BOTANY.
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The* MANCHINEAL, or hippomane, rises from twelve to thirty feet, branching into several stems, but the main trunk, sometimes attains three feet in circumference. It is a very beautiful tree, the bark smooth and of a brownish hue ; and the leaves, of about two or three inches in length, are of the same glossy bright green as the laurel ; they are thick and unctuous, and, when pressed, yield an oily milk. This tree has male catkins, which are produced at some distance from the embryos. The female pointai turns to a globular fleshy fruit, containing a rough woody nut, inclosing fewer or more flat seeds. This fruit is the celebrated manchineal apple, which, with the most beautiful exterior, possesses the most poisonous qualities. So dire is this plant, that the very sun, darting its rays upon it, calls forth all its dangerous odours, and renders it unsafe to the touch ; while if any one takes shelter beneath its spreading boughs during a storm, the rain-drops as they trickle off the leaves blister any part of the skin they fall upon. Its timber is, however, made use of by cabinet-makers, although, when felling it, the woodmen, it is said, are obliged to cover their faces with thick cloth. The Caribs used to dip their arrows in this juice, which rendered the wound fatal. Poison extracted from this tree will preserve its venom for 100 years. The apples, if eaten, are said to be certain death to everything but goats. LOBLOLLY - TREE, varronia-alba, (pisonia subcorduta ?) is another denizen of Antigua, which shews its verdant green canopy throughout the year. The leaves are broad, glossy, and ovate ; the trunk rises from the bottom in numerous woody stems, which, though they present a beautiful roadside scenery, are of very little use, except for lire-wood. SANDBOX-TREE, hura crepitans, rises to the height of from twenty to thirty feet. The trunk is straight and thick, and is armed with short prickles ; the branches start from the top, and abound with an acrid juice. The leaves are broad and long, and of a dullish green. The male flowers are formed like a tapering column, and close over each other like the scales of fish ; the female flowers consist of a trumpet-like style, with a quinquefid stigma.