Aloe

a genus of lily-like plants in some respects resembling a century plant. Perhaps fifty different kinds have been described, most of them natives of the Cape Colony region. They are related to the daffodil and the narcissus. Aloes have a mass of long, fleshy, lanceolate, spiny leaves set on a short stem. They are much in demand for decorative purposes, especially in public buildings. The natives of the west coast of Africa make cords and nets of the fibers of the leaves, and a species found in Jamaica furnishes the natives with material for clothing. The "American aloe," or century plant, is not an aloe, but an agave, which see. The aloes of the druggist, the juice of the aloe thickened by evaporation, is an old remedy known to the Greeks in the time of Christ. The juice of one aloe makes a beautiful violet dye. The juice of aloes was used formerly as a preservative in embalming. See Daffodil; Agave; Narcissus