Bombay.] 



ORIENTAL COMMERCE. 



H9 



begins bearing when seven or eight years old, and lives so long, that its 

 period of duration cannot readily be ascertained. A good tree will yield 

 from 50 to 100 nuts annually. The kernel is much used by the natives in 

 different modes of dressing ; when cut into pieces and dried, it is called 

 copra, 



Cora is manufactured from the husks of the coco -nut, composed of 

 small strings and threads, which, being soaked some time in water, become 

 soft. When beaten, the other substance falls away like saw-dust, leaving 

 only the strings ; these are afterwards spun into long yarns, and rolled into 

 balls. The cordage thus manufactured is much esteemed in India, and 

 preferred to that of Europe on some occasions, from its advantage of float- 

 ing on the surface of the water. 



Coculus Ixmcus, or Indian berry, grows in considerable clusters on 

 the Mcnispcrwtfm, a large tree on the Malabar Coast. It is a small 

 kidney-shaped berry, Laving a wrinkled outside, with a seam running along 

 the back, of a dark brown colour. It has a white kernel inside, of a most 

 unpleasant taste. It is said that the principal use of the berry in England 

 Is to mix with malt liquors, in order to make them intoxicating; but this 

 practice is expressly forbidden by Act of Parliament, (See 13 Ann., st. 1 , 

 c. 2., § 32.) These hemes should be chosen sound, dry and clean, heavy, 

 large, and free from stalks and dirt. The small and broken should be re- 

 jected. Freight 16 Cwt. to the ton. 



Conessi Bark is the bark of the Nerium jintidyaenterietun, a small 

 tree growing on the Coast of Malabar and Ceylon. It is of a blackish 

 colour on the outside, covered more or less with a white moss or scurf, and 

 of an austere and bitter taste. The bark of the small young branches which 

 has the least moss or scurf, is preferred. It is little known in the shops 

 here, though much esteemed in some parts of India. 



Cornelians, — These stones are brought from Cambay ; they are found 

 in roundish oval masses, somewhat like our common pebbles, from 1 to 3 

 inches in diameter; of a close compact texture, and when cut, of a bright 

 glossy surface; their colours are red, white, yellow, and variegated. 



The colour of the red cornelian varies from the palest flesh colour, to 

 the deepest blood red : this sort is most in demand, great quantities being 

 consumed in the manufacture of seals, and other trinkets. They should be 

 chosen of a deep clear and even red colour, free from cracks, flaws, and 

 veins, and the larger and thicker they are, the more they are esteemed ; 

 those which arc muddy should be rejected. The white are scarce, and 

 when large, thick, of an even colour, and free from flaws, are valuable. 

 The yellow and variegated are but in b'ttle estimation, and should be rejected 



