5C2 
THP TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[January i, 1S91. 
is stated that “ the leaves are carefully separated 
from the young shoots, aud the oil distilled liom 
them alone. In its own dislrict it is being used as 
a substitute for globulus oil for medic iiisl purposes. 
Oil distilled from the older leaves not separated from 
the stalks Mr. Tinibury calls ‘commercial oil’ of E. 
citriodora, and sells it at SI per gallon. The purer oil 
is put up for retail sate in bottles, sold wholec-ale as 
follows : — 5 oz. 9b ; I oz. 16s; 2oz.28s 4oz. 48s per dc zen, 
pint bottles, 20s each. Mr. Timbury states that the oil is 
a powerful disinfectant and c’eodcrant, even the tiqueo' s 
solution deodorising the most offensive matter. The 
yield from a ton of moderately dry leaves is about 520 
oz. of oil, from fresh leaves about 270 oz. There is only 
one other lemon-scented eucalyptus.” It would appear 
from this that there is little hope of tie oil coming 
down to 2s 6d or 3s 6d per lb. We may alto r^cal 
the fact here, which we stated as long ago as May, 1886, 
that the leaves of old and young trees alike of E. amyg- 
dalina aud several varieties thereof, as well as tie leave, s 
of other species, are gathered by the buehmen collec- 
tors, who have no botanical knowledge ; hence there 
arises considerable vaiiation in the physical properties 
of the different brands of Austrati cn E'. amyydalina oil. 
— Ed. C’. and D.'\ — Chemist and Druggist. 

A VEGETABLE CONDUCTOR OE 
ELECTRICITV. 
Some very interesting letters and notes have recently 
been appearing in Reis and Rayyet, ii very smarily- 
conducted Calcutta paper, in reference to an old aud 
curious custom of the Hindus of Bengal. It .=etms 
that from time immemorial it has been the custom of 
the Hindoos to place on the roofs of the'r hou es a 
plant, the identity of which appears to be disputed 
among Indian botvnif-ts, some call ng it a Csctiis, wfeil t 
others declare it to oe a Euphoibia. One cf the 
correspondents is quite mistaken wr en he rays that 
the Cactus — which we will arsumo the plant to le — 
helps to draw the electric fluid into tl;e house by tlie 
attraction of the electricity in the cloud above, whi - 
ther there be a Cactus plant or not. The Cactus only 
serves to scatter the electricity of the heu e in'o 
space, and tterely to reufrali e that of the clouds, 
for these two electricities are of two kinds. The 
Bengalee name of the plant grown on the roof is 
hdj-hdran, i.e.,a preventative of lightning— a fact which 
conclufively proves that the Hindoos ate acquainted 
with the useful property of this sort cf plant. It is 
nota4«ll impio' able that tie ancient Hindoos, who 
displayed so much learning in other matters, should 
have been acquainted with the principles of electricity ; 
the explanation is now lost, but the custom remains. 
An absurd, au idiotic reason is given in Hunter’s 
Dictionary, in which it is seriously staled that becau e 
the Oactiis protects their grounds from stray cows and 
goats, it will also similarly protect their houses from 
lightning; the idea is preposterous. 
The cu«tom of placing a Cactus on the roof is based 
on a highly scientific principle, viz., that of the 
“power of points.’’ Eh ctricity escapes far more easily 
through a pointed conductor than through a round 
one. For this reason the end of the brass conductors 
in an electric machine are mounted wiih brass knobs. 
The principle of saving a house from lightning with 
a metallic-pointed conductor and with a prickly Cactus 
is the same. When a cloud highly charged with elec- 
tricty passes over a house, the house becomes charged 
with electricty of an opposite kind through iuductifin, 
and these two electricities attract each other. Light- 
niog is only the result of this mutual attraction, when 
a portion of the electricty of the cloud attracted by 
that of the earth below strikis the house. But if the 
honse is provided with something having points, the 
electricty of the earth escapes into the air through 
these points, an<i neutralises the electricty of the cloud 
and thus the di.scharge cannot take place. The plinit 
wliich the Bengalee and other Hindoos grow on the 
roofs of their houses has hundreds cf sharp-pointed 
prickles. The more the number of poiuls a conductor 
charged with e’ectricity las, the more easily the 
electrical fluid escapes fr, m it. Therefore, in this 
respect, the plant in question is far belter than an 
ordinary conductor which has only one point. Now-a- 
days, the conductor of a house is provided with four 
or five points. The great drawback in the use of the 
Cactus is that it cannot have proper connection with 
the earth ; the ccunection is chiefly through bad con- 
ductors. iStill, something is better than uolhing. 
