466  Notes  on  the  Permanent  Exhibition.  {^s^xST"" 
the  bark  from  the  lower  elevations  approximates  nearly  to  that  from 
Darjeeling,  while  the  higher  plantations  give  bark  of  similar  character- 
istics to  that  from  Ootacamund. 
All  these  considerations  point  out  the  great  care  that  should  be  exer- 
cised to  choose  suitable  situations  for  cinchona  plantations,  as  well  as 
the  importance  of  selecting  the  best  species  for  cultivation.  The  ex- 
perience of  the  plantations  in  Java  shows  that  under  the  most  favorable 
circumstances  the  wrong  tree  will  not  produce  rich  bark,  and  that  of 
the  Darjeeling  plantations  shows  that  the  right  tree  in  the  wrong  situa- 
tion will  either  dwindle  away  or  produce  a  distinctly  inferior  bark. 
The  result  of  cinchona  cultivation  at  Darjeeling  thus  agrees  with  the 
experience  earned  in  some  districts  of  South  America,  somewhat  simi- 
larly situated  in  too  damp  a  climate,  at  too  low  an  elevation.  There 
also,  instead  of  the  calisaya  and  micrantha  barks,  rich  in  quinia,  of  the 
higher  slopes,  we  find  what  are  either  degenerate  varieties  or  different 
species,  in  which  cinchonia,  and,  in  some  cases,  quinidia,  take  the  place 
of  quinia. 
A  vast  proportion  of  the  "  flat  yellow  bark  "  now  imported  is  from 
these  regions,  and  though  certainly  flat  and  yellow  resembles  in  little 
else  the  flat  calisaya  bark  of  a  few  years  back,  and  must  certainly  lead 
to  disappointment  if  substituted  in  medicine  for  the  true  calisaya. — - 
Pharm.  Journ.  and  Trans.,  July  7,  1 877. 
NOTES  ON  THE  PERMANENT  EXHIBITION. 
By  the  Editor. 
II. 
Cinnamon  in  its  various  varieties  is  quite  prominent  among  the  collection  of 
spices.  They  are  derived  from  different  species  of  Cinnamomum,  all  of  which  are 
indigenous  to  India,  southeastern  Asia  and  the  adjacent  islands.  The  finest  and 
most  esteemed  variety  is  the  Ceylon  cinnamon,  which  is  obtained  from  Cinnamomum 
zeylanicum  Blum,  chiefly  as  cultivated  along  the  southwest  coast  of  Ceylon.  It  is 
collected  from  shoots  about  2  years  old,  the  bark  being  deprived  of  its  external  layer  by 
scraping  it  down  to  an  almost  uninterrupted  circle  of  hard  and  thickened  cells,  after 
which  several  layers  of  the  remaining  bast  tissue  are  dried  together,  forming  a  rather 
solid  compound  quill.  It  is  of  a  light  yellowisti-brown  color,  smooth  upon  the 
outer  and  inner  surface,  and  upon  the  former  with  faintly  glossy  lines.  Similarly 
prepared  is  the  true  cinnamon,  which  is  cultivated  in  Java  and  other  tropical  coun- 
tries j  but  none  is  fully  equal  in  flavor  to  that  from  Ceylon,  though  in  appearance 
