D y es - 208 [April 1907. 



very hard and firm, and when broken having a waxy-resinous appearance, and an 

 orange-yellow or reddish-brown colour. The powder is orange yellow. Turmeric 

 has an aromatic taste aud odour somewhat resembling ginger, but peculiar. 

 When chewed it tinges the saliva yellow. 



The following is a quotation from the Market Report published in the 

 Chemist and Druggist fur 23rd September last :— 



" Good Madras finger has been sold at from 17s. to 17s. 6d. per cwt. being 

 steady, and Cochin split bulbs are quoted at from 7s. 9d- to 8s. per cwt., according 

 to quantity." 



DYE. 



A special form of turmeric is grown for this purpose, namely, a harder root, 

 much richer in the dye principal than in the ordinary condiment form. 



The colour is only deposited in the rhizome with age. and hence, in'all proba- 

 bility, the above mentioned forms have been obtained by a process of careful 

 selection of stock observed to produce the colour freely. It is of importance, 

 however, that the European merchant in purchasing for dye purposes, should see 

 that he gets the hard dye-yielding form and not the softer aromatic condition, 

 which is used as a condiment. 



The rhizome is still largely used by the European dyers, though the fluctuation 

 in the trade may be viewed as due to the development of the aniline industry. 

 Professor Hummel says of it :— " Notwithstanding the very fugitive character of the 

 colour it yields, it is still much used, especially by the wool and silk dyers for the 

 production of compound shades— olives, browns, &c. It'gives a bright yellow colour 

 without the aid of a mordant, but when mordants are used with it, it yields other 

 colours not unlike those obtainable from the yellow dye-woods. The colouring matter 

 of turmeric is one of the few for which cotton has naturally a strong attraction." 



Although turmeric is rich in colouring matter, its want of permanence is a 

 hindrance to its application as a dye-material. 



Sometime back the use of turmeric was almost exclusively limited to printing 

 and dying silks. It is now employed to a vast extent in stuff-dying, forming au im- 

 portant constituent in certain compound colours, especialy the so-called " sour- 

 browns." 



POOD 



Turmeric forms one of the indispensable ingredients in curries, and is used 

 for colouring confections, etc. 



MEDICINE. 



Turmeric contains about one per cent, of a volatite oil, to which its odour 

 is due, some starch, a yellow colouring matter called curcumin, and other unim- 

 portant substances. The alkalies change the colour of curcumin to reddish brown ; 

 and boracic acid produces an orange tint ; hence paper tinged with tincture of 

 turmeric is largely employed as a test of the presence of alkalies. 



Turmeric is not now used as a remedial agent, but is introduced into the 

 pharmacopoeias as a test of the presence of the alkalies. For this purpose the 

 British Pharmacopoeia directs unsized white paper to be steeped in tincture of 

 turmeric and dried by exposure to the air. It is also occasionally employed in 

 pharmacy in colouring ointments and other preparations. 



Used as a stimulant in native medicine in India ; externally applied in pains 

 and bruises, and internally administered in disorders of the blood. Its use as an 

 external applicant in bruises, &c, is perhaps its most frequent meaicinal application. 

 The fresh juice is said to be an anthelmintic. A decoction of the rhizome is applied 

 to relieve catarrh and purulent opthalmia,— Bulletin of the Department of Agri- 

 culture, Vol. IV, July, 1906. 



