INDIGO. 331 



them the oftener it is cut down the greater is its 

 disposition to increase. Many shoots issue from the 

 old stumps, and in the space of one year these shoots 

 grow to various heights from one to ten feet, accord- 

 ing to the nature of the soil and season. The leaves 

 fall at the commencement, or during the colder 

 part, of the year. In March, or the beginning of 

 April, the young leaves together with the flowers 

 first make their appearance. Towards the end of 

 April, those which were earliest in unfolding attain 

 to their full size. This period was found by Dr. 

 Roxburgh to be the most favourable for gathering 

 the leaves ; about this time also it ceases flowering, 

 and many of the seed-vessels become prefectly formed, 

 though the seeds do not ripen until January or 

 February. The leaves remain in a fit state for 

 gathering until about the end of August, when they 

 begin to acquire a yellow rusty tinge, and are 

 gradually cast. The colouring matter resides in the 

 leaves alone ; all trials to extract any from the twigs 

 proved unsuccessful. Indigo is prepared from these 

 leaves in the same manner as from the indigo plant 

 by the scalding process. The leaves of the nerium, 

 unlike those of the common indigofera, will not 

 yield their colour to cold water, but by hot water 

 it is readily extracted. Hard spring water is found 

 preferable in increasing the quantity and improving 

 the quality of the indigo. After being exposed to 

 the action of the fire for about three hours, the leaves 

 begin to assume a yellow hue, then the scalding has 

 been sufficiently pursued, and as the agitation and 

 precipitation do not consume a longer time, the 

 whole process is very speedily completed. From 

 two to three hundred pounds of green leaves yield 

 one pound of indigo. 



Mr. Marsden, in his valuable history of Sumatra, 

 informs us, that the inhabitants of that island have a 



