122 



JOURNAL OF HOKTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



t August 14, 1873. 



of an ii'regalar form, which will be most readOy described as a 

 triaugle, with its base to the uorth and its apes to the south 

 cut off ; there is consequently a good length of wall having a 

 south aspect. A length of 140 feet is covered with a Peach 

 case 7 feet wide, 10 feet high at back, and well provided with 

 the means of ventilation by sashes opening outwards in front 

 and upwards at back. In front of this are frames and pits 

 filled with Balsams, Pelargoniums for late bloom, Chinese 

 Primulas, Cinerarias, &c., and which are also used for bedding 

 plants and general purposes. In front of the pits again is a 

 range of houses used for growing Fuchsias, forcing Koses, 

 Strawberries, &c. ; and there is besides a range of span-roofed 

 houses 87 feet long in thi-ee divisions, in which are grown 

 Orchids, Pelargoniums of aU sections largely, various other 

 plants, and Cucumbers. The vineries are only two in number, 

 28 feet long by IG feet wide. The earUer contained a splendid 

 crop of Black Hamburgh and excellent Muscats. The bunches 

 colouring in the later house also promised to be fine. 



On the walls Apricots were scanty, Morello Cherries abun- 

 dant. Passe Colmar Pear on the west wall an excellent crop, 

 but other kinds not so productive. Dwarf Apple trees were 

 also bearing freely, though the soil is by no means favourable 

 to fruit trees, as at 18 inches from the surface there is a ferru- 

 ginous sand, which soon kiUs the trees when the roots reach it. 



In the open quarters of the kitchen garden, which slopes 

 rapidly to the south. Globe Artichokes are grown in unusual 

 plenty, and it is worthy of remark that the Asparagus beds 

 are double the distance apart that we commonly find. This 

 has arisen from Mr. Smith, the gai-dener, having used the 

 roots in each alternate bed for forcing, and the result was that 

 he has had more and finer produce from those left than from 

 double the number of beds placed closer together. AU the 

 other crops were in excellent condition, and the neatness and 

 order throughout were highly creditable to Mr. Smith's 

 management. 



ON THE UKAEI, 



THE DEADLY AEBOW-POISON OF THE INDIAN TBIBES IN 



BEITISH GUIANA. 



tKead by Dr. E. Schombm-gk before tbe Adelaide Philosopbical Society, ou 



April lOtb, 1866.] 



(Continued from page 63.) 



DuKiMG my brother's stay among these tribes he convinced 

 himself that, as main ingredients for the preparation of the 

 poison, they used either the bark of Eouhamon guiauensis or 

 Strychnos cogens. Though their poison is similar to that of 

 •the urari of the Macusis, as far as colour and consistency is 

 concerned, yet, as I mentioned before, it is a great deal inferior 

 in respect to strength. When nay brother showed the Guianaus 

 and Maiongkongs some dried specimens of Strychnos toxifera, 

 which he had in his herbarium, it seemed to be quite unknown 

 to them ; but when he showed them the specimens of Eouha- 

 mon and Strychnos cogens they immediately recognised in it 

 the plants used by them for the preparation of then- arrow- 

 poison. In British Guiana the preparation of the urari is 

 known only to a few tribes. Von Martins, who says the same 

 of the tribes of Brazil, states as a cause that those plants 

 which contribute mostly to the preparation of the deadly ex- 

 tract certainly appear- sporadical, which is the cause that the 

 preparation of the urari is only known to certain tribes where 

 the plants grow. As far as the inhabitants of Guiana are con- 

 cerned, this statement would not prove correct, as I have found 

 not only the Strychnos toxifera on the river Pomeroon, but 

 also another kind of Strychnos on the Barama and Waiui, a 

 territory which is inhabited by the tribes of Warraus, Caribees, 

 and Arawaks, which tribes do not use the arrow-poison, nor do 

 they know anything of the properties of the plant. In British 

 Guiana only those tribes which carry the blow-pipe for a 

 weapon know the use of the urari. During my brother's stay 

 in Pirara, in 1837, he was as little successful in being present 

 at the preparation of the poison. Leaving the village he asked 

 Mi; Youd, the missionary, to try to persuade the preparer of 

 poison in the Canuku Mountains to boU the urari in his pre- 

 sence, and communicate to him the process. Mr. Youd was 

 successful in persuading the poison-preparer to boil the poison 

 in Pirara, in a hut erected for the purpose in front of the 

 missionary's house, which enabled Mr. Y'oud to watch the 

 process. ^ My brother was again successful in witnessing the 

 preparation of the urari on his thud visit to Pirara. The 

 experience gathered by these witnesses agrees in every respect 

 with that obtained by myself, which may have its cause by 

 aar sesiag the preparation made by the same individual. 



