140 

 ON BEBEERINE FROM THE GREENHEART TREE. 



BY DR. H. RODIE. 



The Greenheart tree (Nectandra Rodiei) of British Guiana, is found 

 in the greatest perfection immediately behind the alluvial soil of the 

 coast and rivers, or clay hills, but little elevated above the level of the 

 ocean, and degenerates as it extends into the interior, till on the more 

 elevated region of the Cinchonas, it disappears. The tree seems almost 

 peculiar to British Guiana. It generally stands single and rises on an 

 erect cylindrical, gently tapering stem to a height of 80 or 90 feet, to 40 

 or 50 without a branch, by a circumference of 9 or even 12 feet. It is 

 recognised at a distance by its dense glossy foliage and comparatively 

 white trunk. On striking it with the edge of a cutlass, the bark flies 

 like sandstone, and is very bitter. The bark occurs in large flat pieces, 

 from one or two feet long, and varying in breadth from two to six 

 inches. It is about four lines thick ; heavy, and with a rough fibrous 

 fracture, dark cinnamon brown, and rather smooth within, and covered 

 externally by a splintering greyish brown epidermis. It has little or 

 no pungency or acrimony, but a strong persistent, bitter taste, with con- 

 siderable astringency. 



The wood is extremely strong, hard, and heavy, sinking in water, 

 and taking a high polish, Neither the white ants on land, nor the 

 teredo in the water, affect it much ; it has stood on wharves, totally un- 

 protected, for sometimes thirty years in the tide's way. Its various 

 shades of colour from black to yellow cannot be ascertained until the 

 sapwood be cut through, which is invariably of a pale yellow ; no dif- 

 ference in their botanical character or medical virtue has been observed. 

 It appears to be of slow growth, for from the detritus accumulated 

 round the old trees, and from the young trees in the formerly exhausted 

 ground, having in say 70 years, scarcely attained the size of a spar 

 (8 inches diameter), it is supposed several hundred years would be re- 

 quired for its growth. Almost every tree above 8 inches in diameter 

 has a quantity of obovate compressed nuts lying around its root, about 

 the size of an apple, enveloped in a grayish brown brittle shell, It? line 

 thick, that parts readily from a kernel, which is yellowish when cut, 

 but immediately becomes dark brown on exposure to the air, and is 

 intensely bitter, and indeed richer in bebeerine than either the greenheart 

 bark, or yellow cinchona bark. Its tincture, which is by reflection- 

 light, dark olive green, does not affect the test-paper as the 

 infusions of those barks do. The Indians, when their provisions 

 fail, have from time immemorial used this nut as food (bread). They 

 first break and part the pericarp from the cotyledons, which they then 

 scrape and grate as they do cassava, throw the pulp into an open basket 

 placed over a pail, and pour water over it, so as to wash away the bitter, 

 and this is repeated five times or oftener. 



