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feet tall with alternate leaves oblanceolate acuminate with a short 
blunt point and very coriaceous, drying brown ; they are 6 inches long 
and 3 inches wide, quite glabrous with 7 pairs of nerves curved and 
arched within the margin. The fruit is on short half-inch cymes, and 
the peduncles as well as the buds, young portions of the stem, fruit and 
sepals are all covered with short red hair. The fruit is globose but 
not depressed at the top and larger than in D. toposioides ; the sepals 
are four short rounded lobes, thinner and smaller than in the latter 
species and not forming a thick disc. The fruit is said to be poison- 
ous, and the name Mentuba implies that it is used for the purpose of 
fish-stupefying. 
Others of our Ebony trees probably have the same properties and 
several species from other parts of the world are stated by Greshoff 
in his Vischvergiften to be used in the same way. 
Tuba Ubi. This is the tuberous root of a very remai'kable species 
of Dioscorca of which a living plant was sent a year or two ago to 
the Singapore Botanic Gardens by Mr. A. D. Machado of the Kamu- 
ning Estate. The .tubers are large and palmate of a dark brown 
colour outside and about a foot or more long, forming a rather large 
mass. 
The stem is woody and angled and thickly covered with triangular 
brown thorns, laterally flattened and from 2 to 6 connate forming 
short thorny ridges. The thorns are i inch or more long. Leaves 
deeply cordate acuminate 6 inches long and as wide, the cusp 1^ inch 
long, nerves eleven radiating from the base and ascending to the cusp, 
transverse nervules prominent and numerous ; peteole 4-5 inches long 
thorny along the upper edge. 
The flowers as is so often the case in this genus must he rare, as 
the Malays did not know of them. 
Sehwung. This was only represented by roots, but is probably 
identical with specimens sent many years ago by Vaughan Stevens under 
this name, as used by the Sakais in the manufacture of their dart 
poison. The plant proved to be Miquelia cordata King, a rare plant 
in collections and but little known. It is a rather slender climber, 10 
to 15 feet long, with alternate thin ovate to oblong leaves, acuminate 
blunt with about 6 pairs of nerves alternate 6 inches long by 2 wide 
or less, covered on the back especially on the main nerves and re- 
ticulations with short apparently glandular hairs. The petioles are 
an inch long and undulate, apparently stem clasping and also pubes- 
cent. The inflorescence is axillary on*a long peduncle. The flowers 
white and small. The fruit is very curious ; it is oval and flat, 
ending in a long beak, shortly stalked, an inch long with a half inch 
beak, bright red. The seeds are very numerous. 
I have it from Perak ; Chanderiang (Kings Collector 5,680.) Ipoh. 
(Curtis 3321) and Max wel’s Hill (Ridley 5,229.) It has also been 
obtained in Kemaman by Vanghan Stevens. 
Kcchubong in the well known Datuoa fastuosa (Solanacee s) a weed 
of villages, the poisonous properties of which are well known, and 
