1256 
seeds In dense panicles. Some plants produce white 
seeds, and some produce black. The white seeds are 
those chiefly used by the natives. This plant is found 
both in cultivation and growing wild. The seeds ground 
and cooked in the form of small cakes known as alegria, 
are eaten in large quantities by the poorer classes, 
especially during a time of scarcity of corn. Huauhtli 
was cultivated by the Aztecs before the discovery of 
America. It occupied an Important place in the fare of 
the people, and accounts show that every year 18 gran- 
aries, each with a capacity of 9,000 bushels, were 
filled by Montezuma. Often the tribute exacted by the 
Aztecs from the people they conquered would take the 
form of a certain amount of this grain. It was so 
closely connected with the life of the people that it 
figured in religious observances. Spanish historians, 
writing in the first half of the ' 17th century, give 
accounts of how the ancient Mexicans made figures of 
their gods out of the flour obtained from the seed. 
The figures were carried in procession, and at the 
end of the ceremony were broken up, and served to the 
people as a form of communion.' (Adapted from Safford, 
A Forgotten Cereal of Ancient America, Proceedings of 
the Nineteenth International Congress of Americanists, 
p. 256-297, 1917.) 
Annona diversifolia (Annonaceae) , 45548. From Guate- 
mala. Collected by Mr. Wilson Popenoe, Agricultural 
Explorer for this Department. "(No. 205a. Guatemala, 
Guatemala. November 8, 1917.) The anona blanca, from 
Chiqulmula ( elevation 1 , 400 feet). This species is not 
known in the highlands of Guatemala, nor have I seen 
it elsewhere except in the vicinity of Chiqulmula and 
Joeotan, both in the southeastern part of the re- 
public, close to the border of Honduras. The tree 
strongly suggests Amona squamosa in appearance, but is 
easily distinguished by the leaf-like bracts at the 
base of the branchlets. The fruit is much larger than 
that of A. squamosa, resembling more closely that of 
A. reticulata. It is generally heart-shaped, up to 5 or 
6 inches In length, with the carpellary areas indi- 
cated by incised lines on the surface, which is pale 
glaucous green in color. The- skin is nearly a quarter 
of an inch thick, the flesh Is said to be tinged rose 
color when ripe, and the seeds are much larger than 
those of either A. squamosa or A. reticulata . The season of 
ripening in southeastern Guatemala is September. While 
I have not been able to test this fruit thoroughly, 
