G2 



JOURNAL OF EORTICCTLTUKB AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



[ Jalj 24, 1873. 



know; they are mostly herbaceous or small shnibby-growiug 

 plants, which bear cutting well and bloom throughout the 

 greater part of the year. They may be gi'owu in small pots. 

 The compost which suits them best is loam, peat, leaf mould, 

 and sand in about equal parts, and in a cool stove they will 

 grow admirably. 



These plants produce their flowers very freely. They are 

 admirably adapted for cutting for bouquet-making, and also 

 for placing in vases with Fern fronds. Grasses, &o., for the 

 decoration of the drawing-room or dinner table. They are 

 rather .apt to become bare of loaves towards the bottom of the 

 stems, and are thus much benefited by frequent cutting. More- 

 over, it conduces to production iu succession ; and if some few 

 species are grown, the cultivator will not lack bloom the whole 

 season round. Having thus made out a good case iu favour 

 of Scutellarias, I shall now enumerate a few of the best species 

 for anyone to cultivate in order to arrive at the desired results. 



S. costaricana. — A tall-growing species of great beauty. The 

 leaves are ovate-lanceolate, slightly serrate at the edges, and 

 rich dark green. The racemes of bloom are terminal, and are 

 nearly 3 inches long ; the individual flowers are tubular and 

 stand erect, forming a splendid dense head ; the tube is rich 

 crimson, whilst the open mouth is orange yellow. As I have 

 before remarked, these flowers are beautiful objects for placing 

 in vases, &c. ; and as the plants are cut back this causes 

 lateral growth, so that a succession of its rich blooms may be 

 obtained throughout the year. Native of Costa Eica. 



S. aurata. — This is a fine plant, and quite distinct from the 

 last-named. The leaves are oblong-cordate at the base, clothed 

 ■with fine hairs and bright green. The terminal racemes of 

 flower are yellow, with the inside of the lips rich orange. It 

 is as free-flowering as the previously-named kind. Native of 

 Mexico. 



S. incarnata. — A compact neat-growing species, having cor- 

 date dark green leaves, which are slightly serrate at the edges 

 and hirsute on the lower surface. The terminal racemes of 

 bloom are very dense, and the flowers aj-e deep rose colour, 

 affording a j^leasing contrast to the before-mentioned kinds. 

 Native of Brazil. 



S. incarnata Triana;. — This variety may be distinguished 

 from the normal type by its leaves being somewhat smaller 

 and quite destitute of hau's. The flowers differ also in being 

 rich bright flesh-coloured. Native of New Grenada. 



S. Mociniana. — A fine and large-flowered species, the leaves 

 of which are ovate-acuminate, hairy on the upper side, and 

 dark green. The racemes of blooms are very large, the in- 

 dividual flowers being upwards of 2 inches long ; the tube 

 bright orange scarlet, and the throat deep yellow. Native of 

 Mexico. 



S. Vcntcnatii. — This is a charming free-flowering plant ; 

 leaves ovate, tapering to a point, and deep green. The flowers 

 are nearly IS inch long and brilliant reddish scarlet. It might 

 be termed a continual bloomer. Native of Brazil. — Experto 

 Cbede. 



ON THE UEAEI, 



THE DEADLY AEKOW-POISON OF THE INDIAN TEIBES IN 



BEITISH GUIAKA. 

 [Kead by Dr. K. Scliombnrgk before the Adelaide Philosophical Society, on 

 April 10th, I860.] 



The great and unfortunate Walter Ealeigh was the first who 

 brought to Europe an exact information of the existence of the 

 dreadful and quickly operating extract called " Ourari," which 

 was used by the natives on the Orinoco and Bio Negro for the 

 purpose of poisoning their arrows used in war and for hunting. 

 Though a great deal of attention has been paid, since this in- 

 formation was first received, to distinguish the true from the 

 nntrue in tho mysterious accounts which were circulated con- 

 cerning the ingredients used for the preparation of the " Urari," 

 yet it was without success, even up to late years. The accounts 

 of older travellers and missionaries, like Hartzink, Gumilla, 

 Gili, and others, outbid one another in the fabulous and mys- 

 terious. The former related that, to try the strength and quick 

 operation of the urari, the Indians send their arrows dipped in 

 urari into a young tree. Does the tree die in the space of 

 three days, the poison has the required strength. Other fabu- 

 lous accounts need not be mentioned. In the beginning of the 

 nineteenth century it was Alexander von Humboldt who gave 

 ns the first authentic accounts concerning the preparation of 

 this dreadful poison, having been present at the manufacture 

 of the same in Esmeralda, on the Upper Orinoco. Later 

 travellers were dissatisfied with the simple process as stated by 



Humboldt, and tried again to give the preparation of the urari 

 a more mysterious appearance. It was maintained that the 

 vegetable extract was only the medium of the deadly poison, 

 and that the urari only received its life-destroying power 

 through the addition of the fangs of the most poisonous 

 snakes, poisonous ants, and Cayenne pepper. None of these 

 travellers had been present at the preparation of the urari, 

 and none of course had seen the ingredients added to it. 

