70 ORIENTAL COMMERCE. [Red Sea. 



should constitute a part of every ship's provisions. If kept dry, it never 

 spoils. The freight of this article is calculated at 10 cwt. to the ton. 



Senna is the leaf of an annual pod-bearing plant, the Cassia Senna 

 (Sena Mecci, Hind. Sena* Arab.), and is imported dry from Alexandria 

 and the Red Sea; of an oblong figure, pointed at the ends, particularly the 

 one opposite to where it grows to the stalk ; in the middle it is about a 

 quarter of an inch broad, and seldom more than aii inch long, of a lively 

 yellowish green colour, a firm texture, somewhat thick and flat ; its smell 

 faint, but not disagreeable, and its taste somewhat bitter, nauseous, and 

 acrid. There are two or three inferior sorts, distinguishable by their being 

 either narrower, longer, and sharp pointed, or larger, broader, and round 

 pointed, with small prominent veins, of a fresh green colour, without any 

 yellow cast 



Iu chusing Senna, the shape of the leaf should assure us that it is of 

 the Alexandrian kind ; it should be bright, fresh, of a good smell, soft to 

 the touch, and clear from stalks and spots. That which is imported from 

 India is in general foul, full of sticks and dirt, in the proportion of 3 lbs. 

 of sticks and dirt to 1 lb, of leal'; if well garbled, it might answer, but 

 the heat of the hold is very apt to injure it. The freight is calculated at 

 8 Cwt. to the ton. 



Sharks 1 Fins are an article of trade from the Arabian and Persian 

 Gulphs to India, and from thence to China ; they are esteemed very strength- 

 ening by the Chinese. In chusing them, care should be taken that they 

 Lave lieen properly cured ; the larger they are, when free from decay, the 

 more they are esteemed. In India they are generally sold by tale : each 

 fin should be upwards of nine inches long ; all under that size, reckon two 

 for one; the price varies from three to five rupees per hundred. In China 

 they are sold by the pecul, which contains about 500 pieces. The East 

 Indiamen prefer carrying them on freight from India to China ; they are 

 packed in bales, weighing about 7 cwt ; and from Bombay to China the 

 freight is about 20 to 24 rupees per bale. They are likewise prepared on 

 the Malabar and Coromandel Coasts, and many of the islands in the Indian 

 Ocean. 



Gum Tiiagacanth, or Dragon, is a gum exuding from a prickly plant 

 (Astragalus.) This commodity, chiefly produced in Turkey and Arabia, 

 is of different hue and appearance, from a pale white to a dark and opaque. 

 It is usually in long, slender, worm-like pieces, and sometimes in roundish 

 drops, which are rare. It is moderately heavy, of a firm consistence, rather 

 tough than hard. It is with difficulty pulverized, unless dried, and the 

 pestle and mortar kept warm. Its natural colour is a pale white, and the 



