hopeless- 
ly confused. As a cultivated tree A. montana occurs in 
the sub-tropical parts of southeastern China from the 
province of Pokien southward to Tonking, and is also un- 
doubtedly a native of these regions. It requires, without 
question, a sub-tropical climate and a more abundant rain- 
fall than its more northern relative j A- fordii. In all 
probability the tree is monoecious; as in other species of 
the family, but with a strong tendency to have the male 
and female flowers collected in different inflorescences 
of the same tree. The mu-yu tree (as A. montana is called 
by the natives in distinction from the tung-yu, A, fordii) 
in size, habit, foliage and general appearance (but not 
in its flowers and fruits) closely resembles the tung- 
yu. The flowers are borne in a terminal corymb or a ra- 
ceme On shoots of the current season's growth after the 
leaves have fully expanded. The 'male' inflorescence is 
many-flowered, much- branched, corymbose, 15-20 cm. long, 
and 20-30 cm. (1 cm. equals 0.3937 inches) broad. The 
'female' inflorescence is relatively few-flowered, race- 
mose, and 8-12 cm. long. The fruit is markedly distinct, 
being egg-shaped, 5-6 cm. long, 4-4f cm. wide, pointed at 
the summit and flattened at the base, with three longi- 
tudinal and many transverse, much-raised ridges; the in- 
terior part of the fruit is thick and woody and encloses 
(usually) three compressed, broadly obovoid seeds, each 
about 3 cm. long by 2| cm. broad, and warty on the out- 
side. When ripe the fruit opens from the base upwards in- 
to three parts and the seeds can then be readily extract- 
ed. Since the fruit is comparatively thick and quite 
woody It is not easily rotted by fermentation, as is the 
case in that of the tung-yu tree." (Wilson, Bull. Imperial 
Institute, September, 1913. ) For distribution later. 
"The success of several preliminary experiments with 
Aleurites fordii in this country gives to this more southern 
species, from whose nuts a wood-oil is also extracted, a 
special interest." (Fairchild.) 
Allium cepa. (Liliaceae.) 36811-812. Onion seeds from 
Merowe, northern Amalad Amer Island, Sudan. Collected by 
Mr. S. C Mason, of this Bureau. Red and white varieties 
of Dongola onions. "These onions which were taken from the 
ground in May and early June (our Sacaton and Texas dates 
of harvest) are now (September 21, 1913) about as hard as 
baseballs. They are not 'wild' by any means, and an 
onion with such keeping qualities in this intense heat is 
surely a find. These people sow the seed in beds in Octo- 