 These accounts are only supported by the communications re- 

 ceived from the Indians, whose interest it is to represent the 

 prep.arations to be as difficult as possible. 



To test the respective value of these different accounts, my 

 late brother. Sir Eobert Sehomburgk, felt induced, on his first 

 expedition to the interior of British Guiana, to give this sub- 

 ject his closest attention. Already, on the Upper Eupununi, 

 he was so fortunate as to see one part of his wish fulfilled in 

 getting at least a botanical knowledge of the dangerous plant 

 which gives the main ingredient for the preparation of the 

 urari. In the Wapisiana settlement, Aripai, on the Eupununi, 

 in 3° north latitude, he was informed that the plant was found 

 growing in the Canuku Mountains, distant about one and a 

 half day's journey from Aripai. Accompanied by some 

 Indians he went to the place. After a wearisome march they 

 reached the mountains nearMamesna, a Wapisiana settlement, 

 where they stayed aU night, and where to his great joy he 

 found an inhabitant who not only was well acquainted with 

 tho place where the plant grew, but who also understood the 

 preparation of the uraii. He was quite willing to bring him 

 bark and branches of the plant iu any quantity, but refused to- 

 bring my brother to the place where the plant was growing. 

 Only rich presents would at last induce him to act as a guide. 

 The next morning they set out, and after great difficulties, the- 

 road winding through a very stony country, they discovered 

 the first plant. Although this neither showed flower nor 

 fruit, my brother recognised iu it a new species of Strychnos 

 (which he named Strychnos toxifera). No persuasion would 

 induce the Indian to prepare the urari in the presence of my 

 brother. During the second expedition of my brother up the 

 Essequibo, he had an opportunity to visit the regions of the 

 Urari plant. During his stay in Pirara, a Macusi settlement, 

 lat. 3° 33' N., long. 59° 16' W., he was informed that near the 

 Canuku Mountains a Macusi Indian was liviug, who was known 

 as the most renowned preparer of the urari iu the whole tribe. 

 He inquired after him, and he was successful in persuading 

 him to prepare the poison in his presence. In the company of 

 the poison-preparer he made first an excursion to the westeru 

 part of the Canuku Mountains, where it was said the plant was 

 also in existence, not only to get from there the material to 

 prepare the deadly extract, but also to try whether he could 

 see the plant in flower. The Flamikipang was about eighteen 

 miles in a south-easterly direction from the place he was stay- 

 ing at. Under the same difficulties which I experienced after- 

 wards, they reached the first plants; and although he found 

 them without flowers, he saw the fruit, which confirmed his 

 supposition of its being a Strychnos. After collecting some of 

 the necessary bark of the Urari plant, only taken from such 

 plants as were in full sap, they returned to Pirara. 



The preparation of the poison was delayed for some days, aa 

 the preparer of urari stated that to enable him to produce the 

 poison he had to subject himself to a strict fasting. During th.it 

 time a notorious chief, named Kanaima, from the Bupununi, 

 arrived in Pirara, who persuaded the preparer of the urari to 

 withdraw his promise to prepare the poison in the presence of 

 my brother. The Indian with great energy asked my brother 

 to return the bark of the Strychnos, to which request my brother 

 of course did not accede, taking the urari bark to Fort San 

 Joaquim, a Brazilian fort on the EiverEio Branco, which place 

 the expedition exchanged with theu' former abode iu Pirara. 

 Here my brother undertook to make an experiment himself to 

 extract the poison from the bai'k of Strychnos toxifera alone. 

 For that purpose he took 2 lbs. of bark, which he pounded, put 

 it into a pot, adding to it a gallon of water. He let this re- 

 main twenty hours, putting the half of the extract — which 

 already had assumed a brown colour — into another pot, boiling 

 it over a slow fire until it took the consistence of treacle, and 

 during this process the remaining extract was added. Two 

 fowls were wounded and the poison inserted — one in the foot, 

 the other in the neck. The effect of the poison appeared after 

 the lapse of five minutes ; yet the second — wounded in the 

 neck — died in twenty-seven minntes, the other in the twenty- 

 eighth after the wounding. This was a sure proof that the 

 Strychnos toxifera alone, and without the admixture of other 



