178 MALAY POISONS AND CEABM CURES 



is next strained through a cotton cloth, and again 

 submitted to slow ebullition until it attains the con- 

 Bistency of syrup. Red arsenic {warangan)^ which is 

 rubbed down in the juice of the sour lime, the limau 

 asam of the Malays, is then added, and the mixture 

 poured into small bamboos, which are carefully closed 

 up ready for use. Some of the tribes add a little opium, 

 spices and saffron ; some the juice of the lancha, and 

 the bones of the sunggat-fish burnt to ashes. A number 

 of juggling incantations are performed, and spells 

 gibbered over the seething cauldron by the Poyangs 

 (magicians) by whom the fancied moment of the pro- 

 jection of the poisonous principle is as anxiously w^atched 

 for as for that of the philosopher's stone or the elixir 

 vitsB by the alchemists and philosophers of more 

 enlightened races. When recently prepared the ipoh 

 poisons are all of a dark liver-brown colour, of the 

 consistency of s^Tup, and emit a strongly narcotic 

 odour. The deleterious principle appears to be volatile, 

 the efficacy of the poison is diminished by keeping " 

 (Kef. 22, Vol. I., p. 332). 



Kelantan Negritos (Orang Pangan, inhabiting the 

 NSnggh'i district) use two kinds of dart poison, one 

 stronger than the other. They use the sap of the upas 

 tree {getah pokok ipoh) by itself as a minor poison for 

 small animalsj etc. • but when making the more 

 poisonous preparation they add the young shoots of 

 gadong and prepare it in the following way : The fresh 

 juice is obtained by tapping the bark of polcoJc ipoh and 

 collected in bamboo cylinders ; it is then made viscid 

 by partial boding, the juice of the gadong shoots is added 

 with a httle water, and the whole boiled. It is next 

 pom-ed out on to a board and evaporated to dryness by 

 heating over a fire. The inspissated juice is said to be 

 now very poisonous to handle, and it is stated that even 



