[25] “It is at least certain that on this microscopic character of the equal existence of cutaneous glands on both surfaces of the leaf, depends that want of lustre which is so remarkable in the forests of New Holland.”—Sketch of the Botany of the Vicinity of Swan River, by R. Brown, Esq. F.R.S., published in the Journal of the Royal Geographical Society of London, vol. i. 1830, 1831.
[26] The dried cones of the Banksia are used by the aborigines for retaining fire, as they will keep ignited for a considerable length of time.
[27] The analysis of the chemical properties of this gum is mentioned in Decandolle’s Organographie Végétale, tom i.
[28] I remarked that the wood of a species of Banksia, (I believe dentata,) which was used for firewood, was of a beautiful red colour, and when split in a longitudinal direction displayed a curious interlaced appearance; it had an astringent taste when chewed, staining the saliva of a dark reddish colour, and I think it would be worth trying if a dye would be furnished by it.
[29] The Kennedia is called the “woodbine” by some of the shepherds in the colony, who use a decoction of its leaves as a lotion for scabby sheep, and they declare it is a cure for that disease; but their declarations of the curative properties of the plant is not borne out by the experience of others, who have found it quite useless as a remedy for that disease.
[30] Among the Psittaceæ tribe is the Psittacus Novæ Hollandiæ, curious as being one of the parrot tribe, seen and mentioned by Captain Cook, but is a very rare species in the present known parts of the colony,—(it is, more correctly, a species of cockatoo, and which, I believe, Mr. Vigors has; or intends, to place in a new genus,)—and has not been seen even in those portions of the colony visited by Cook. The specimen in the collection, is one among a few of this species that was seen at Wellington Valley a few years since, during a prevailing drought, and since that period they have not been seen in that or any other known part of the colony. I heard at Yas Plains, that it was not uncommon at some seasons of the year to observe birds, before unknown to the colonists, appear, and soon after again disappear, and are, perhaps, never seen again until years after, and often not at all.
[31] It would also be desirable to have the cases made in such a manner, as to be opened if required, and a closer inspection of the specimens obtained, which is often requisite for scientific examinations. To George Macleay, Esq. the museum is indebted for many valuable species of birds, which he had collected during his arduous journey in the exploration of the course of the Murrumbidge river, in the expedition under Captain Sturt.
[32] Captain Cook observes, “Of this plant, there are two sorts; the leaves of both resemble those of flags, but the flowers are smaller, and their clusters more numerous: in one kind, they are yellow; and in the other, a deep red.” This plant is also indigenous to Norfolk Island, which, in its vegetation, partakes more of New Zealand than the Australian continent. Captain Cook observes, that at Norfolk Island, “we observed many trees and plants, common at New Zealand, and, in particular, the flax plant, which is rather more luxuriant here than in any part of the country.”
[33] Captain George Harris, R. N., C. B., and member for Grimsby, in the present parliament, has recently been manufacturing rope and cables of the phormium tenax, or New Zealand flax; and instead of tar, substitutes a solution of gum, or some such substance, (principally, we suspect, the caoutchouc or Indian rubber,) by which, it is contended, the rope is rendered stronger, more pliant, and less liable to part in short bends, turns, or clinches, and being stronger, smaller ropes than those now in use will answer for ships’ rigging; the consumption of hemp, of course, diminishes in proportion—we say hemp, because the solution will also impart to the hemp the qualities we have named. If, however, a substitute is to be found for hemp and tar, we are rendered independent of the Russian trade in these articles;—a most desirable object, should the state of Europe at any time involve us in a difference with that nation. The bogs and rough ground of Ireland, all our African possessions and West Indian islands, and New South Wales, are particularly adapted to the culture of the phormium tenax. Captain Harris was here on Monday, and superintended the making of a 14½ inch cable, which is to be tried on his Majesty’s ship Rainbow. A trial is also to be made of the relative strength of the phormium tenax and hemp in this yard, in a few days, for which a piece of 14½ inch cable has been expressly manufactured. The price of hemp per ton is £38; that of the phormium tenax £28. Of the experiments that have been made at Woolwich, by order of the Admiralty, the following are the results:—
| T. | cwt. | lbs. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| A 4½ inch rope of the old sort broke at a strain of | 3 | 8 | 40 |
| 4 inch phormium, with the solution | 5 | 10 | 0 |
| 4 inch bolt rope, Italian yarns, present sort | 4 | 15 | 0 |
| 4 inch ditto, with the same yarns, with the preserving solution | 6 | 8 | 56 |
| 4 inch common rope | 5 | 7 | 56 |
| 4 inch hempen rope, with coal or mineral tar | 3 | 7 | 56 |
| 4 inch phormium, with the solution | 5 | 16 | 70 |