JULY, 1909.] 



Drugs and Medicinal Plants. 



new process has been devised for the 

 preparation of morphine and codeine 

 from waste Indian opium at the Indian 

 Government Factory at Gazipur. Preli- 

 minary trials of this process on a small 

 commercial scale have beeu carried out, 

 and these were so successful that plant 

 for carrying out this process has been 

 devised, and is now being constructed 

 under the supervision of the Department 

 for despatch to India. 



The other samples referred to above 

 have been mainly drugs in use by natives 

 in the countries mentioned, and in a few 

 cases the preliminary examination of 

 these has shown that they are likely to 

 be worth full investigation, and arrange- 

 ments have been made for undertaking: 

 this. Passing mention may be made of 

 drugs from the Sudan, which were speci- 

 mens of the well-known drugs, senna 

 leaves and pods. These were of fair 

 quality. 



The samples from the Straits Settle- 

 ments in 1907 consisted ot morphine salts, 

 forwarded for a report on their purity 

 and commercial value. A sample of coca 

 leaves was received from the Federated 

 Malay States, where the cultivation of 

 this plant is now receiving attention. 

 These proved to be of fair quality, and 

 suggestions were made as to improve- 

 ments in the preparation of this material 

 for the market. 



Other samples received in 1907 and 

 worth mention were kola nuts from the 

 Gold Coast Colony which were of sale- 

 able quality, hops from India, valued at 

 30s. per ewt. as compared with English 

 hops selling at 40s. per cwt., and a 

 number of arrow poisons from Northern 

 Nigeria, which proved almost invariably 

 to be species of Strophanthus. 



Two so-called " soap plants " were ex- 

 amined, "Gusangus" root from Somali- 

 land and "soap berries" and leaves 

 from British Honduras ; both of these 

 contained saponin-like substances. 



The products awaiting investigation 

 at the end of 1907 were mainly native 

 drugs of the types already alluded to. 

 Those from India were Hyoscyamus, 

 Datura and Aconitum species, the in- 

 vestigation of Avhich is being continued. 



TURKISH TOBACCO EXPERIMENTS 

 IN THE CAPE COLONY. 



By L. M. Stella, 

 Turkish Tobacco Expert. 



(From the Agricultural Journal of the 

 Cape of Good Hope, Vol. XXXIV., 

 No. 4, April, 190y.) 



Owing to information received by the 

 Department of Agriculture, which indi- 

 cated latent possibilities of success in 

 the culture and curing of Turkish To- 

 bacco in the Colony, experiments were 

 started in 1906 on several farms lying in 

 the western portion of the Colony and 

 also on the Government Experiment 

 Stations, with varying results, but on 

 the whole with sufficient success to 

 warrant their continuance. The area 

 under cultivation comprised in all 1\ 

 acres, on which 120,000 plants were grown", 

 and as a result of which 3,000 lbs. of to- 

 bacco sold at an average price of Is. 6d. 

 per lb. Taking into consideration the 

 several initial difficulties of inexperience 

 which militated against anything like 

 a good crop, the i-esult though appa- 

 rently small, gave promise of future 

 success, especially as, had the seed been 

 sown earlier, and two seasonable crops 

 instead of one late one secured, higher 

 re burns would have been received. 



Variations in the nature of the soil 

 were also factors to be contended with ; 

 in some instances new land was used. 

 It can now be definitely stated, as an 

 experience of these past experiments, 

 that the soil found most suitable for 

 Turkish tobacco growing in the area 

 where the experiments were conducted 

 should be well drained, such as grey 

 orchard land or red ground with a 

 percentage of from 30 per cent, to 40 

 per cent, of clay, as far removed as 

 possible from the locality of gardens, 

 vineyards and orchards, preferably on 

 the slopes of or close to mountains. 

 Black and damp soils should be avoided, 

 especially when stituated in flats and 

 surrounded by trees, as the plants are 

 liable to be affected with mildew. 



Irrigation has not been found neces- 

 sary in the districts where Turkish 

 tobacco has grown up -to the present, 

 excepting when planting so as to give 

 the plant a good start ; and when well 

 established and cultivated, plants will 

 stand drought, in some cases better than 

 a vineyard will. 



The experiments were continued dur- 

 ing 1907 in nine different districts, in- 

 cluding those farms on which the former 

 experiments were conducted, and a 

 successful crop of 13,000 lbs. was raised 



