1322 INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS. 



seeds, nigella seeds, cardamoms, cinnamon, tejapatra, the tubers 

 of Cyperus rotundus (mustaka) and the flowers of Mesua ferrea 

 (ndga kesara) 1 tola each, in fine powder, and prepare a confec- 

 tion. Dose 2 to 4 tolas in dyspepsia and consumption.'' (U. C. 

 Dutt, Hindu Mat. Med. 248.) 



The Shell : — " The cleared shell of the nut or portions of 

 it are burnt in a fire, and, while red hot, covered by a stone cup. 

 The fluid, which is deposited in the interior of the cup, is rube- 

 facient, and is an effectual domestic remedy for ringworm." 

 (U. C. Dutt, p. 248.) The Bombay Gazetteer of the Thana District 

 alludes to this in the following words : " The shell, when burnt, 

 yields an oil which is used as a cure for ringworm." " In the 

 Antilles, the cocoa-nut is the popular remedy for tapeworm, 

 and its efficacy has been conclusively demonstrated by medical 

 men in Senegal. A cocoa-nut is opened and the almond ex- 

 tracted and scraped. Three hours after its administration a 

 dose of castor oil is given. The worm is expelled in two hours 

 afterwards. In nine cases in which this remedy was tried by 

 a surgeon in Senegal, the result was complete.— Natal Mercury" 

 (Trop. Agri., 1882-83.) 



In the Thana district, three oils are prepared from the edible 

 portion or kernel of the nut. These are known as khobrel, avel 

 and muthel. A fourth oil is, however, repeatedly alluded to, 

 namely, an oil prepared from the shell of the nut {see above). 

 This last-mentioned oil is perfectly distinct from the oil of the 

 kernel, and is used only in the treatment of ringworm. Its 

 chemical properties have never apparently been determined, nor 

 does it seem to have before this been pointedly made known 

 to European medical authorities as a substance actually prepared 

 and employed by the Indian doctors. It is remarkable that the 

 same properties should be assigned to the shell by the inhabi- 

 tants of other parts of the world besides India, although they 

 do not apparently distil the oil from it. But of the kernel oils 

 used medicinally, the most conflicting statements have been 

 published both as to their action and mode of preparation. 

 Thus: "A very cheap, hard, white soap is prepared from the 

 oil, suitable for pharmaceutical purposes, such as plaster-making 



