THE POISONOUS PLANTS OF BOMBAY. 159 



the most exquisite fragrance, which abound within the tropics, bloom- 

 ing unregarded, and wasting their odours on the barren air." It would 

 hardly be within the scope of these remarks to add to this interesting 

 quotation the names of such of our odoriferous plants as would give 

 really very agreeable and delicate oils and essences, and open up a 

 wide field of research and occupation to our would-be scent-growers 

 were it possible for them to obtain a sufficient quantity of the 

 oil of the Moringa pterygosperma seed, As it is my intention to 

 write an independent paper on the scent-producing plants of Western 

 India on a future occasion, I do not pursue the subject here any 

 further. 



The following notes from Watt's Chemical Dictionary may be 

 read usefully in connection with the foregoing observations :— -Benic 

 acid, obtained from oil of Ben, and sillistearic acid, from the fruit 

 Stillingia sebifera, have the same composition (Watt's Chemical Dic- 

 tionary, Vol. I, page 538). Oil of Ben (Watt's Chemical Dictionary, 

 Vol. I, page 538) constitutes the oil expressed from the fruits of 

 Moringa Nux Behen, Desf. ; Guilandina moringa, Linn, j or 

 Moringa oleifra. Lam. It is colourless or slightly yellow, of spe- 

 cific gravity 0'912, thick at 15° C, solid in winter.* It has a 

 mild taste, is neutral to test-paper, and does not readily become 

 rancid. " It is used in perfumery to extract the odorous principles 

 of fragrant plants. In India it is used as an embrocation for 

 rheumatism. According to Volcker (Ann. Chem. Pharm., LXIV 

 342), it is saponified perfectly by potash, 400 grammes yielding 

 about 18 grammes of a mixture of solid fatty acids together with 

 oleic acid. The solid fatty acids are : — 1. An acid soluble in 

 strong alcohol, insoluble in ordinary alcohol, melting at 83° C 

 and containing 81*6 per cent, carbon and 13*8 hydrogen, numbers 

 which approximate the formula C 45 H 90 2 ; but the quantity 

 obtained was too small for complete investigation. t 2. Ordinary 

 margaric acid. 3. An acid resembling stearic acid and called by 

 Volcker Benic acid." 



* 2f.B.—In Europe.— K. E. K. 



t Here is a field for further analytical research, — E. E. K. 



7 



