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greater amount of fatigue to be borne with less nourishment, and 

 to prevent the occurrence of difficulty of respiration in ascending 

 steep mountain sides. Tea made from the leaves has much the 

 taste of green tea, and if taken at night, is much more effectual in 

 keeping people awake. Applied externally, coca moderates the 

 rheumatic pains caused by cold, and cures headaches. When used 

 to excess it is, like everything else, prejudicial to the health, yet, of 

 all the narcotics used by man, coca is the least injurious, and the 

 most soothing and invigorating. 



"I chewed coca, not constantly, but very frequently, from the day 

 of my departure from Sandia, and, besides the agreeable soothing 

 feeling it produced, I found that I could endure long abstinence 

 from food with less inconvenience than I should otherwise have 

 felt, and it enabled me to ascend precipitous mountain sides with a 

 feeling of lightness and elasticity, and without losing breath. This 

 latter quality ought to recommend its use to members of the Alpine 

 Club, and to walking tourists in general, though the sea voyage 

 probably causes the leaves to lose much of their virtue. To the 

 Peruvian Indian, however, who can procure it within a few weeks 

 of its being picked, the coca is a solace which is easily procured, 

 which affords great enjoyment, and which has a most beneficial 

 effect." (Linacece). 



Eucalyptus citriodora, Honk. — Eucalyptus trees have obtained a 

 reputation for destroying the germs of malaria in districts where 

 fever is prevalent. 



The Campagna of Rome is extremely unhealthy in summer 

 owing to malaria, but an interesting experiment with Eucalyptus 

 has proved the value of this tree and shown that the reputation 

 it has earned is well deserved. About two miles from Rome is the 

 convent of Tre Fontane, commemorating the martyrdom of St. Paul. 

 A few years ago, the convent was always abandoned by the monks 

 during the summer months as it was impossible to live there in the 

 malarial season. Now, however, since Eucalyptus trees have been 

 planted all round the convent, the monks remain throughout the 

 year. 



The destruction of the fever germs is due to the fact that the 

 leaves contain a volatile oil and a volatile acid which are given off 

 into the surrounding air, and by combination with oxygen are 

 changed into peroxide of hydrogen. Germs passing through such 

 an atmosphere are invariably killed. While the Eucalyptus oil is 

 oxidising there appears to be an action going on by which oxygen 

 is changed into the very active and healthful ozone. 



Mr. Bosisto, whose extensive works for the manufacture of 

 Eucalyptus oil in Australia are famous, wrote on the subject nearly 

 twenty years ago, giving results which he had obtained by experi- 

 ment, not in a chemical laboratory only, but by dealing with four 

 tons of material daily for about twenty years. He showed not only 

 in what way the leaves acted, but pointed also to the very power- 

 ful root action which absorbs immense quantities of water from 

 swampy soils. The roots thereby to a great extent drain swampy 

 land and their absorbent powers are assisted by the very abundant 



