HACKBERRY  , a name given to the

fruit of Celtic occidentalis, belonging to the natural botanical order Ulmaceae, to which also belongs the elm (Ulmus) . It is also known under the name of "sugar-berry," "beaver-wood" and "nettle-tree." The hackberry tree is of middle size, attaining from 6o to 8o ft. in height (though sometimes reaching 13o ft.), and with the aspect of an elm . The leaves are ovate in shape, with a very long taper point, rounded and usually very oblique at the base, usually glabrous above and soft-pubescent beneath . The soft filmy flowers appear early in the spring before the expansion of theleaves . The fruit is oblong, about half to three-quarters of an inch long, of a reddish or yellowish colour when young, turning to a dark purple in autumn . This tree is distributed through the deep shady forests bordering river banks from Canada (where it is very rare) to the southern states . The fruit has a sweetish and slightly astringent taste, and is largely eaten in the United States . The seeds contain an oil like that of almonds . The bark is tough and fibrous like hemp, and the wood is heavy, soft, fragile and coarse-grained, and is used for making fences and furniture . The root has been used as a dye for linens .