1322 
INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS. 
seeds, nigella seeds, cardamoms, cinnamon, tej.apatra, the tubers 
of Cyperus rotundus ( mustaka ) and the flowers of Mesua ferrea 
( naga kesara ) 1 tola each, in fine powder, and prepare a confec- 
tion. Dose 2 to 4 tolas in dyspepsia and consumption.’' (U. C. 
Dutt, Hindu Mat. Med. 248.) 
The Shell : — “ The cleared shell of the nut or portions of 
it are burnt in a fire, and, while red hot, covered by a stone cup. 
The fluid, which is deposited in the interior of the cup, is rube- 
facient, and is an effectual domestic remedy for ringworm.” 
(U. C. Dutt, p. 248.) The Bombay Oazetteev of the Thana District 
alludes to this in the following words : “ The shell, when burnt, 
yields an oil which is used as a cure for ringworm.” “ In the 
Antilles, the cocoa-nut is the popular remedy for tapeworm, 
and its efficacy has been conclusively demonstrated by medical 
men in Senegal. A cocoa-nut is opened and the almond ex- 
tracted and scraped. Three hours after its administration a 
dose of castor oil is given. The worm is expelled in two hours 
afterwards. In nine cases in which this remedy was tried by 
a surgeon in Senegal, the result was complete. —Natal Mercury." 
(Trop. Agri., 1882-83.) 
In the Thana district, three oils are prepared from the edible 
portion or kernel of the nut. These are known as khohrel, avel 
and muthel. A fourth oil is, however, repeatedly alluded to, 
namely, an oil prepared from the shell of the nut {see above). 
This last-mentioned oil is perfectly distinct from the oil of the 
kernel, and is used only in the treatment of ringworm. Its 
chemical properties have never apparently been determined, nor 
does it seem to have before this been pointedly made known 
to European medical authorities as a substance actually prepared 
and employed by the Indian doctors. It is remarkable that the 
same properties should be assigned to the shell by the inhabi- 
tants of other parts of the world besides India, although they 
do not apparently distil the oil from it. But of the kernel oils 
used medicinally, the most conflicting statements have been 
published both as to their action and mode of preparation. 
Thus : “ A very cheap, hard, white soap is prepared from the 
oil, suitable for pharmaceutical purposes, such as plaster-making 
