IN THE MADRAS PRESIDENCY. 71 



culiarly injurious nature of their attacks. It would be very useful 

 if officers in charge of buildings directed their attention to the best 

 means of ejecting or destroying these hymenopterous insects.* 



White Ants. — Numerous expedients have been suggested to 

 arrest the ravages of white ants, all of which have been only 

 partially successful. Some of these appeared in the Government 

 records, and have been circulated for information. 



Capt. Eraser, Bengal Engineers, mixed yellow arsenic QiurtaT) 

 with the paint, whitewash, and masonry of the King's Magazine, 

 Fort- William, and the building was favourably reported upon 

 after three years. Capt. Man and Capt. M'Pherson painted the 

 joists and planking of several buildings at Singapore with Oam- 

 hir composition ;\ the result was perfect success, although the 

 buildings had been previously infested with white ants. 



Colonel Scott, chief engineer at Bombay, records instances of 

 timber being boiled under pressure in various antiseptic solutions 

 with very satisfactory results ;\ but considerable apparatus is 



* Useful information will be found regarding " Insectes nuisibles " in 

 the " Manuel d' Arboriculture," par A. Du Breuil. Paris, 1860. 



t Gambir Composition, — Dissolve 3 pints of gambir in 12 of dammer oil 

 over a slow fire ; then stir 1 part of lime, sprinkling it over the top to pre- 

 vent its coagulating and settling in a mass at the bottom ; it must be well 

 and quickly stirred. It should then be taken out of the caldron and 

 ground down like paint on a muller till it is smooth, and afterwards re- 

 turned to the pot and heated. A little oil should be added to make it 

 tractable, and the composition can then be laid over the material. To be 

 treated with a common brush. Against the teredo, I substituted the same 

 proportion of black varnish or tar for dammer oil. I of course omitted the 

 grinding down, which would not answer with tar. 



Extract from Milburn's " Oriental Commerce," 1813. — " Gutta gambir is juice 

 extracted from the leaves of a plant of the same name ( Uncaria Gambir) 

 growing in Sumatra, &c, inspissated by decoction, strained, suffered to 

 cool and harden, and then cut into cakes of different sizes or formed into 

 balls. Chief places of manufacture, Siak, Malacca, and Bittang. It is 

 used by the Malays with the leaves of betel in the same manner as Cutch 

 (or Catechu) in other parts of India. For this purpose the finest and whitest 

 is selected ; the red being stronger tasted and rank, is exported to Batavia 

 and China for the purposes of tanning and dyeing." Gambir is now ex- 

 ported to England to some extent. 



J Sulphate of copper, arsenious acid, corrosive sublimate. 



