532 PAJjWJE. 



Commerce. — Some idea of the consumption of betel-nut in 

 India may be formed from the fact, tbat iu addition to her 

 own produce India imports about 30,500,000 pounds of the 

 nut, value about 34 lakhs of rupees, from Ceylon, the Straits 

 Settlements, and Sumatra. The exports are under 500,000 lbs. 

 which go to Eastern countries frequented by Indians, such as 

 Zanzibar, Mauritius, Aden,, China, &c. Bombay is the chief 

 centre of the export trade. 



The coasting trade statistics show a total of about 44,000,000 

 lbs., value about 55^ lakhs of rupees, passing from port to 

 port. Bengal, Madras, and Goa are the chief producing 

 provinces. The exports by land beyond the frontier are very 

 trifling, about 1,000,000 lbs. going to Nepal and Bhutan. 



The varieties of the nut met with in trade are numerous ; 

 they may be classed as natural and artificial: the first class 

 includes the different varieties of ripe betel-nut produced by 

 cultivation which have not undergone any preparation ; the 

 second class, all nuts, ripe or unripe, which have been treated 



boilin 



o 



CALAMUS DRACO, Willd. 



Fig.—Blume in EumpUa, ii., tt ] 31-132. 



Hab.— Indian Archipelago. The resin (Dragon^s blood) 



nacu 



It is known by the same names as the gum of 



accena 



History, Uses, &C.— The original Dragon's blood of 

 commerce was not derived from this plant. The older writers 

 upon Eastern commerce speak of Dragon's blood as an export to 



4_. 1- 1 Socotra. Ibn Batuta, who visited 



this substanc 



between 



Barbosa^ 



writing in 1514, speaks of Dragon's blood as a product of 



Socotra, but makes 



Malacca, Java, Sumatra, or Borneo. {Pharmacogra^hia,) Eum- 

 phius is the first who describes the mode of preparation followed 



