79 
'TUMBEKI. 
Tumbeki is the name under which an article of regular. commerce 
between Persia and Turkey is mentioned in the consular reports, 
especially in that for Trebizond. 
wo or three years ago an inquiry was made at this institution con- 
rning the nature and botanical source of twmbeki the onl 
to be some od rete importan $ narcotic or possible medicinal 
properties, I wrote to Mr. A. Biliotti, "Consul at Trebizond, for informa- 
tion. In reply, he forwarded samples of tumbeki of different growths 
and qualities. This proved on examination to be unquestionably some 
kind of tobacco, and iio T ask pane to know why it figured in the Blue 
Book as a distinct mams ed Mr. Thomas Christy, F.L.S., to make 
inquiries for me in Pers He received the following note through 
Mr. Zanni, the well kn ovn zd at Constantinople, from whom I 
received the following informat 
* There are three йез: of ‘the teymbeki, all derived from the. 
Nicotiana persic 
* ], Shiraz гужы, valued = E gold piastres per oke. 
* 2. Kechan teymbeki, valu ten go 
* 3. ‘Teheran teymbehi, туя in Meet to No. 2. 
** The Shiraz is the best quality, the leaves are four decimetres long 
and half a decimetre wide. The leaves of the two other qualities are 
not so large. The a n of setae Темы in the leaves of teymbeki is more 
mu i 
The m miens is found in every coffee house and even in a great number 
of private houses. It resembles somewhat the wash bottle used in 
н мй for kee sz À filters with distilled water, but is often made 
of metal eymbekt is placed in а small reservoir on the top of the 
vapour is drawn through the tube, which passes to the bottom of the 
water and colleets above it, whence it is inhaled through the longer 
tube. It is in fact a water-pi 
Having ascertained then that tumbeki was a species of tobacco, I 
sought for further confirmation of the statement that it is the produce 
= N. Berica a wrote on the subject to Professor Hausknecht, who 
well kno one of the е authorities оп the botany of Persia. 
He kindly replied as follows : 
* Tumbehi is the produce of Nicotiana rustica, and is almost ex- 
clusively used for the е called kallian or narghileh, The 
plant is cultivated throughout the whole of Persia, especially in Ispahan 
and Shiraz, whence the best kind comes.” 
But the statement of М. Zanni that tumbeki contains more alkaloid 
than tobacco, and that of Professor Hausknecht that tumbeki is the 
produce of N. rustica, seemed to conflict with the statements in books 
that N. rustica is less active than abacum 
In the “Commercial Report," No. 25, 1883, p. 1056, under * Sm 
Consul Dennis confirms M. Zanni's statement concerning tumbeki. Hs 
U 66245. 1000—4191. Wt. 37. A2 
