The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-09-01
SOME INDIAN FREES.


AAhgaH NNuNh9AtthV INV @ARA VIZ
Character Of some.
From me- Siatesman,
A newcomer to India was once advised by
an old resident TO get up the trees" This
advice did not apply. az the recipient OF II nc
first not unnaturally supposed. 10 an Innocent
and inexpensive form Of athletic exercise.
nor TO the adoption Of the habits Of the savage
tribes known as tree dwellers. but simply to
the advisabillty Of learning the names OF the
common trees Of the country and OF acquiring
the power OF recognizing them when seen.
For one thing, II 10 by trees that travellers
on the beaten track are expected to ind their
way. An Indian villa ger. be- he ever so tg-
nOrant in other respects. IL as familiar with
the trees In his neighborhood as a London
policeman Ia with the streets on his beat.
Instead OF being told to take three TO the
right and two to the left, " you are directed TO
make straight for a big banyan whose Great
II to be dlscerned on the horizon. Pass to the
east OF IL and you will come to three palm
trees; keep them on your right hand and pass
between a Imarind and a mango. and you
will hit upon a path that will take you straight
TO the village you are searching for. So
familiar are the people with the trees that the
writer has met a villa ger who. after he be-
came blind. could identify any tree by finger
ing its leaves.
Then the economic Importance Of trees can
only be realized by those who have lived
among the villagers. The food supplies are
not by any means limited to the fruits OF
commerce, and flowers. leaves. twigs and
roots are largely used as we'll. The leaves OF
certain trees. pinned together 10y twigs, serve
az plates, or are fashioned into drinking cups.
A great many domestic remedies. for man
and beast, are also derived from the forest,
and there is no doubt that some Of them are
ef1cacious. 1t Ia not 80 very long since sons
OF the hill and jungle tribes Of India, like our
first parents, clothed themselves with leaves,
and II In said that II required a military eXpe-
dition to Induce some OF the women In Orissa
20 discard this primitive dress In favor OF
cotton sdries. A man will often make his
house entirely from trees. plastered with a
little mud, the roof being constructed OF
Palmyra palm leaves or others of a large size
and firm texture. Dyes. tans, ink, books.
shoes, waterproof capes. gum, sealing wax.
rope-these are but a very few OF the mis-
cellaneous articles that are got from trees.
No wonder the planting of a grove OF trees
ranks with digging a tank or sinking a well
as a work of religious merit. II we were to
include the bamboo and similar plants the
list OF manufactured articles would be end
less; but the bamboo Ia a grass and not a tree.
Even to mention the common trees OF India
v ould be a lengthy task, so We conine our
telves to the most familiar. Nearly all that
are about to be mentioned are found either
within the writer's compound or in its lmme-
diate neiahborhood.
First come the fig tribe: the banyan AMI
his brothers. The banyan. the big brother OF
the family, is our very ~own-Ficus bengalen.
sis. That true tree lover Oliver Wendell
Holmes wrote that his tree wives were more
numerous than Brigham YounE's human
ones. The ring with which he welded them
was q thirty foot measuring tape; with which
he encircled them at the height of five feet
above the ground. His first class trees were
those whose branches at their widest circum-
AN u.ara NAR chan a hundred fnpt His
favorites were elms; and he made some re-
marks about cherishing the hope Of still hav-
ing Measure at the elm. even when youth
was no longer on the PROV. II merit goes
by bulk no doubt the banyan comes fret.
| and a circumference OF twenty feet round
the trunk could hardly be regarded as a mark
a diatinction in IL. But II is often a parasite.
a vampire, sucking the life blood OF its VIC
tim and crushing it to death. Its fruit is
eaten by the very poor. elephants greatly
relish it's lea YES and branches. but its wide-
spread, grateful shade 10 perhaps its most
valued product. A much more handsome
tree, more independent and self-respecting,
IL the pipal, the Ficus religiosa. 10 In the
most sacred Of the Ave trees regarded with
veneration by the Hindus, the other four
being the gular. the bargad. the paksr and
the mango. Brahma. VishnU and silva are
all supposed to inhabit IL, and no one can tell
how many minor spirits as well, whose whis-
pertnRs are supposed to be heard When the
leaves, suspended by their long. slender stalks.
futter In the slightest breath Of wind. II a
man takes a pipal leaf in his hand and crush
ing II expresses a wish that the gods may so
crush him II he lie not telling the truth the
oath il regarded as OF the utmost sanctity.
A pious Hindu will often take on his shoes
when he comes to a pipal, and walk five times
| round it from left to right, repeating as he
does so a verse which says: THE roots are
Brahma, the bark Vishnu, the branches the
Mahadeo. In the bark lives the Gauges, the
leaves are the minor deities. Hail to thee.l
king Of trees" The gular (Ficus glomerata),
the bargad, which il another name for the
banyan, and the pakar Ficus venosa are all
members OF the fig tribe, the Levites OF the
forest. The gular yields a larger fruit than
the banyan, and is a good deal used az q food.
In the extremely hot weather Of this year the
wri,er found that mysterious holes were being
dug by night round the roots OF a large gular
tree 10 his compound. On inqUiring into the
cause he found that the servants were incis-
ing the roots to obtain the juice, which they
said they drank to keep up their strength
during the heat. There are more than a
hundred species Of the Ficus genus to be
found in india: and 500 more elsewhere.
Caoutchouc, OF India rubber, is derived from
the Ficus ~elastica: a somewhat similar milky
Juice exuoss from the other species.