assuredly prove a rich and valuable part of the province; the greatest drawback to it is the want of any other than land communication with the coast. The union of the little streams which flow from the Serra de Araripe forms a rivulet that passes close to the town of Crato, and affords an abundant supply of excellent clear water to the inhabitants at all seasons; it offers also some deep pools that serve as bathing places, a luxury in which they are very fond of indulging, especially during the hot season. During my residence at this place I made many excursions in the neighbourhood, but the Serra de Araripe proved the best field for my researches, I spent several days at different times, in exploring its ravines, sides, and summit, every trip yielding me large supplies of new and rare plants. The greater portion of the wooded districts around Crato consists of deciduous trees and shrubs, forming what are called Catingas, but in low moist localities, and along the base of the Serra, a great many of the trees are evergreen; one of the most common denizens of the Catingas is the _Magonia glabrata_, St. Hil., which is here truly gregarious, covering large tracts for miles to the exclusion of almost everything else; in general it is a tree from thirty to forty feet high, but at full growth it often attains a much greater stature. Like many of the other inhabitants of the Catingas, its flowers appear before the leaves, they are in large panicles, of a greenish yellow colour, and of very sweet scent. It is called Tingi by the natives, who apply it to many useful purposes; an infusion of the bark of the root is employed to poison fish, and that of the stem to cure old ulcers. The fruit is a large dry triangular capsule filled with broad flat seeds, from the kernels of which a kind of soap is manufactured; the manner in which they make it is this. After having taken off the brown membrane which covers the seeds, they are put into a tub of water to steep for some time, when the cotyledons begin to swell and soften, the thin skin which still covers them is easily taken off, and they are then put into a pot along with a small portion of tallow; by boiling and stirring them they soon form a homogeneous mass, which, when cool, is said to answer very well for washing clothes. Another tree which grows in similar situations, is a species of _Caryocar_, that presents a fine appearance when covered with its large corymbs of yellow flowers; the fruit, which was not ripe during my stay, is said to be excellent when cooked, and its hard wood is of great use as timber in the construction of mills. The Visgeira, already mentioned, and the Timbahuba, are also two large trees of the neighbourhood; the latter belongs to the _Mimosa_ tribe, producing large round heads of yellowish flowers, and a broad legume curved round so as to resemble a horse-shoe. A kind of small deer that much frequents the woods is very fond of this fruit, and is often watched for at night at