KOU-CHU, a Chinese shrub, which bears a great resemblance to the fig tree both in the make of its branches and the form of its leaves. From its root several twigs or shoots generally spring up, which form a kind of bush; but sometimes it consists of only one shoot. The wood of the branches of the kou-chu is soft and spongy, and covered with bark like that of the fig tree. Its leaves are deeply indented, and their colour and the texture of their fibres are exactly the same as those of the fig tree; but they are larger and thicker, and much rougher to the touch.
This tree yields a kind of milky juice, which the Chinese use for laying on gold leaf in gilding. They make one or more incisions in the trunk, into which they insert the edges of a shell, or something else of the same kind to receive the sap. When they have extracted a sufficiency, they use it with a small brush, and delineate whatever figures they intend for the decoration of their work. They then lay on the gold-leaf, which is so strongly attracted by this liquor, that it never comes off.