The Bamboo trees are very common, and very useful in India ; scarcely any tree equals them for rapidity of growth, as in the short space of five months they rise to the height of 20 yards, with a circumference of eight inches ; its greatest height is completed during its first year ; and during the second, it acquires those properties of hardness and elasticity, which compoundedly or singly renders its wood so extremely useful for such a variety of purposes. A single acre of Bamboos, if they are situated in a proper soil, and care is taken of them, produces more wood than ten acres of any other tree. The best bamboos used for palanquins grow near the summit of the rocks in the per gunnahs of Tolcan and Hindole, in the province of Orissa. They spring up in July, at which time the stringent shoots are fastened to stakes driven into the ground, in order to train them up to that form which will render them most useful for palanquins. As soon as the dry season begins their tops are cut off ; for, if they were to stand longer, they would become too weak to support a palanquin, in conse quence of the increase of the hollow part, and the wood growing thinner. In some places, they are used for the purposes of defence and protection, being planted on the banks of the country fastnesses on account of their thorns, which are three inches long, and very strong and sharp. In the dry season, however, they can afford little pro tection,. as they are very inflammable. In the neighbour hood of Goonsur, at the north-west extremity of the north ern Circars, the forests are almost entirely composed of bamboos ; and as, besides their thorns, they grow closer and resist the axe better than any other tree, the inhabitants formerly trusted entirely to their forests of bamboos, bind ing and intertwining them so completely, as to constitute an excellent defence, in the room of redoubts, to their fortres ses. Perhaps the best bamboos, for all the various purpo ses to which they are applied, grow on the western Ghauts, about the 15th degree of latitude. They here compose the greatest part of the forest, and equal in height the most lofty palms, sometimes rising to 60 feet. Besides their uses for palanquins and as a species of fortification, the first and smallest shoots are made into walking canes ; the lar ger shoots and the trunk are employed by the Hindoos to construct their houses, and to make all sorts of furniture. They likewise make of them a kind of pails, in which the water keeps extremely cool. In some parts, also, the young shoots are pickled with vinegar, salt, garlic, &c.
The qualities and uses of the teak tree seem to have been little known or appreciated in Britain till near the close of the last century. This valuable tree is found al most exclusively in India, along the western side of the Ghaut mountains, and other contiguous ranges of hills, particularly on the north and north-east of Bassein. On the east side of India, the forests of Rajamundry, which stretch from the hills on the banks of the Godavery to Po toonshah, contain abundance of these trees ; and this is the only district in the east which furnishes this valuable tim ber. In North Canara they grow in considerable quanti ties. In the year 1800, the number of teak trees cut down annually in this district amounted to 3000. In the pro vince of Malabar it grows mostly about Manarghaut, in the district of Palicatidcherry. From this district it is com puted that about 45 000 cubical feet of tills timber might be procured annually ; and on the hills above Parupanoda, which might supply from 2000 to 3000 trees every year.
The teak is also hound at a very considerable height up the Gh tuts, but here it is of an inferior size.
The banyan tree must not be forgotten in this sketch of Indian botany. 'The characteristics of this tree are well known. In Ilindostan there are two of wonderful size. That which is described by Milton in his Paradise Lest, stands on an island in the Nerbuddah, o ithin a few miles of Bar oach. It is said by the natives to be 3000 years old, and is supposed to be the largest in the world, its shade be ing capable of sheltering 7000 persons. It must, however, have been considerably larger than it is at present, for part of its roots have been swept away, along with the banks of the river, by the floods. It still measures nearly 2000 feet in circumference, even if those branches alone which have tak en root are included ; and the area which it covers must be considerably larger, if the hanging branches are included. Of the smaller branches there are upwards of 3000 ; and of those which are larger, and have in fact become trunks, there are 35a, most of which exceed in circumference most English trees. The other remarkable banyan tree grows in the Sarun district of the province of Bahar, not far from the town of Mangee. The following are the dimensions of it. Its diameter is from 363 to 375 feet ; the circumle rencc of its shadow at noon, 1116 feet ; the circumference of the several stems, which amount to between 50 and 60, is 921 feet.
There are several trees and shrubs which produce oil, besides the cocoa-nut tree. In the vicinity of Beihoree, in North Canara, the Calophyllum inonhyllum grows in abun dance. It is a lofty tree, frequently 90 feet in height, and 12 in circumference. From the seed of it the common lamp oil of this part of India is extracted. It is also esteemed for the elegance of its shade, and the sweetness of its blos soms. The Ricinus communis, common ricinus, or Palma Christi, is cultivated in the Mysore; the castor oil which it produces is used for the lamp, and given to the female buf faloes, for the purpose of increasing the quantity of their milk, as well as applied to medical purposes. This spe cies of ricinus is also cultivated in the province of Bengal, and in other parts of Hindostan. On the Almorah hills in Northern Hindostan, there grows a tree called by the Ilin does Phutwarrah. Its usual height is 50 feet, and its cir cumference six : from the kernels of the fruit a fat-like sub stance is extracted. There are only a few places where any species of the pine grows. It is found, however, in considerable abundance in the mountainous districts of the province of Lahore, which lies near Cashmere. It is used for torches or lamps by the natives, cut into small slips; but neither turpentine nor tar are made from it. The northern sides of the hills which lie on the north of the pro vince of Delhi produce the common Scotch fir in great abundance. Indeed, it is a tree by no means uncommon in the northern districts of Ilindostan Proper. The tim ber of the pines that grow in the Terriani district is re markable for its straightness and durability ; and from a spe cies of the pine, called the Sulla pine, Kota, a pure turpen tine is procured. The willow is generally found in those parts of India whet e the pine thrives.