949 
- The first published account of n RM Y according to Flückiger 
and Hanbury (Pharm PN oe 36), were graer to the 
| 0 
nexion with India, states that the substance is made chiefly at Malacca, 
Siak, and Rhio; that it is in the form of small squares or little round 
cakes, almost perfectly white, and that the finer sorts are used for 
coarser are shipped to Batavia and China for use in tanning and 
dyeing. It was in doubt till Hunter’s paper aera Gambier was the 
produce of Acacia Catechu or of a different plan 
Plantations of Gambier were commenced at Semper in 1819, where 
at one time there were 800 ania ; but owing to scarcity of fuel, 
without which the manufacture is impossible, and the dearness of labour, 
Gambier planting was, in 1866, fast disappearing. Of late years, owing 
an increased demand for the product, and higher prices, Gambier 
cetero has rapidly recovered. 
r, as at present. met with in — M: - an earthy looking 
Bibetanes, of light brown, and sometimes of a yellow hue, ponen ng o 
cubes about an inch each side more or less etes it is sometimes 
in flat cakes, or in the form of entirely compact masses. doi series 
of specimens of Gambier in various forms is shown in the museums id 
Economie Botany at Kew [No. L, Case 58]. Some Gambier cubes a 
externally of a reddish brown colour, and compact. Internally fed 
le cinnamon We ue, S porous, tesis devoid of m but 
com 
essentially masio to Cutch or Black Catechu, obtained from Acacia 
Catechu. Like Cutch, ree Pale Catechu is said to contain a yellowish 
colouring matter, which has been named Quercetin. 
Altho ough by far the largest consumption of Gambier is in — and 
dyeing, an appreciable quantity of the finer — also used in. 
medicine. It is especially valuable as an astringent. It is more readily 
vig than the Catechu of Acacia Catechu, and is more powerful than 
Kin 
Pale Catechu or Gambier is largely used in diarrhea and dysentery, in 
relaxed conditions of the uvula and palate, and for hoarseness in publie 
speakers and singers. à 
Hunter states that :— 
* For the cultivation of this plant, a rich red 
soil is preferred. “Tt gives the most luxuriant crop when the rains are 
"frsinsbeit but does not thrive in grounds that are apt to be flooded. On 
this account the side of a hill is esteemed better than any other 
situatio 
- The plants are propagated from seed.* In three months after 
sowing, they appear above the ground; after this they grow fast, and 
~ * Simmonds (“Tropical Agriculture," p. 387), den that the plant is propagated 
either by seeds or cuttings, but the latter are preferr 
