BANYAN, or BA'NIAN, foes Indica, a tree, native of India, remarkable for its vast rooting branches. It is a species of fig (q.v.); has ovate, heart-shaped, entire leaves, about 5 or 6 in. long; and produces a fruit of a rich scarlet color., not larger than a cherry, growing iapairs from the.axila .of The leaves. The branches send shoots down wards, which, when they have rooted, become stems, the tree in this manner spreading over a great surface, and enduring for many ages. One has been described as having no fewer than 350 stems, equal to large oaks, and more than 3000 smaller ones, covering a space sufficient to contain 7000 persons. The branches are usually covered with monkeys, birds, and enormous bats. The monkevs eat both fruit and leaves. The vegetation of the B. seldom begins on the ground. 'The seeds are deposited by birds in the crowns of palms, and send down.•oots which embrace and eventually kill the palm. As the 13. gets old, it breaks up into separate masses, the original trunk decaying, and the props becoming separate trunks of the different portions. The wood of the B. is
light, porous, and of no value. The bark is regarded by the Hindoo physicians as a powerful tonic, and is administered in diabetes. The white glutinous juice is used to relieve tooth-ache, and also as an application to the soles of the feet when inflamed. Bird-lime is also made from it. Gum-lac is obtained in abundance from the B.-tree. The B.-tree is beautifully described by Southey in his poem, The Curse of 1fehama.
a t. of France in the Pyrentles orientates, with a fishing-port on the Mediterranean. The celebrated wines of Grenache and Ranch are produced in this district. Near the town are 4 old towers, one of which marks the division between Prance and Spain. B. was the immediate scene of many encounters between the French republicans and the Spaniards during the first French revolution. Pop. '76, 2277.