taneously favored with them than young America and the ancient
territory of Asia.

The latter has given us the majority of the best fruits of our
gardens. We have already shown how useful the butter tree
(_Butyrospermum Parkii_) is in tropical Africa, and we also know how
the _gourou_ (_Sterculia acuminata_) is cultivated in the same
regions. But that is not all, for the great family of Leguminosae,
whose numerous representatives encumber this continent, likewise
furnishes the negro natives a food that is nearly as indispensable to
them as the _gourou_ or the products of the baobab--another valuable
tree and certainly the most widely distributed one in torrid Africa.
This leguminous tree, which is as yet but little known in the
civilized world, has been named scientifically _Parkia biglobosa_ by
Bentham. The negroes give it various names, according to the tribe;
among the Ouloffs, it is the _houlle_; among the Mandigues, _naytay_;
in Cazamance (Nalon language), it is _nayray_; in Bornou, _rounuo_; in
Haoussa, _doroa_; in Hant-fleure (Senegal), _nayraytou_. On the old
mysterious continent it plays the same role that the algarobas do in
young America. However, it is quite a common rule to find in the order
Leguminosae, and especially in the section Mimosae, plants whose pods
are edible. Examples of this fact are numerous. As regards the
Mediterranean region, it suffices to cite the classic carob tree
(_Ceratonia siliqua_), which also is of African nationality, but which
is wanting in the warm region of this continent.

Throughout the tropical region of Africa, the aborigines love to
consume the saccharine pulp and the seed contained in the pod of the
_houlle_. Prepared in different ways, according to tribe and latitude,
these two products constitute a valuable aliment. The pulp is consumed
either just as it is or as a fermented beverage. As for the seeds,
they serve, raw or roasted, for the production of a tea-like infusion
(whence the name "Soudan coffee"), or, after fermentation in water,
for making a national condiment, which in certain places is called
_kinda_, and which is mixed with boiled rice or prepared meats. This
preparation has in most cases a pasty form or the consistency of
cohesive flour; but in order to render its carriage easier in certain
of the African centers where the trade in it is brisk, it is
compressed into tablets similar to those of our chocolate. As these
two products are very little known in