I now make my own observations. I found at the Canuku 

 Mountains the same renowned urari preparer who served my 

 brother as a guide to the regions of the Urari plants, whom I 

 engaged also as my guide, and under the same difficulties we 

 reached the plants, which to my great disappointment showed 

 neither flower nor fruit. We coUeoted a great quantity of 

 bark of the plants, as the Indian had promised to prepare, 

 after our return to the village, the urari in my presence. To 

 my great consternation the old poison-boiler tried to evade his 

 given promise, when I reminded him of it the next morning, 

 with all kinds of excuses — pretending to be sick, complaining 

 of headache, and wishing to put off the boiling for some days. 

 The cunning Indian knew too well from experience that such 

 pretended refusal would secure him the greater reward, and to 

 gain my purpose I had to add to the reward already promised 

 some, more powder and knives. At last my long-cherished 

 wish to witness the preparation of the urari, of which so many 

 fables have been told (as there always will be about anything 

 enveloped in a certain mystery) , was to be fulfilled, and I found 

 the process, except a few unimportant ceremonies, as simple 

 as possible. The small hut, which on my arrival in the village 

 I supposed to be the laboratory of the chemist, was really the 

 Urari house. The Indian began first to take the bark from 

 the Strychnos which we had brought from the Flamikipang, 

 then produced the other ingredients which it seemed ho had 

 in store, and separated the required quantities. I am sorry to 

 say that from the barks he used besides the Strychnos, I could 

 not ascertain the botanical names of these plants, which he 

 called Tarn-eng, Wakarimo, and Tararemu ; but to all appear- 

 ances they also belonged to a species of Strychnos. When I 

 asked him where they grew, he answered, far, far away in the 

 mountains ; it would take him five days to go there. The 

 preparation of the several ingredients would be according to 

 the weight, as follows : — Bark of Strj-chnos toxifera, 2 lbs. ; 

 from Y'akki (Strychnos Schomburgkii) , J lb. ; Arimaru (Strych- 

 nos cogens), J lb.; Wakarimo, J lb.; the root of Tarireng, 

 i oz. ; the root of Tararemu, i ounce ; the fleshy root of 

 Muramu (Cissus spec.) ; four small pieces of wood of a tree of 

 the species of Xanthoxyleas* called Manuea, 



Having finished the preparations, he went to his hut and 

 returned with a new earthern pot holding about four quarts, 

 and two smaller ones, also quite new, formed like a flat pan. 

 He went into the Urari house and put down the vessels. In 

 the first the poison was to be boiled, in the others it was to be 

 exposed to the sun for condensation. The great strainer or 

 funnel, made out of Palm leaves, was cleaned, and fresh silk- 

 grass put into it to strain the fluid ; tlie great block of wood 

 dug into the ground to serve as a mortar, was cleaned, and in 

 it the several ingredients were crushed. The urari preparer, 

 after having arranged everything, built a hearth with three 

 stones and laid the wood ready to light the fire, and went away 

 to fetch (as I was informed afterwards, for I had not exchanged 

 a single word with the preparer of the poison, and got all the 

 information from my companions) the utensils to light the 

 fire, though there was a large fire burning close by us, but 

 which was of no use, being lighted by profane hands. Neither 

 dare he use any water except it be brought in the pot to be 

 used for the operation, as in fact no other implement must be 

 used but such as has been made by the cook ; neither must he 

 have any assistance from any of the inhabitants. Any trans- 

 gression of the sacred rules would nullify the operation of the 

 poison. In addition to the fleshy root of the Muramu, he 

 crushed the several different kinds of bark, but every one 

 singly, in the mortar, lighted the carefully pUed-up wood, and 

 then threw first into the pot — which holds about seven quarts, 

 and which was filled with water — the bark of the Strychnos 

 toxifera. As soon as the water began to boil the Indian added 

 at certain intervals a handful of the other ingredients except 

 the Muramu root. In doing so he bent his head over the pot, 

 strongly blowing into the mixture, which he said afterwards 

 was adding considerably to the strength of the poison. Dur- 

 ing the process he only kept so much fire as was necessary for 

 a slow boiling, carefully skimming the foam collecting on the 

 extract. Within the next twenty-four hours the old man left 

 the fire only for one moment — keeping up the fire at an equal 

 heat. After the lapse of twenty-four hours the extract became 

 thick, and was lessened by the boiUug to about a quart, and 

 had assumed the colour of a strong decoction of coffee. The 

 old cook then took the extract from the fire, and poured it in 



* Manuea is tbe strong bitter wood of a tree of the Xantbosylce. The 

 bark and the root arc used as an cfTectivo remedy against sypliilitic slcluiess 

 on the Eio Negro, Amazon, and lUo Brauco. 



