GUMS  AND  RESINS  OF  COMMERCE. 
227 
of  tincture,  with  opium,  in  dysentery  and  diarrhoea,  and  also 
forms  the  base  of  a  cement.  This  resin  contains  benzoic  and 
cinnamic  acid.  Another  species  of  the  same  family,  X.  Austra- 
lis,  furnishes  a  more  brittle  resin,  of  a  brilliant  dark  red  color, 
known  in  the  colony  as  "  black  boy  gum."  These  resins  are 
spoken  highly  of  as  useful  for  varnish,  and  as  substitutes  for 
shellac.  The  grass  tree  is  one  great  characteristic  of  the  scenery 
and  of  the  vegetation  of  Australia.  It  puts  one  in  mind  of  a  tali 
black  native,  with  a  spear  in  his  hand,  ornamented  with  a  tuft  of 
rushes.  On  the  spear  is  found  an  excellent,  clear,  transparent 
gum,  and  from  the  lower  part  of  the  tree  oozes  a  black  gum 
which  makes  a  powerful  cement,  used  by  the  natives  for  fasten- 
ing stone  heads  on  their  hammers.  This  gum  resin  may  be  ob- 
tained in  inexhaustible  quantities. 
Capt.  Wray,  R.  E.,  submitted  a  report  to  the  local  authorities 
of  Western  Australia,  last  year,  on  the  manufacture  of  illumina- 
ting gas  from  the  Xanthorrhoea,  at  one-third  the  expense  of 
lighting  with  oil  or  candles. 
The  plant  grows  in  abundance  all  over  the  colony,  and  is  com- 
posed of  a  core  of  hard  fibry  pith,  about  half  of  its  whole  diam- 
eter, round  which  there  is  a  layer  of  resin,  varying  from  half 
to  one  inch  or  more  in  thickness,  which  forms  the  connexion  be- 
tween the  leaves  and  the  core.  Between  these  leaves,  and  also 
adhering  to  and  covering  them,  is  a  considerable  quantity  of 
resin ;  resin  also  exudes  in  large  lumps  from  the  sides  of  the 
plant. 
Method  of  obtaining  the  material — In  the  first  instance,  the 
leaves  and  resin  were  separated  from  the  core,  by  breaking  up 
the  plant  with  an  axe,  and  sifting  the  resin  from  the  leaves,  but 
it  was  found  by  experience  that  as  much  gas  was  obtained  from 
an  equal  weight  of  the  leaves  and  resin  together,  as  from  the 
resin  alone.  The  quantity  of  resin  obtained  from  an  average 
sized  «  black  boy"  was  about  45  lbs.  weight.  This  was  collected 
easily,  at  the  rate  of  5  lbs.  per  hour,  by  a  person  having  for  his 
tools  an  axe  and  a  sieve. 
Should  the  resin  be  collected  for  export,  I  am  satisfied  that  by 
a  proper  arrangement  of  crushers  and  sieves,  a  laborer,  at  4*. 
per  diem,  (the  colony  rate,)  could  collect  at  least  one  hundred 
weight  per  diem,  enabling  the  resin  to  be  brought  to  market,  at 
