POISONS OF VEGETABLE ORIGIN 185 



vesicant properties, and is sometimes self applied 

 externally by pregnant Malay women and worn daily 

 with a view to induce uterine contractions by connter- 

 irritation. Imported commercial naphthaline, pow^- 

 dered and made into a paste with turmeric (Umu 

 kunyit; Curcuma longa, Linn. — Scitaniineae), is used by 

 Kelantan women in the same way and with the same 

 idea. 



The direct application of plumbago rosea^ as well as 

 P. zeylanica, to the vagina and uterus causes violent 

 local inflammation. In India the crushed root^ in the 

 form of a paste, is used by natives as an abortifacient ; 

 it is appHed either directly or smeared upon an 

 " abortion -stick " made from a twig of one or other of 

 the two plants. This ** abortion-stick " when intro- 

 duced into the os uteri is liable to cause death from 

 either pelvic or general peritonitis ; it is not thus used 

 in Kelantan, and but rarely, if ever, ui the other 

 Malay States. Violent massage to the abdomen is a 

 much more common expedient ; but the introduction 

 of foreign bodies into the pregnant uterus is known to be 

 practised by Malays in the State of Perak. Cheraka is 

 not credited with use for homicidal intent. 



DATURA 



The ilalay name for the datura plants Ls kechubong ; 

 these and some others of the nightshade family, such as 

 Atropa and Hyoscyamus, have long been known to 

 possess narcotic properties. Three so-called varieties 

 of the kechubong plant are commonly met with in the 

 Malay States : one is the ** black " datura [Mchuhong 

 hitcm; Datura fastuosa, Linn. — Solanaoess), with dark 

 purple stems and single purple or violet flowers, one 

 is a single, white-flowered plant (Mchuhong futeh; 

 D. alba, Nees), and one has double violet flowers. 



