September 2, 1889.1 THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
scraper A acts: at this moment S' is drawn away from 
a ; when the heel is about to pass between e and c', 
and at the proper time, >S is brought back towards a, 
and this applies the heel to a, and theseraping is done 
A scrapes then in the direction of the passage 
of the leaf. It is to be feared that this may be a 
radical fault and a cause of non-sucoess in the 
ulterior well-doing of the machine. 
In all the machines previously described, it has 
always been point first by which the leaf has been 
presented ; then the latter was turned that the heel 
might be scraped. But as the starting-point of all 
the fibres is precisely in this heel, it follows that 
only the extremities of the fibres are first scraped, 
and that in turning the leaf round they are not all 
laid hold of, and that those which are not secured 
escape and are lost. If on the contrary the heel is 
first scraped, the extremities remain imprisoned in 
the pulp of the point and cannot escape, and all 
the fibres are certain of being seized upon at their 
souroe on turning the leaf round to scrape the 
point. This is an important improvement which 
has just been introduced into the manipulation, 
and which increases the return very sensibly. To 
arrive at this result it was necessary to modify the 
old machines which were not constructed so that 
the heel might be scraped first. The new machine 
is no other than the old pulley with T irons, with 
the difference that the latter has a diameter of 2 
feet (fig. 7) ; the T irons being 2 inches, that gives 
an exterior diameter of 2 feet 4 inches. The speed 
is 500 revolutions per minute, which makes 3,658 
feet per minute for the circumference. There are 
18 T irons on the scraper; this number is essentia], 
for the T irons must have the width they possess. 
With a different width the useful effect is no 
longer the same ; this is proved by experience. The 
drawing represents two of these scrapers mounted 
on the same axis, and a single governing pulley. 
The advantage of this arrangement is to have 
three floors A which allow the shaft to turn 
round and to prevent shaking by means of a slight 
wearing-out of the bushes ; besides, the wear and tear 
is less rapid. The drawing only shows one axis 
with its two scrapers, but it is only necessary to 
prolong the solid masonry and to lengthen the axis 
to have as many scrapers as are wanted. On each 
side of the scraper there is a piece of wood which 
extends in front. Between these two pieces is the 
catch which plays a considerable part in the new 
prooess. This oatch is composed of a piece of 
wood b terminated by a pieoe of copper a ; a 
sorew, or, rather, two screws v allow the catch 
to be regulated, that is to say, to draw it from and 
towards the scraper, for the catch is supported 
by two T irons c. The regulation once established, 
this catch is firmly fixed, so as to avoid even 
the smallest oscillation; it is in this regulation that 
lies, if not the whole improvement, at least an 
essential part of it. The piece in copper is the 
chief point : here is an enlarged representation 
of it (fig. 6) : it has 2| inobes of thickness and it 
is out according to the shape c ab d; c a and b d 
are curves adopted by experience, a b is a straight 
piece of | of an inch, which is the scraping sur- 
face. The edges a and b must be exactly parallel 
to the scraper, and as close as possible. If the 
width is too great the fibres are seized violently and 
broken, the leaf escapes from the hand which 
presents it ; but if, on the contrary, the regulation 
is good, a child can present and withdraw a leaf 
without great effort and without breaking the fibres. 
The improvement consists then : — 
1st. In the small diameter of the soraper, which 
permits of it being made of cast-iron, whilst formerly 
it was of wood. 
2nd. More preoision in the taking up. 
3rd. A catch haying soarcely J of an inoh of 
scraping surface instead of 4 inches as formerly, 
and made of hard east-iron instead of soft wood. 
4th. Finally, and above all, the poesibility of 
scraping the heel of the leaf first. 
It must be remarked that all these machines are 
built on the same principle, which is to sorape the 
leaf of the aloe with grooves by pressing it against 
a hard body, whioh is the " catch." The soraper 
aoting only on one side cannot then scrape but this 
one side ; it is in the backward movement of the 
leaf, and by the 2»'essure against the servante that 
the other side is scraped. This is very crude. 
All the experiments up to date have been carried 
on upon a certain plan of machine, none has had for 
its aim the scraping of the two faces simultaneously, 
at least no result in this direction is known. 
The problem remains then for the experimentalists 
of the future. Regis de Chazax, 
Engineer of Arts and Manufactures. 
[In view of the admitted imperfection of the 
machines, we have not reproduced the diagrams. There 
may be better appliances now employed in Mauritius, 
and there may be aid given to the extraction of fibre 
from aloe leaves by the result of the competition 
which takes place this month in Paris, of machines 
calculated to deal with stalks of rheea or ramie. — EdT 
^mudaeT" 
By W. A. Jayesingha, 
District Medical Officer for Balaayoda, Ceylon, 
Calotroins c/iyantea (R. Brown) is a tree or a shrub 
growing to a height of about 15 or 20 feet, belonging to 
the natural order Asclepiadiacea, growing almost all over 
the island, especially in the hotter parts. It is known in 
Sinhalese as Wara, ia Tamil as Yarrakum, and in Hin- 
dustani as Madar. The parts used in medicine are the 
root, bark, and the milk, obtained by making incisions in- 
to the tree, 
Dr. Waring in his "Bazaar Medicine," gives the follow- 
ing directions for the preparation of the root: — "The 
roots should be collected in the months of April and May 
from sandy soils, and all particles of sand and dirt having 
been carefully removed by washing, they should be dried 
in the open air, without exposure to sun until the milky 
juice contained in them becomes so far dried that it 
ceases to flow on incisions being made. The bark is 
then to be carefully removed, dried, reduced to powder, 
and preserved in well-corked bottles." 
Dr. Ainslie, in " Materia Indica," says " that the milky 
juice of the plant when carefully dried has powerful 
alterative and depurative effects, and is infinitely more 
efficacious than the dried root bark." 
The root bark and the juice of this tree have for many 
centuries been held in high esteem by the natives of In- 
dia as emetic, purgative, and diaphoretic. Dr. O'Shaugh- 
nessy, who made extensive trials of the root, has formed 
a high estimate of its value ; according to him, in doses of 
30 to 60 grains, it proves emetic after an interval of from 
20 to 60 minutes, generally causing much nausea, and in 
about one case out of three inducing cathartic operation; 
in doses from 2 to 6 grains every half hour-, it proves 
nauseant, diaphoretic, and after several doses, gently 
cathartic ; on the whole he considers it an excellent substi- 
tute for Ipecacuanha. 
Drs. Playfair and Robinson, speaking highly of its effi- 
cacy state that " in early stages of leprosy, before the 
eruptions become pustular, there is no medicine from 
which more benefit is to be obtained than this." 
In secondary syphilis, Dr. Robinson regards Mudar 
as a highly valuable remedy where mercury has been ex» 
tensively employed; under its use the general health 
becomes improved, ulcers heal, and blotches from the skin 
disappear. In dysentery it has been highly spoken of; in 
severe cases large doses from 20 to 60 grains are recom- 
mended for adults. In the Bengal Pharmacopcoia it is 
used as substitute for Ipecacuanha in the preparation of 
Dover's Powder thus: — Powdered bark of Mudar two 
drachms, Opium one drachm, and Sulphate of Potash eight 
drachms. 
The root bark of this tree was used in the treatment of 
parangi disease by me in the Civil Hospital, Kurunegala, 
during the time I was there as assistant medical officer. 
—Christy's " .Yen- Commercial Plants ami Dings." 
