324 
KAMELA  :  ROTTLERA  TINCTORIA. 
in  a  tub,  the  water  of  which  rises  to  about  the  height  of  four 
inches,  and  no  further  care  is  required.  By  the  process  of  in- 
filtration the  lower  strata  of  the  «  marsh"  are  soon  wet  through, 
the  upper  strata  remaining  dry  ;  between  these  two  extremes  the 
leeches  choose  the  zone  most  appropriate  for  them.  M.  de  Quar- 
trefages,  by  whom  the  above  was  brought  before  the  French  Aca- 
demy, has  kept  and  bred  leeches  in  this  way  for  two  years  with 
no  deaths.  This  would  lead  us  to  believe  that  leeches  do  not  live 
on  the  blood  of  animals,  but  on  the  infusoria. 
The  object  of  this  communication  is  to  recal  attention  to  the 
fact  that  "  leeches  need  never  be  thrown  away  ;"  and  the  hospi- 
tals and  vendors  may  be  induced  to  adopt  this  simple  contri- 
vance of  M.  Vayson,  and  thus  make  further  experiments  on  the 
keeping  and  breeding  of  these  very  useful  little  creatures  ;  for, 
as  I  have  shown,  they  can  be  kept  healthy  and  employed  many 
times  consecutively  if  properly  treated. — Lon,  Pharm.  Journ. 
May,  1860. 
KAMELA :  (ROTTLERA  TINCTORIA.) 
Its  History,  Properties,  Medical  uses,  Doses,  $c. 
* 
History. — This  plant  was  known  to  the  Hindoos  from  the 
remotest  antiquity,  the  fruit  of  which  was  employed  by  them  as 
a  remedy  for  worms,  and  also  in  certain  skin  diseases.  They 
likewise  used  it  for  dying  and  printing  silks,  &c,  but  for  this 
purpose  it  underwent  a  chemical  process,  viz.,  an  alkaline  so- 
lution was  mixed  with  the  powder  of  the  fruit,  which  yielded  a 
beautiful  orange-brown  color.  But  its  properties  have  only  re- 
cently been  demonstrated  by  Drs.  Anderson  and  Mackinnon, 
who  first  introduced  it  into  England.  Kamela  belongs  to  the 
natural  order  Ewphorbiacea.  It  grows  abundantly  on  the  hilly 
districts  of  India,  Burmah,  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  the 
north-east  portions  of  Australia.  Its  fruit  ripens  in  February 
and  March,  when  it  is  gathered,  and  the  powder,  which  appears 
as  an  excrescence,  is  carefully  brushed  off  and  preserved  for  use. 
Properties  The  powder  of  Kamela  is  of  a  red  brick  color, 
with  little  or  no  odor  and  flavor,  and  like  lycopodium  it  is  dif- 
ficultly miscible  with  water.  Ether  extracts  a  quantity  of  its 
resinous  components,  and  if  the  solution  be  allowed  to  stand  for 
