I AN.  I,  1896.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
463 
The  “ Acuiicui.TUKAL  Gazettj2  ” of  Now  South 
Walew,  Published  by  the  Department  of  Agriculture. 
Volume  VI.  Part  10.  October,  180.1.  Contents:  — 
Stinworth  [Inula  ymyco/eJi.'},  Desf.)  .J.  H.  Maiden  ; The 
Weeds  of  New  South  Wales  (Supplement.ary  Notes, 
No.  1)  J.  U.  iUaiden  ; Botanical  Notes — Mr. 
Charles  Ledger  of  Cinchona  and  Alpaca  fame.  Note 
on  Sassafras  timber  in  the  Bega  District,  Beech 
or  White  Beech,  Additional  notes  on  Colonial  or 
Moreton  Bay  Pine,  J.  H.  Maiden  ; The  Cause  of  Gum- 
ming in  Sugar-cane,  N.  A.  Cobb;  The  Phylloxera  in 
Europe.— Annual  Report  of  the  Chief  Andres  Blavia, 
of  the  Central  Government  Station  of  Viticulture 
in  Spain,  at  Cette,  Translated  by  H.  Cambridge  ; 
Beekeeping. — Chapter  II  : The  inmates  and  ecoiimy 
of  the  Hive,  the  Drone,  Albert  Gale;  The  Dairy 
Industry  in  Denmark,  P.  E.  H.  W.  Krichauff  ; 
The  Devon  Breed  of  Cattle,  J.  L.  Thomson  ; 
Chemical  Notes,  Beeswax,  Testing  Babcock’s  Flasks, 
Fowl  Manure,  Notices  of  some  recent  Text-books, 
P.  B.  Guthrie;  Ticks  on  Cattle;  Poultry  Notes.— 
Cramming  Fowls,  Freeziig  Poultry  for  Export, 
S.  Gray ; Practical  Vegetable  and  Flower  Growing. 
Directions  for  the  month  of  November;  Orchard 
Notes  for  November;  General  Notes — A new  Fruit- 
dryer,  Remedy  for  Potato  Scab  ; Agricultural  Socie- 
ties’ Shows,  1895-G. 
Poisonous  Efeects  of  Borax. — The  extensive  use 
of  compounds  containing  borax,  which  under  various 
names  are  sold  for  preseving  foods,  lends  a special 
interest  to  some  observations  of  Dr.  Ch.  Fere  of  Paris, 
who  has  used  borax  in  the  treatment  of  intractable 
cases  of  epilepsy,  and  with  success  in  certain  cases. 
It  is  true  that  for  this  purpose  it  was  necessary  to 
give  large  doses  for  long  periods,  but  in  the  course 
of  the  trial  he  met  with  a considerable  number  of 
persons  who  were  peculiarly  susceptible  to  borax.  In 
them,  loss  of  appetite  was  succeeded  by  burning  pain 
in  the  pit  of  the  stomach,  dryness  of  the  mouth, 
and  eventually  by  nausea  and  vomiting.  Boi'ax  pro- 
duces also  a remarkable  dryness  of  the  skin,  which 
is  found  to  favour,  if  not  to  cause,  various  skin  diseases, 
especially  eczema.  The  hair  also  becomes  dry  and 
may  fall  out,  causing  complete  baldness.  The  mott 
dangerous  result  of  the  use  of  borax,  however,  is  its 
power  of  producing  kidney  disease,  or  of  converting 
a slight  disorder  of  the  kidneys  into  a fatal  malady 
— British,  Medical  JouiuM. 
Coffee,  Cotton  and  a Species  of  “Tea” 
IN  Sou’i'iiEitN  Akyssinia. — Tlie  following  extracts 
from  an  ollicial  Iteiiort  are  of  general  interest — 
more  especially  that  part  winch  indicates  tlie 
existence  of  a shrub  in  Abyssinia  which  serves 
the  people  as  a sub.stitute  for  “tea”  and  is  similar 
to  the  mate  of  Brazil  and  Paraguay : — 
“But  few  people  are  more  desirous  or  more  cajiable 
of  trading  than  the  natives  of  Africa;  and  the 
facility  with  which  factories  can  be  formed  is 
sullicienlly  jirovcd  by  tlie  rcceiition  heretofore 
experienced  in  various  parts  or  the  continent. 
