Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-18
WHEAT r. GOT FROM palma.
strange Uses Pound for . Precious vsssea.
BILE Gin Of Mature

strange Uses Pound for . Precious vsrees-
=, bic Gin Of Mature.
lhNE OF THE MOST VALUABLE GIFTS
OF nature to man is the palm, Of which
sne many varieties serve number Of important
uses tnat is really astonishing" said Chief
gardener Saunders Of the Department Of
Agriculture to . SrAR reporter. "A Hindoo
poem enumerates eight hundred purposes to
winch the Palmyra palm alone 10 put. Among
otner things it supplies paper for writing upon.
an intoxicating drink called 'toddy,' larGs
Quantities Of sugar fruit and vegetable for
the table when the plants are young
Palm wine is also obtained from the Juice
OF the sage palm, which yields excellent sugar
candy when boiled. The pith Of the trunk
forms large part of the food Of the natives in
many parts OF India. Ropes, brushes and
brooms are manufactured from the fiber Of the
leaf stalks.
On the high mountains Of New Grenada, a
nigh up a. the lower limit Of perpetual snow,
gIo~s the wax palm. Its tall trunk il covered
WIN thin coating Of Q whitish wsxy sub
lance, giving II marbled appearance, which
scraped on and forms an article OF com
Inerce: 1t consists of two parts Of resin and
one OF wax, and, when mixed with one-third Of
~.oW' u makes very good candles.
voa n1.ner wax palm grows in Brazil The
young leaves are coated with wax, which 10 de-
sached by shaking them, and melted, to be
nnany run into cakes II is harder than bees
wa, way ana is utilized for candies. The upper
Of sage.
THE TALBOT PALM OF cHYLoN.
The talipot palm of Ceylon has gigantic fan
IKE leaves, which when fully expanded form 9
nearly complete circle thirteen feet In diane
Ter. Large fans made Of them are carried be-
iore people OF rank among the Cinghalese; they
are also commonly used as umbrellas, and tent,
are made by neatly joining them together. They
are usea as substitute for paper. being writer
upon with stylus Some Of the sacred book
them.
The gingerbread palm Of Egypt bears seed
Win mealy husks which taste very much like
gingerbread. In certain localities the tree
forms extensive forests and its roots spread
over the ruins Of Thebes, one OF the largest ant
most splendid cities of the ancient world. In
south America grows the Bussu palm, which
supplies fbrous spathe that, when taken of
entire, Is ready-made bag, strong aud dur
aoie. Inc Indian keeps IN one Of these bag
red paint for his toilet and silk cotton for hi
arrows Another bag he stretches out into
seamless cap for his head
One OF the most curious palms in the worlG
Is called the Ita, and is very abundant on tn,
banks OF the Amazon, Rio Negro and Orinoct
rivers. In the delta Of the latter it occupies
swampy tracts, which are at times completed,
inundated and present the appearance Of for
ests rising out of the water. The swamps ar,
inhabited by tribe Of Indians called Guaranes
who subsis: almost entirely upon the produc,
OF the tree. During the annual foods the,
suspend their houses from the tops of the tai
stems OF the palms. The outer skin Of tn,
Young leaves is made into cords for hammocks
and the soft inner bark yields o nutritious far
inace0us substance
Uses OF THE cocoANur.
"Cocoanuts, the fruit OF q kind of palm, grow
wild on all the islands of the South Pacific snt
Indian oceans, having been disseminated b,
the ripe fruits which were washed away by tn,
waves and afterward cast upon far-distan
shores: In this way thousands Of coral island
nave become covered with the trees. ever,
part of which Is put to some usefu
purpose. The outside husks of the nut
yield the fiber from which the well-kuowr
cocoa mating is made. Cordage, clothes
Drushes. brooms and hats are also manu-
featured from 1t, and when curled and dyed i
employed for stufing mattresses ant
cushions An oil Is produced by pressing tn,
white Kernel OF the nut for cooking. Stearine il
also obtained from 1t, which il burned in lamp
and made into candles The kernel il
OF great Importance as An article o.
food and the milk affords an agreesbl,
beverage. When young the nut yields de
licious substance resembling blanc mango
Combs are made from the hard foot stalk, an,
the heart OF the tree serves as q vegetable lik
the caopage. Sleeves are manufactured from
the hbrous network at tho base of the leaves
and both the flowers and the roots are yalusbl
in medicine"