NOTICES OF BOOKS AND MEMOIRS. 61 



Sanskrit the name Phenila, which means " froth," and is repeated 

 in the Singalese name Sas-penela [Sets means tree in this 

 language). Another Sanscrit name Arischta, literally " unhurt," is 

 in Hindustanee liitha, in Bengalee Burra-Reetha (the latter accord- 

 ing to the English way of writing it), and has passed over into the 

 West Asiatic tongues. In Persian these fruits are called Pdta, or 

 Bundugi- Hindi, i.e., Indian hazel-nut; in Arabic Ryteh ; under 

 the latter name they are mentioned by ForskaP'' a,nd Delilef 

 {'^ Sajnndus Fujteh'') as purchasable in the apothecaries' shops in 

 Cairo. Corinaldi| has also met with it in druggists' shoj)s there. 

 He declares this fruit to be Scq^iiidus Mukorossi, Gaertn. ; Kadlkofer 

 has however recognised in the specimens brought back by him 

 Sapindus emcnr/inatiis. It appears probable to Professor Eadlkofer 

 that the ancient Egyptians, whose mercantile connections with 

 India are not to be doubted, received this drug from India 

 as at present, and used it for similar purposes. 



The Nile Acacia [Acacia nilotica, Del., a,Ka.v^ri AlyvTrrioe, and 

 Spina cBcfyptia of Grreek and Roman authors), which still bears in 

 Egypt the old Egyptian name cant, was not less widely distributed 

 in times of antiquity than at present. Its firm and tough bright- 

 red wood takes a beautiful polish, and is the only native wood 

 suited for ship-building, although its extraordinary curved fibrous 

 texture permits of pieces 3 m. long at the most being cut ; 

 it is the subject of a quite peculiar industry, described by 

 Herodotus § with his usual exactness. The bark and the necklace- 

 like pods are very rich in tannin, and the latter are employed under 

 the name of Qarrad in the preparation of leather, and are also 

 used for medicinal purposes. These fruits are in the Minutoli 

 collection, the authenticity of which, as fully discussed above, is 

 very doubtful. In the Hieroglyphic writing, a figure representing 

 one of the fruits serves as these determinative of the name of the 

 Acacia. [A piece of wood of the qant tree was brought by 

 Ascherson from the temple in the Oasis Dachel.|| As to the 

 employment of the beautiful golden yellow flower-heads in the 

 making of wreaths, see above. KunthlT mentions ^'Mimosa 

 Farnesiana, Linn., some flower-heads united to form a garland, 

 communicated by M. Jomard." But these flower-heads belonged, 



* ' Materia Medicn,' p. 151. 



+ ' Description d'Egypte, Histoire Natnrelle,' ii., p. 81. 



J ' Memorie Valdarnesi,' p. 75. 



§ Lib. ii., cap. 96. A comparison of this original description with that of 

 Schweinfurth (Im Herzen von Africa, Pt. i., p. 5G) of the ship-building in 

 Khartoum, shows that the mode of ship-building has not altered there in the 

 slightest for 2300 years. Without knowing the description of his predecessor, 

 Scliweinfurth hns chosen the same compi^irison as Herodotus for the joining 

 together "of the planks united by dove-tailing:" Tr^tv^yj^oy a-vi/n^eTa-i. 

 The want of ship-ribs, the employment of "gigantic iron nails" and plugs 

 iyoiJLipovt; TTvy.vovq Kcci [xay.^ovq) are rendered prominent by both travellers in 

 the same w<iy. 



II * Verhandlungen der anthropol. Ges. von Berlin,' 1875, p. 58. 



•y ' Ann, D, Sc. Xatur,' viii,, p. 422. 