The subject is one of considerable general interest, 
and deserves careful investigation and enquiry. The 
custom does not appear to he observed in Upper India, 
but in Bengal it is a very common thing to see this 
plant in a tub placed on the house-top. This plant 
is not only held sacred, but is reputed to possess im- 
portant medicinal properties. 
The editor of /few fl«a Royyet states that the plant 
used on. the housetops is not the Indian Cactus so 
suggestive cf the hooded serpent, and appropriately 
called Nagphani, in Bengal, and Nagkali, on the 
Coromandel coast. That plant, though common 
enough, is neither sacred, nor, so far as we know, 
used as a medicine against snakes in this province. 
The plant prized ns a protection frem lightning is 
the Tekata.eij. It is not a Cactus hut a Euphorbia. 
Q he subject is certainlj' one in which mere light isneeded. 
— A Travelling Botanist. — Gardeners' Chronicle. 
^ 
ON THE USES OE CUBBY LEAVES. 
By Dr. E. S. Mootooswamy, r.i...s., Tanjobe. 
The curry leaf tne {Murraya Kaenigii, Sprerg), 
belongs to the natural ordtr Butacere, and is remark- 
able iorits frsgrancy. It is a small tree wiih pinnate 
leave.*', leaflels alHrna’e, ovate, somewhat serrated, 
janicles c rjmbiform, terminal, calyx 5-chft; petals, 
6, spreading; berry 1-celled, l-.-eedecl ; fiowi rs small 
and white, appeaiirg in the hot weather. The tree is 
well-ki'ovin throughout the plains of Southern India, 
where it grows in the jungles on the lower aud moun- 
tainous s opes. It is al o cultivated in gardens on 
account of its leaves, which are very fragrant and 
much need by r atives for seasoning their carries. 
Some gardeners make their 1 ving by the daily tale of 
the fresh leaves, and coravars, a class of wandeiing 
di aler , bring the dried leaves, with those of Solatium 
ptibescens, from the jungles and take them for 
sale from place to place. The vernacular names of the 
•ree allude to it as “curry leaf” because of its use 
as a condiment, and in Sanskrit it is called the 
'‘fragrant neem,” and other one or o' her of these 
names it is known throughout India, Burma, and 
Ceylon. 
The leaves are the only part of the tree, in this 
part of the country, employed in native medicine, 
and their properties are aromatic, stomachic, stimulant, 
astringent and tonic. They [retain their medicinal 
properties even in iheir dried state. The leaves are 
indispensable in seasoning native curries, broths, 
and pepper water for their daily coosumption. It 
enters as a principal ingredient in their curry-stuff or 
condiment taken with the rice. In the absence of 
fresh leaves, dried leaves are purchased aud stocked 
for the cold season. A seasoning preparation, called 
vadagam iu Tamil, is made and kept for daily use in 
almost every house, except those of Brahmins, who 
do not use onions in their diet. It consist of cnions in 
large quantity, while the other ingredients form smaller 
proportions. These are galic, cumin, foenugreek, 
rrustard, turn-ciic, and curry leaves. These are well 
beaten down iu a stone mortar and made into a mass, 
from this a number of large balls are rolled np and 
dried in the sun. They are smeared with castor oil 
every morning as they are exposed, and after a few 
days will become dry enough to store. Curry leaves 
are also used for flavouring chutneys. 
Persons suffering from dyspepsia .and diarrhoea 
resulting from indigestion, make a broth frem the 
leaves. They are first broiled with ghee, and after the 
addition of a little tamarind aud salt, water is added, 
