138 ArPENDlX. 



SAPlNDACEiE. 

 Sapindus Honey. 



{Letter to the Honorary Secretary^ Bombay Natural History Society.) 



I am sending you a box of dead bees I picked Up Under a tree now 

 in flower in the gardens, Sapindus emarginattis. The tree begins to 

 flower about the middle of October^ and bears a pi-ofusion of small, 

 whitish, inodorous blossoms whi'ch attract the beea. It seems Very 

 strange that insects possessing such a wonderful instinct should 

 drink the nectar from the flower and get killed in this way> for 

 I found them dead in thousands under the tree. The effect produced 

 appears to be that of a powei-ful purgative^ and there are now num* 

 bers of bees buzzing about on the ground unable to fly. {Thos. E* 

 Storey y Oodeypore^ December.^ 1890.) 



The bees sent were Apis indica. It appeals from this letter that 

 the nectar in the flowers of the Soap -nut tree contains saponin^ the 

 active principle of the plant. The fact here recorded has not escaped 

 the attention of the Hindus, as Sanskrit writers mention a plant 

 or flower growing in Malwa which they call Bhramara-mari, 

 Bhringamari, or Bhramarari, /.e,, *^ bee -killings" 



Schleichera tnjnga, W'illd^ 



The seed-oil of this tree, which is known in the Sunda Islands 

 under the name '* Macassar oil," and enjoys a great reputation as a 

 hair dre.^sing and means of removing scurf and eczema, has been 

 submitted to examination by Messrs. Thiimmel and Kwasnic 

 {Pharm. Zeit.^ May 20, p. 314). It was found that the seeds, which 

 contained no starch grains, yielded to petroleum ether 68 per cent, 

 of fixed oil, but from the seeds freed from epidermis only 45'8 per 

 cent, was obtained by pressure. The oil was in both cases of the 

 consistence of butter, yellow, mild in taste, and with an odour of 

 bitter almonds. It melted at 21"* to 22"" O., but after long standing 

 the more solid glycerides separated, melting first at 28° and appear- 

 ing under the microscope as fine needles. The fatty acids, with the 

 exception of 3-14 per cent, of free oleic acid, were present as glyce- 

 ndes. Of those in combination 70 per cent, consisted of oleic acid, 

 and of the solid fatty acids 5 per cent, was palmitic acid and 25 per 

 cent, arachic acid, the characteristic acid of the groundnut. Laurie 

 acid was not present, and of the volatile fat acids only acetic acid 



