POISONS FEOM JUNGLE PLANTS 151 



refused the ibul with some display of anger ; one small 

 bit was apparently swallowed without ill effect. It also 

 partook of some other (?) poisonous plants at my 

 instance, but seemed hardy. 



jfiLATANG 



The nettle-tree, jSlatang gajah (Laportea crenulata, 

 Forst., Urticacete), also called daun gatal ('* itchy leaf ") 

 and rumpai in Pahang and other places, fm'nishes a very 

 dangerous kind of vegetable hair. It is a fairly large 

 soft-wooded shrub, with large oval leaves, found along 

 the riversides and in ravines : it is widely distributed, 

 being found in Kelantan, Selangor, Perak, Penang and 

 Pahang, and on Pulau Tioman. The upper surface of 

 the leaves and petiole, as well as the whole plant, is 

 clothed with short urti eating hairs which sting severely, 

 the distressing effects often remaining for many days. 

 The flowers are produced in axillary panicles, and are 

 small and usually purphsh in colour. The plant is 

 known as *' Fever or Devil-Nettle" in India. It is 

 much dreaded by Malays, because in wet weather they 

 have been known in Pahang to lose their lives on 

 walking unwarily mth bare bodies through these nettle- 

 trees. Susceptible people faint and are said to develop 

 a rash resembling that of erysipelas, or are seized with 

 frequent sneezing ; all experience great pain, which is 

 always intensified by the application of water. Bailey 

 and Gordon (1887) state that the acrid milky juice from 

 the stem of an arum (Colocasia macrorrhiza, Schott, — 

 Aracese) gives instant relief from the pain caused by the 

 sting of the nettle-trees. 



There are several kinds of jelaimg-^iox instance, 

 jelatung rusa or badak (Cnesmone Javanica, Miq.^ — 

 Euphorbiacese), described by Eidley as a climber of no 

 great size, which is found in thickets and waste spots. 



