N. O. PALMES. 1325 



prolonged use it is apt to induce disturbance of the digestive 

 organs and diarrhoea. Its use is favourably noticed in the 

 Report of Drs. Van Someren and Oswald, and Mr. J. Wood." 

 (Pharm. of India.") 



Dr. Dymock says cocoa-nut oil has been tried in Europe as 

 a substitute for cod-liver oil, "but its indigestibility is a great 

 drawback to its general use." Drury observes : "its pro- 

 longed use, however, is attended with disadvantage, inasmuch 

 as it is apt to disturb the digestive organs and induce diarrhoea." 

 May it not be that the unfavourable opinions formed by some 

 writers regarding this medicinal oil proceed from the fact that 

 nearly every author describes a different mode of preparing 

 it and, consequently, that it is possible many different sub- 

 stances or a substance in many stages of purity or impurity 

 may have been experimented with ? In the Maldives, cocoanut 

 oil is esteemed a powerful antidote against the bite of poisonous 

 reptiles. 



The Juice. — The freshly-drawn milk from the young spadixis 

 refrigerant and diuretic, a preparation known as toddy poultice. 

 The fermented juice constitutes one of the spirituous liquors 

 described by the ancient writers. " A tumblerful of the fresh 

 juice is sometimes taken early in the morning on account of its 

 refrigerant and slightly aperient properties." (Dymock.) 



Scrapings of the husk — " The outside scrapings of the busk 

 and branches applied to ulcers will cleanse and heal them 

 rapidly if soaked in proof rum ; the efficacy of this application 

 was proved by the case of two bad ulcers occasioned by the 

 bite of a Negro's teeth. The young roots boiled with ginger 

 and salt are efficacious in fevers, the same as the bamboo." 

 (Royle.) 



The cotton or Tomentum. — " This is a soft, downy, light- 

 brown-coloured substance, found on the outside of the lower 

 part of the branches of the cocoanut tree, where they spring 

 from the stem, and are partially covered with what is called 

 panaday,. or coarse vegetable matting of the tree. The cocoa- 

 nut cotton is used by the Indians for stopping blood, in cases 

 of wounds, bruises, leech-bites, &c, for which purposes it is 



