ROLL OF THE COCOANUT.

Taranaki Herald, Issue 13917, 29 May 1909, Page 5 (Supplement)

ROLL OF THE COCOANUT.

It is more than a eonncideiico that ilie tiee which furnishes a greater amount of valuable- material to man than any. other in the vast kingdom of vegetables is the first to spring up on the bare rocks of the newly arisen cornl reef. The cocoanut. so formed that 't may have floated half way across tinPacific, is thus universally distributed throughout tropical islands. It thrives best near the sen. seldom penetrating far into the interior. Its hard ami ..matted covering protects the embryo plant, says the New Ay.c, enabling :"t to stand" hard usage for a protracted period and locking up securely the precious life in miniature. The fibrous husk which envelops it, and is seldom scon in the market on account of the greatly increased bulk, breaks the jar which would l>c inevitable should the hard nut fall unprotected from tho tall tree to the ground 6(J or 90 feet below. Such a blow would scarcely fail to break the shell, occasionally the loss ol tho nourishing milk oo necessary to tli.gcrm. The outer husk not only breakthe jar of a fall but buoys it up on tho water, while the tough outer cuticle is waterproof. Thus is tho tree which offers to man almost in the raw state all his necessities freely scattered where the warm seas and their borders offer a footing; and from it the bumble native secures sugar, milk, butter, wine, vinegar, oil, candles, soap, cups, ladles, cordage, matting, thatch for roof and material for laiuicnt — combining food, clothing and shelter in a single gift, continually making waste places habitable.