OCCASIONAL NOTES. 359 



NOTES ON KAYU GHARU. 



In CRAWFORD'S Dictionary of the Malay Archipelago I find 

 the following : — f ' AG1LA the Eagle-wood of Commerce. Its 

 " name in Malay and Javanese is kalambak or kalambaJi, 

 " e but it is also known in these languages by that of gharu or 

 " kayu gharu, gharu-wood, a corruption of the Sanscrit 



u agaliru There can be no doubt but that 



"the perfumed wood is the result of disease in the tree that 

 "yields it produced by the thickening of the sap into a gum 

 " or resin." 



This " Eagle-wood of Commerce " under its more familiar 

 name gharu is one of the rarest and most valuable products 

 of our Malayan jungles, and the following notes may be of 

 interest. They are the result of enquiries amongst the Malays 

 and Pawangs in Ulu Muar and Johol and I am indebted to 

 Mr. L. J. CAZALAS for much assistance in obtaining the 

 information contained in them. 



The gharu tree is a tall forest tree sometimes reaching the 

 size of 15 feet in diameter. The bark is of a silvery gray 

 colour and the foliage close and dense of a dark hue. The 

 Malay name for the tree is "tabak" and no other mav be 

 used by the Pawaug when in search of the kayu gharu. 

 Gharu, the diseased heart-wood of the fabak, is found in 

 trees of all sizes even in trees of one foot in diameter, thus 

 shewing that the disease attacks the tree at an early stage. 



The gharu is found in pockets and may sometimes be dis- 

 covered by the veins which run to these pockets. In other 

 trees the veins are absent, which renders the process of search- 

 ing more difficult. The tree is generally cut down and left 

 to rot which exposes the gliUru in about six months. 



" Pockets " are found to contain as much as 104 catties ; a 

 single tree has been known to yield 400 catties. Gharu is 

 seldom found in the sap-wood, generally in the heart-wood or 

 teras. 



Many tabak trees do not contain gharu at all. To select 

 the right trees is the special province of the Pauang or wise 



