d from the
leverage of the crown, by which they would otherwise be uprooted. Some
of these buttresses are so smooth and flat, as almost to resemble sawn
planks.

The greatest ornaments of the forest in these higher regions are the
large flowering trees; the most striking of which is the Rhododendron,
which in Ceylon forms a forest in the mountains, and when covered with
flowers, it seems from a distance as though the hills were strewn with
vermilion. This is the principal tree on the summit of Adam's Peak, and
grows to the foot of the rock on which rests the little temple that
covers the sacred footstep on its crest. Dr. Hooker states that the
honey of its flowers is believed to be poisonous in some parts of
Sikkim; but I never heard it so regarded in Ceylon.

One of the most magnificent of the flowering trees, is the coral
tree[1], which is also the most familiar to Europeans, as the natives of
the low country and the coast, from the circumstance of its stem being
covered with thorns, plant it largely for fences, and grow it in the
vicinity of their dwellings. It derives its English name from the
resemblance which its scarlet flowers present to red coral, and as these
clothe the branches before the leaves appear, their splendour attracts
the eye from a distance, especially when lighted by the full blaze of
the sun.

[Footnote 1: _Erythrina Indica_. It belongs to the pea tribe, and must
not be confounded with the _Jatropha multifida_ which has also acquired
the name of the _coral tree_. Its wood is so light and spongy, that it
is used in Ceylon to form corks for preserve jars; and both there and at
Madras the natives make from it models of their implements of husbandry,
and of their sailing boats and canoes.]

The Murutu[1] is another flowering tree which may vie with the Coral,
the Rhododendron, or the Asoca, the favourite of Sanskrit poetry. It
grows to a considerable height, especially in damp places and the
neighbourhood of streams, and pains have been taken, from appreciation
of its attractions, to plant it by the road side and in other
conspicuous positions. From the points of the branches panicles are
produced, two or three feet in length, composed of flowers, each the
size of a rose and of all shades, from a delicate pink to the deepest
purple. It abounds in the south-west of the island.

[Footnote 1: Lagerstroemia Reginae.]

The magnificent Asoca[1] is found in the interior, and is cultivated,
though no