VANDA ROXBURGHII. 259 



The leaves and leaf-stalks when burnt yield alkaline ashes 

 whioh can be used instead of country soap or fuller's earth, in 

 washing clothes. In the Noakhally jail, the old leaves are 

 collected, dried and burnt to ashes. The ashes being placed on a 

 piece of cloth supported on four posts, water is made to percolate 

 through them into an earthen vessel. The alkaline water thus 

 obtained is used for steeping clothes intended to be washed. As 

 the stems of the plantain are cut down soon after the fruit ia 

 gathered, there is always a large quantity of leaves and stalks 

 available in all gardens where it is cultivated. They can be 

 readily economised in the simple method above described, if not 

 manufactured into cloth or paper. 



The unripe fruit, called mochaka in Sanskrit, is considered 

 cooling and astringent ; it is much used in diabetes in the form of 

 a ghrita prepared as follows : 



Kadalyddi ghrita. 1 Take of plantain flowers twelve seers and 

 a half, watery juice of the root-stock of the plantain tree sixty- 

 four seers; boil them together tilL reduced to one -fourth and 

 strain. To the strained decoction add four seers of prepared 

 clarified butter and the following*, substances in the form of a 

 paste, namely, unripe plantains, cloves, cardamoms 

 wood, wood of Pinus longifolta, (sarala ) t jatdmdnsi too 

 myrobalans, Rapkanus sativus (mulaka), and the fruit 



sandal 



elephantuvi (kapittha ) in equal parts, one seer in all, and prepare 

 a ghrita in the usual way. This medicine is generally given alorg 

 with some preparation of tin or other metallic medicine in 

 diabetes. Dose, about two tolas. 



NAT. ORDER ORCHIDACE^ 



VANDA ROXBURGHII, It. Br. 



iSft/ii._ dnrnhiAium te.s&aloides. Roxb. 



KJW1, Rasnd % i[^\\^t 



Under the 



rasna 



and Acampe papillosa, are 



used 



*Wfw^n ^ ^ *tf *?tfi£rt wit i fcn «w fowwfow- 



*»* 



