DYEING. 125 



To dye silk yellow, turmeric or curcuma is pounded 

 in a small specially-made mortar and wrung or squeezed by hand 

 (di-p'rah) to get the juice out of it. Tamarinds, asam gelugor, 

 and alum are added in the same proportion as before, and the 

 silk boiled in the mixture and hung up to dry, as in the 

 "malau" process. This dye however like all other shades of 

 yellow must be exposed to the action of the sun, as without 

 this the required tint cannot be obtained. 



For yellow green (4) the treatment commences with the same 

 process as for yellow, but a mixture is added which is made 

 from the root and heart of the " poko' kedrae." About a kati 

 (1^ lbs) of this wood is taken, chopped up small (di-chichfe) and 

 heated to boiling point. It is then allowed to stand and cool a 

 little, when the clearer liquor at the top (siring) is spooned off 

 (leaving the thicker stuff, called dodo' at the bottom), and 

 added to the decoction of turmeric before referred to. The rest 

 of the process is the same as before. The same colour is also 

 given by young shoots of the Kambutan (Nephelium lappaeemii) 

 tree, alum and asam gelugor being added. 



For Green (5) a larger proportion of the " kedrang " mixture 

 is applied. For Blue Green (6) the process is twice repeated. 

 For Blue (7) a decoction of indigo leaves takes the place of 

 the turmeric. The process is otherwise the same but repeated 

 two or three times till the right tint is obtained. 



The following are the more important kinds of indigo 

 known in Kelantan and Patani. 



1. tarung kechi' (= tarum kechil) 



2. tarung gelsengfe (= t. gelanggang) 



3. tarung Sise (= t. Siam) 



4. tarung aka or tarung utse.* (= t. akar or t. eitan). 

 For Indigo (8) the leaves are gathered and thrown into a 



big earthenware jar called " tepayee " (St. Mai, tempayan) to- 

 gether with the bark of the young shoots or young fruit-spikes of 

 the coconut-palm (kuli'puti'nya), one fruit-spike on an average 

 going to each tepayse. A lump of lime " as thick as a man's 

 arm " (besa lengee) is added, and the silk steeped in the decocr 

 tion till it becomes of the requisite tint. 



* Marsdenia tinctoria (?)—#. N. B. 

 R. A.fSoc, No. 38, 1902. 



