195 



They are very partial to baths in which various substances are 

 steeped and are especially particular as to the bath used after 

 confinement into which decoctions chiefly of astringents are 

 poured. In some cases the patient is smoked and this is used 

 when he is possessed or under the influence of evil spirits. Thus 

 when a child suffers from "Sampuh Pachut," that is to say per- 

 sistently cries and will not take its food it is treated in the fol- 

 lowing wav: — The leaves of Hedyotis congesta, Br., a tall jungle 

 weed known as " Lidah Jin" or " Poko Sumpuh Pachut" are 

 boiled with some other leaves till one-third of the liquor is 

 evaporated and the decoction exposed to the dew for a night 

 and the child is bathed in it; or a quantity of chewed sugar-cane, 

 dead leaves and other roadside rubbish is boiled and the child is 

 bathed in the decoction, and is then smoked over a fire made 

 w ith a weaver-bird's nest (Sarang Tampur), the skin of a bottle 

 gourd (Labu) and a piece of wood which has been struck by 

 lightning. The disease is supposed to be due to the influence of 

 devils which are by these means expelled. 



Emetics are popular, and the actual cautery for intractable 

 wounds especially punctured wounds is sometimes used. A bit of 

 wick or rag is dipped in coconut oil and lighted and the burning 

 oil allowed to drop on the wound. I have seen a bad bamboo 

 cut which resisted all ordinary treatment heal up very speedily 

 after this operation which the patient declared did not hurt as 

 much as one would expect. 



I classify the drugs according to uses but it must be remem" 

 bered that a Malay medicine' rarely consists of a single drug and 

 one celebrated medicine contains a hundred different ingredients. 

 I add also notes on the cultivation or properties of the various 

 drugs. I have incorporated notes on Malay medicine from a 

 paper published in the Bulletin of Pharmacy in March, i8o,2,[ 

 p. 108 by Mr. Holmes. The list of Native remedies with their 

 scientific identifications he states he owes to Mr. J. MeldrUm 

 of Johor. Most of them are certainly correct, but in several cases 

 the Native names are identified w ith those of plants which do 

 not occur in the Peninsula. I have omitted these as they are 

 obviously incorrect. 



Two excellent papers on Yaws, (Therapeutical Society, 1905) 

 and Datura Poisoning in the Federated Malay States, ( British 

 Medical Journal, May 16, 1903) were published by Dr. Gimlette, 

 to whom I am also indebted for specimens of drug-plants used 

 in Kelantan. 



Aperients. 



The common aperients in use here are Castor-oil (Jarah) purg- 

 ing nuts. Jatropka Curcas, Jarah B'landa, Croton oil. Aloes and 

 Senna leaves (Sena Maki) Cassia Angustifolia, Vahl. 



Castor oil, Ricinus camunnis occurs as a weed here and there 

 in cultivation, but has never been cultivated to any great extent 

 in the Straits. Experimental cultivations were made in the 



