34. The Ash of the Plantain (Musa sapientum, Linn.). 
By Davip Hooper. 
The ash of the leaves and stalks of the plantain has long been 
used in India for various industrial purposes. It is employed 
by the dyers as an alkaline mordant’, by dhobis in place of soap, 
and by doctors as a medicine; it yields a crude form of table 
of the leaves, etc. Sea ey plantain are universally employed in 
many dyeing proces in Bengal.’’ The ash prepared by 
burning the dried atone and stalks is soaked in water and the 
liquor is called ‘‘ Khar pani.’’ In this liquor the dyed fabrics 
are immersed and the colour fixed. ‘*Khar-pani’’ is prepared 
also from the ashes of other plants as Achyranthes aspera, Boer- 
haavia diffusa, Gmelina arborea and Vitex trifolia, but the plan- 
tain, on account of its abundance near every village, has a 
peculiar reputation in the dyeing indust 
There is an interesting account of the preparation of salt from 
plantain leaves in Tavernier’s ‘‘ Travels’’ (Vol. II, 283, also IT, 
follows :—‘‘ Finally, as regards salt, there is none in the King- 
dom but what is manufactured which is done in two ways, 
Th 
80 pungent that it is impossible to eat it unless it is softened : 
this is done in the following way. The ashes are put into water, 
where they are stirred about for ten to twelve hours, then this 
water is strained three times through a cloth and then boiled. 
As it boils the sediment thickens, and when the water is all 
rentoom ae the salt which is white and fairly good is found at 
the botto 
** Tt is oi the ashes of fig leaves that in this og the lye 
is made me rk silk, which becomes as white as snow, and if the 
people of Ass m had more figs than they have, they would 
ie all their "silks white, because white silk is much more 
valuable than the other, but they have not sufficient to bleach 
half the silks which are produced in the country.”’ 

Early Italian travellers called the plant ‘‘ Fico d’ Adamo.’’ 
