608 



Ver7iac, names. — Zurnia (Hausa, Dalziel) ; Mbaliki (B, C^ 

 Africa, McClotmie) ; Bafureira (Loanda, Welwitsch) ; Anibona> 

 (Mozambique, Negreiros) ; Diakoula (French Guinea, Pobeqttin) ; 

 Hurna (Kordofan, Anderson), — Castor Oil Plant ; Palma Christi 

 (Bot. Mag. l.c, in 1821); Common Palma Christi (WoodvilleT- 

 I.e. in 1832). 



Widely distributed in Tropical Africa and in general, wild- 

 er cultivated throughout the Tropics. A variety \\ith brilliant- 

 red seed spikes has been introduced to the Sudan from Borgu^ 

 Northern Nigeria, said to be superior to the indigenous variety 

 and to produce larger seeds (Col. Rep. Misc. No. 88, 1914, p. 505)^ 

 Prominent African varieties as described in the Flora of Tropical 

 Africa (I.e.) are : — 



Var. genuina, Miill. Arg., throughout Tropical Africa^ 



Var. afrieana, MiilL Arg., Sudan, Eritrea, Abyssinia. 



Var, megalosperma, MillL Arg., S. Tropical Africa 

 Lower Guinea to Rhodesia and Mozambique. 



Var. bengueleusis, MiilL Arg., N. Nigeria — Nupe, Jeba^ 

 Sj)anish Guinea, Benguella and Mossammedes, 



The leaves are applied to women*s breasts to increase the^ 

 flow of milk in Loanda (Hiern, Cat. Welw. Afr. PL iv. p. 083), 

 crushed with water as a poultice in Kordofan (Anderson, Well- 

 come Chem, Res. Lab. Khartoum, 3rd Rep. 1908, p, 298); used 

 medicinally in French Guiana (Heckel, Ann. Inst, CoL Marseille^ 

 iv. 1897, p. 133) and in French Guinea (Pobeguin, PL Med. du 

 Guin. Fran9. in L'Agric. prat pays chauds, xi, 1, 1911^ p. 490). 

 They are the food of the *' Eri " Silkworm {Attacus ricini) in the 

 Philippine Islands (Cox, 12th Arm. Rep. Bureau of Science^ 

 Philippine Is. 19L3, p. 25; Bull. Imp. Inst. 1912, p. 337), in 



c< t:i__? sr 



Assam (I.e. 1915, p. 653) and in Trinidad, where the '* Eri 

 Silkworm has been imported and recommended as more suitable* 

 for the purposes of a local industry than the " Mulberry ^^ 



Silkworm [Bomhyx Mori) (I.e. 1916, p. 13). 



The more important use, however, is for the " Castor Oil ''' 

 which is well known for its medicinal value — that is the first 

 quality or " cold drawn,"— and as a lubricant for machinery^ 

 Recently it has come into prominence for lubricating aeroplane- 

 engines. It is also used in connection with the dyeing and 

 printing of cotton goods, in the manufacture of so-called glycerine 

 soap and the ])reparation of fly-papers (Year Book, U.S. Dept, 

 Agric. 1904, p. 290), for dressing sores on camels, by Hausas in 

 Nigeria (Dalziel, Hausa Bot. Voc. p. 107), for the mixing of the 

 colours in Chinese seals (Hosie, Rep. Ssuchuan, China, Xo. 5,, 

 1904, p. 34) and for making reel pigment for seals, N. Formosa^ 



(Walters, Mus. Kew). 



The cake after extraction of the oil is not suitable for cattle 



feeding and is generally used as manure. 



Messrs. Rose Downs & Thompson Ltd. of London and Hull, 

 the oklest and largest makers of machinery for treating castor 



