July  i,  1892.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
3 
factori'y  known.  Iq  commerce  there  are  two  kinds 
of  leaves,  the  dark  green,  strong  Bolivian,  or  Huanoco, 
and  the  light  green,  Pernviao,  or  Truxillo  leaf.  A 
third  variety  of  leaf  is  that  cultivated  in  the  island 
of  Java,  which  is  occasionally  met  with  in  the  markets 
of  the  w orld,  and  has  the  reputation  of  being  a very 
carefully  dried  article.  About  four  years  ago  Mr. 
Morris,  of  Kew,  in  an  exhaustive  paper  on  coca,  des- 
cribed a variety  whioh  he  called  11  Novogranatense,” 
which  has  narrower  leaves  an  1 of  a paler  green  colour 
than  the  Bolivian  leaf,  and  this  is  the  variety  which 
appears  to  yield  the  Java  leaf  of  commerce.  AVith 
regard  to  the  respective  alkaloids!  values  of  the  various 
leaves,  Peruvian  and  Bolivian  leaves  yielded  cocaine 
and  isotropyl-eocaine  in  almost  equal  parts,  whereas 
the  Java  leaves  gave  less  cocaine  than  the  two 
former.  In  this  country,  said  Mr.  Holmes,  oocaine 
was  generally  prepared  by  purifying  the  crude 
cocaine  manufactured  in  Peru,  aud  the  Java  leaves 
were  therefore  all  used  by  the  German  cocaine-makers. 
So  far  as  cocaine-manufacture  is  concerned  the  leaves 
of  the  Erythroxylon  B olio ianum  are  preferred,  and  of 
this  variety  the  pale  brown  leaves  are  the  best.  The 
leaves  of  young  plants  contain  more  than  ddublethe 
quantity  of  alkaloid  found  in  the  leaves  from  old 
shrubs,  and  moisture  caused  a considerable  loss  in 
the  yield  of  alkaloid.  Reproductions  of  various  kinds 
of  coca-leaves  were  then  thrown  on  the  screen.  The 
variety  described  by  Mr.  Morris  tapers  at  the  base  and 
the  flowers  have  a short  stigma.  The  cultivated  Java 
leaves  are  not  so  long  as  Mr.  Morris’s  “ NovograDa- 
tense”  leaf.  They  are  broader  in  the  middle,  the 
flowers  have  longer  stigmata,  and  thehrabitis  different 
from  that  of  the  others.  The  Brown  Bolivian  leaf, 
finally,  has  a more  leathery  appearance  and  the  midrib 
shows  a distinct  ridge. 
Having  given  these  notes  on  ooca,  Mr.  Holmes 
oame  to  the  staple  subject  of  his  discourse— viz.,  certain 
new  varieties  of 
CINCHONA. 
The  specimens  to  which  he  referred  were  shown 
upon  the  table  before  him.  There  were  nine  varie- 
ties of  bark,  of  which  the  donor  was  a Mr.  K. 
Thomson,  formerly  a superintrndent  of  the  Jamaica 
Botanioal  Gardens,  and  uow  engaged  as  a planter  in 
the  Republic  of  Colombia.  Mr.  Thomson  had  dis- 
covered soma  of  these  barks  in  the  central  range  of 
the  Colombian  Andes  while  travelling  in  that  region 
a few  years  ago  ; others  were  cultivated  by  him 
upon  his  plantation.  Analyses  of  the  barks  showed 
them  to  be  of  remarkable  average  richness,  the  fol- 
lowing being  the  figures  given  : — 
Thomsoniana... 
Ledger.  Verde 
Negra 
Morada 
Tima 
Pombiana 
Officinalis 
Succirubra 
Hybrid 
Thomsoniana. . 
Ledger.  Verdo 
Negra 
Morada 
Tuna 
Pombiana 
Officinalis 
Succirubra 
Hybrid 
Quinine 
Sulphate. 
Quinine. 
Cinch  o- 
nidine. 
. 5-91 
4-43 
0-27 
. 4-90 
3-GS 
o-oo 
. 7' SO 
5-08 
000 
. 3-03 
2'30 
o-oo 
. 9-04 
6-78 
0-40 
. 5-88 
4-41 
0-34 
. 6-32 
4 74 
1-23 
. 5-93 
4'45 
2-77 
. 3-32 
2-49 
1 92 
Cincho- 
Quini- 
Amor- 
nine. 
dine. 
phous. 
. 0-82 
0'26 
0-74 
. 0-01 
0-20 
0-44 
. 9-10 
trace 
0-78 
. 0-04 
0-50 
0-38 
0'38 
0-18 
0'42 
. 0-02 
trace 
0 26 
. C-10 
0.07 
0-42 
. 0'12 
0-02 
0-36 
. 004 
trace 
0-52 
iindsare  well-known  varieties  am 
— uuauia,  any  more  man  me  Lieogermna 
i xt  8 an<^  ^orad*-  The  tree  yielding  the  bark  marked 
‘ Negra  ” was  discovered  hy  Mr.  Thomson  in  1893.  It 
grows  at  an  altitude  of  8, 000  ft  , attains  maturity  with 
singular  rapidity,  resembling  in  this  respect,  the  Suo- 
cirubra  variety,  and  is  exceedingly  rare.  Both  flowers 
and  leavea  are  very  large  ; the  latter  have  a rich 
brown  colour  and  hairy  underfaco.  f hey  are  without 
u-  BC£akbicules,  or  little  warts,  the  existence  of 
which  has  been  held  to  ipdioate  alkaloifial  richness. 
