A cocoanut shell always has a soft spot at one end because this is the provision nature has made to allow the embryo of the future tree to push its way out of the hard shell.

Cocoanuts, as most of us know, have a thick, hard shell, with three black scars at one end. The soft scar may easily be pierced with a pin; the others are as hard as the rest of the shell. Outside of this hard shell we are accustomed to seeing another covering of considerable thickness, of an extremely fibrous substance. When cocoanuts are picked, however, they have still another covering - an outer rind which has a smooth surface.

The tree which produces the cocoanut is a palm, from sixty to a hundred feet high. The trunk is straight and naked, and surmounted by a crown of feather-like leaves. The nuts hang from the summit of the tree in clusters of a dozen or more together.

Food, clothing and the means of shelter and protection are all afforded by the cocoanut tree. The kernels are used as food in a number of different forms, and when pressed, they yield an oil which is largely used in candle making and in the manufacture of soaps. When they are dried before the oil is pressed out they are known as "copra."

We have given the name "milk" to the sweet and watery liquid, of a whitish color, which is inclosed in considerable quantity in the kernel.

By boring the tree itself, a white, sweetish liquid called "toddy" exudes from the wound. This yields one of the varieties of the spirit called "arack" when distilled. A kind of a sugar called "jaggery" is also obtained from the cocoanut juice.

The fibrous coat of the nut is made into a preparation called "cellulose," which is described in another story in this book, and also into the well-known cocoanut matting. The coarse yarn obtained from it is called "coir," and it is also used for cordage. The hard shell of the nut is polished and made into cups and other domestic utensils. The fronds are wrought into baskets, brooms, mats, sacks and many other useful articles; and the trunks are made into boats, and furnish timber for the construction of houses. Altogether the cocoanut palm will be seen to be a very useful member of the plant kingdom.