Abundance  of  land  now  unoccupied  could  be 
purchased  or,  rented  at  a mere  nominal  rate, 
in  ])ositions  where  the  permanent  residence  of 
the  white  man  would  be  hailed  with  universal 
joy,  as  contributing  to  the  repose  of  tribes  long 
harassed  and  persecuted.  The  serf  Avould  seek 
honest  employment  in  the  field,  ami  the  chiefs 
of  slave-dealing  states,  gladly  enteiing  into  any 
arrangement  foi  the  introduction  of  uealth  and 
linery,  would,  after  the  establishment  of  agricul- 
ture, no  longer  lind  their  interest  in  the  ilood 
of  human  victims,  which  is  now  annually  poured 
through  the  Highlands  of  Abyssinia.  No  quarter 
of  the  globe  abounds  to  a greater  extent  in  i cgc- 
table  and  mineral  productions  than  tro])icuI 
Africa;  and  in  the  pojmlous,  fertile,  and  salu- 
brious portions  lying  immediately  north  of  the 
equator,  the  very  highest  capabilities  are  pre- 
sented for  the  employment  of  ca[)ital,  and  the 
development  of  British  industry.  Cwiton  of  u 
quality  unrivalled  in  the  whole  world  is  every- 
where a weed,  and  might  be  cultivated  to  any 
reiiuisitc  extent.  The  coll'ee  which  is  .sold  in 
Arabia  as  the  produce  of  Moclia  is  chielly  of 
A\ild  African  growth ; and  th.at  species  of  the 
tea-plant  which  is  used  by  the  lower  orders  of 
the  Chinese  nourishes  so  widely  and  with  so 
little  care,  that  tlie  climate  to  which  it  is  indi- 
genous would  doubtle.ss  be  found  well  adapted 
for  the  highest-llavoured  and  more  delicate  .species 
so  prized  for  foreign  exportation. 
“ Chaat  is  a shrub  very  extensively  cultivated 
both  in  Shoa  and  in  the  countries  adjacent.  It 
is  in  general  use  among  the  inhabitants  as  a 
substitute  for  tea,  which,  in  all  its  properties 
and  (qualities,  it  clo.sely  resembles.  The  plant  is 
said  to  have  been  brought  originally  from  the 
western  mountains,  of  which  the  elevation  being 
from  five  to  eight  thousand  feet,  agrees  with 
that  of  the  Chinese  tea  districts,  whilst  the  aver- 
age temperature  does  not  exceed  60°  Fahrenheit. 
In  a light  tn-avelly  soil  it  attains  the  height  of 
twelve  feet ; and  the  leaves  being  plucked  during 
the  dry  season,  and  Avell  dried  in  the  sun,  fetch 
from  one  penny  to  tw'o-pence  the  iiound.  They 
are  either  chewed  or  boiled  in  niillc,  or  infused 
in  water ; and  bj'’  the  addition  of  honey  a plea- 
sant beveiage  is  iiroduced,  which,  being  bitter 
and  stimulative,  dispels  sleep  if  used  to  excess. 
The  virtues  of  the  chaat  are  equally  to  be  appre- 
ciated with  those  of  the  yerba  mate,  recently 
introduced  into  England  from  Brazil  and  Paraguay.” 
The  NEW  CuiiE  fok  Snake-Bite.— In  our  re- 
cent article  we  showed  that  the  rvorld  really 
owed  this  suggestion,  amongst  so  many  other  boons, 
to  the  great  Frenchman,  Pasteur.  Since  then, 
an  article  contributed  by  Profs.  Geddes  and 
Thompson  to  the  Contemporary  confirms  this,  in 
these  words:  “to  the  Chemist  he  has  given  a 
new  theory  of  fermentation  ; to  the  phy.sician 
many  a suggestive  lesson  in  the  etiology  of 
diseases ; and  a series  of  bold  experiments  in 
[ueventive  and  curative  inoculation,  of  which 
Roux’s  treatment  of  diphtheria,  and  Prof.  Frazer’s 
new  remedy  for  snake-bites,  are  examples  at 
present  before  the  public  ; to  the  surgeon  a 
stable  foundation,  as  Lister  acknowledged,  for 
antiseptic  treatment.”  But  besides  its  greatest 
men,  the  world  contains  many  quiet,  and 
someiimes  ob.scure,  workers,  who  often  con- 
tribute  very  important  help  and  make 
valuable  original  sugge.stions  towards  the 
elucidation  of  great  discoveries.  Apparently  we 
have  such  an  one  (though  by  no  means  an 
“ ob.scuie”  w'orkcr)  in  “ DiNSIIAH  Akdeshiii 
Tai.eyaskiian,”  (who  is  “ assisted  by  the 
Medical  Stnff  of  the  Maharaja  of  Baroda  ”)  and 
who  in  .January  1891  published  a “ Note  on 
the  probable  discovery  of  snake-bite  and  cholera 
cui’e,”  w'liich  had  a limited  circulation  in 
“ Europe  and  America  only.”  “ At  that  time”, 
he  says,  the  task  of  discovering  effective  reme- 
dies was  all  but  hopeless,  and  despared  of.” 
lb  A.  1'.  in  November  1S9-3,  publishes 
another  “Note”  in  which  he  says:  “’To  Prof. 
Frazer  of  Edinburgh,  and  Dr.  Hafkcine  of  Paris 
is  now  due  the  whole  credit  of  ransacking  on 
the  lines  laid  down  in  the  Note  of  1891.” 
Antivvenine  is  the  name  given  by  Dr.  Frazer 
to  his  snake-bite  cuic.  M e have  not  space  to 
go  into  details,  but  having  read  I).  A.  T.’s 
Note  of  1891  we  think  the  claim  he  makes  in 
his  Note  of  1893  not  without  some  justification. 
But  ill  tliese  matters  tlie  man  who  liy  his 
labour  and  .science  demonstrates  the  proof  is  always 
the  true  discoverer. 
