BY THE REV. J. E. TENISON-WOODS. 57 



plant of the order Ranunculace^, with star-like yellow flowers, 

 distiiigiiished from Clematis by the presence of petals. It extends 

 through all the Eastern Archipelago. Delima or Tetracera sar- 

 mentosa is universally met with, belonging to the order of 

 D1LLENIACE.E, already referred to as used by cabinet-makers as a 

 substitute for sand-paper ; besides several fir-trees. Tinospora crispa 

 a,nd Cissampelos paraira Sive two other climbers belonging to the 

 MENisPERMACEiE. The first yields the Galuncha drug to the 

 natives of the Indian Peninsula, who attribute to it many 

 medicinal virtues ; the second produces the Portuguese remedy 

 known as Pareira-Brava. Fihraurea tinctoria, another member of 

 the order, called Akar by the Malays, is common, yielding a dye 

 from its root. Schizandra marmorata (MAGNOLiACEiE) is a some- 

 what rare climber with red, yellowish, or white flowers : an 

 infusion of the roots is used for dysentery or colic. 



The climbing Leguminosse are very numerous. The large pods 

 of Entada scafidens, which contain beans made into match-boxes 

 both in the Straits Settlements and in Australia, are common. 

 The appearance in the jungle of the skeleton pods is very peculiar, 

 as the sutures of the coriaceous pod remain upon the tree after 

 the seeds have fallen away, looking like a miniature ladder. 

 It is widely diflused over tropical Asia, Africa, and the West 

 Indies, the seeds being carried by ocean currents without losing 

 their power of germination. Derris scandens and D. uliginosa are 

 tall woody climbers distinguishable by the sutures of the flat pod 

 being bordered by a narrow wing, with white or yellowish 

 axillary racemes of flowers. Both species, wide-spread through- 

 out the Archipelago, are used as fish-poisons. Canavalia ohtusi- 

 folia has the stems more frequently prostrate and trailing than 

 twining, with white or slightly pink flowers and winged pods, but 

 distinguished from Derris by having pinnate leaves with five or 

 more leaflets, and a divided reputation either as an esculent or a 

 virulent poison. C. ensiformis can certainly be used as an escu- 

 lent, as the leaves, pods, and unripe fruits are cooked by the 

 Malays with rice and eaten. Among the Caesalpinese three or 



