294 
PHARMACEUTICAL  NOTES. 
lar  or  gibbous  on  one  side ;  they  are  of  a  pale  or  reddish  brown 
color  without,  with  irregular  furrows  running  not  quite  the  whole 
distance  from  the  scar  to  the  apex,  bony ;  within  rusty  and 
rather  spongy,  and  marked  with  greyish,  flattened  vessels.  A 
thin,  pale  brown  arillus  adheres  more  often  to  the  shell  than  to  the 
seed.  The  latter  is  smooth,  kidney-  or  almond-shaped,  covered 
with  a  fawn-colored  skin,  and  consists  solely  of  the  embryo  ;  in 
appearance  and  taste  it  resembles  that  of  the  Brazil  nut  (Berilio 
lettia.) 
They  are  used  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  places  where  the 
tree  grows  or  is  cultivated,  either  raw,  or  roasted  like  chest- 
nuts. Those  of  the  fertile  variety  of  A.  ineisa  are  the  Malabar 
chestnuts,  which  are  of  a  different  appearance.  Descourtilz 
states  that  in  Jamaica  the  nuts  of  both  species  are  used  indiscri- 
minately ;  those  of  the  Jacca,  however,  are  preferred  as  a  substi- 
tute for  almonds  in  medicinal  preparations,  especially  for  Syr- 
upus  Emulsivus ;  prepared,  as  required  by  the  Pharmacopoeia, 
with  an  emulsion  of  these  seeds  in  place  of  almonds,  it  is  said  to 
be  unchangeable,  quite  a  desideratum  in  such  a  climate.  He  also 
mentions  that  the  exportation  of  shoots  or  seeds  from  Jamaica, 
where  it  was  introduced  in  1782  by  Lord  Rodney,  was  prohibited. 
It  is  not  likely  that  the  tree  can  be  raised  from  the  seeds,  since 
Tussac  mentions  that  they  lose  their  vitality  within  a  few  weeks 
after  being  taken  out  of  the  fruit. 
Souar i-nuts,  from  Car 'yocar  tomento sum ,  L.* — The  genus  Cary- 
ocar,  which,  with  the  exception  of  one  species  established  by 
Bentham,  constitutes  the  order  of  ffliizobolea?,  comprises  a  num- 
ber of  South  American  nut-bearing  trees  known  under  the  name 
of  Pekea,  Peki,  Souari,  Souvarow,  etc.;  the  nut  is  also  described 
by  older  writers  as  Castanea  Peruviana,  Amygdala  Guianensis, 
Amygdalus  granatensis. 
The  nut  which  is  at  present  to  be  found  in  the  fruit  stores  is, 
properly  speaking,  the  Tata-youba,  under  which  name  the  tree  was 
[*  Sex.  Syst.  Polyandria  teiragynia.  Nat.  Ord.  Rhizobolese.  Subgenus  Pekea. 
Willdenow,  Spec.  Pl.u.  p.  1244.  Dec.  Prod.,  i.  600.  Tata-youba  s.  Pekea  tubercu- 
losa, Aublet,  Guian.,  i.  p.  597,  t.  239.  Laniarck,  Diet.,  iii.  33,  Encycl.,  tab.  489,  2, 
Rhizobolus  Pekea,  Gaertner,  Be  Fruct.,  ii.  93,  t.  98.] 