Whether,  as  s matter  of  fact,  rich  barks  are  always 
collateral  with  scrubbiculed  leaves  may  bo  doubted. 
The  microscopical  structure  of  the  Negra  bark  indicates  a 
relationship  to  that  of  the  Land  folia,  Mr.  Thomson 
secured  a few  hundreds  of  plants  of  this  species,  and 
is  now  rearing  it  in  his  plantation.  The  tree 
grows  slowly  and  does  not  appear  to  prosper  so 
well  under  cultivation  as  in  the  wild  state.  It 
received  from  Mr.  Thomson  the  name  of  ‘-Negra” 
(black),  because  of  its  deep  claret-coloured  petioles,  by 
whioh  the  peons  are  able  to  distinguish  it  from  other 
kinds.  In  the  Tuna  bark  (“tana”  is  a native  word  of 
uncertain  meaning),  the  richest  of  all  Mr  Thom, sou’s 
varieties,  the  resemblance  to  the  Ledger  species  is 
very  evident.  Like  all  other  kinds  belonging  to  tho 
Laucifolia  group,  the  bark  of  tins  sp  -cie3  contains 
numerous  stone  cells,  fairly  well  distinguishable  under 
the  microscope  ; in  tho  toft  or  middle  layer  there  are 
no  stone  cells;  in  the  other  layers  tho  cells  are  now 
arranged  in  solitary  Iine3,  now  in  clusters.  The 
Pombiana  variety  was  discovered  in  1883  in  Ecuador 
by  a gentleman  living  iu  that  country,  and  whose  name 
had  beeu  given  to  it.  Several  thousand  plants  had 
been  raised  by  Mr.  Thomson  from  secdi  and  cuttings, 
but  the  tree  is  one  cf  very  slow  growth.  The  Pombiana 
does  not  iu  histological  structure  resemble  any  of  the 
cinchonas,  but  is  like  the  myrfcaceous  plants.  Its  leaves 
are  small  and  glossy,  and  its  foliage  is  very  dense.  The 
capsules  also  are  small  (a  fact  which,  in  cinchonas,  is 
held  to  presage  richness  in  quinine).  The  wood-fibres 
from  distinct  oblong  groups  like  those  of  the  C.  land- 
folia,  the  leaves  are  leathery  and  narrower  thau 
those  of  the  C,  pitayensis,  tho  flowers  are  hairy  on  the 
under-sutfece  of  the  corolla,  the  peta's  are  hairy  all 
over,  whereas  in  nearly  all  true  cinchonas  the  petals 
are  only  fringed  with  hair.  In  C!.  pitayensis  I here  are 
no  stone-cells  in  the  middle  layers  of  the  bark.  The 
Pombiana  may  be  said  to  form  a link  between  the 
Pitayo  and  the  Lancifolia,  or  “ soft  Colombian  ” 
species. 
EUCALYPTUS  OIL. 
The  Curator,  resuming  his  paper,  came  next 
to  essential  oils,  and  eucalyptus  oils  were  the 
first  he  spoke  of.  He  referred  to  the  introduction 
of  Eucalyptus  Globulus  oil,  and  the  groat  differ 
ences  which  were  noted  in  the  qu  lilies  cf  commer- 
cial oils  as  soon  as  eucalyptus  began  to  be  popular. 
AVithin  the  last  two  years  a new  kind  of  oil  had" 
appeared  iu  the  market  under  the  name  of  I?,  oleosa 
which  had  a cuminlike  odour,  very  different  frem  that 
formerly  known  as  oleosa  oil.  The  fact  was  that  the 
oil  which  formerly  went  by  that  name  was  the  Mallee 
scrub  oil,  a mixture  distilled  from  four  species  which 
grow  together,  and  the  now  oleosa  is  a distinct; 
variety.  He  expressed  the  opinion  that  although  the 
original  reputation  of  eucalyp  us  oil  was  based  on  the 
Globulus  variety,  it  had,  in  reality,  happeBed  that 
for  years  tho  arnyqdahna  o 1 was  the  only  one 
which  c-amc  cn  the  market,  and  even  yet  this  oil  is 
preferred  for  inhaling  iu  lung-diseases-  He  did  not 
appear  to  be  quite  sure  what  the  therapeutic  pro- 
perties of  eucalyptus  oil  aro  due  to,  at  one,  time 
suggesting  that  the  peculiar  odour  of  the  amygdalina 
oil  is  probably  due  to  an  aldehyde,  which  may  have 
something  to  do  with  its  therapeutic  pr.  parties,  and 
again  recommending  a compara'ivo  trial  of  phellan- 
drene  and  cucaiyptol. 
Speaking  of  the  cocas  Mr.  Maktindalb  said  that 
although  the  Bolivian  loaf  was  most  likec?  for  cocaine- 
making,  the  Truxillo  end  similar  varieties  were  pre- 
ferred tor  galenical  preparations,  as  they  did  not 
contain  the  largo  percentage  of  wax  which  is  in  the 
Bolivian  leaves,  and  makes  the  surface  of  those  leaves 
quite  shiny. 
Mr.  Thomas  Christy  called  attention  to  some 
plants  which  be  hid  put  upon  tho  table,  whioh 
included  Pulsatilla  nigricans,  aud,  speaking  of  coca, 
said  that  he  had  so  many  kinds  in  his  conservatories 
that  he  felt  they  had  not  learnt  all  that  was  to  be 
known  regarding  tho  leaves  of  greatest  value.  To 
this  he  added  u comment  that  English  manufacturers 
do  not  know  eo  much  about  the  extraction  of 
cooaine  as  is  known  iq  Germany. 
