Page:Indian Medicinal Plants (Text Part 1).djvu/392

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INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS.


subject, Mr. Jacobs, states that, when prepared in March or April while the sap is ascending, unpleasant effects have been observed, such as stupor, dilatation of the pupil, &c, which symptoms, however, pass off without perceptible injury to the system. There appears little doubt that, if given in large, doses, the bark, leaves, and fruits are all toxic, producing narcotism followed by death. Dr. Burton Brown (Punjab Poisons) records a case in which a European girl ate the berries, became insensible and died. Descourtilz says that six to eight seeds cause nausea, spasm and choleraic symptoms, sometimes followed by death" (WATT).

Margosa Oil

This oil is obtained from the seeds of Melia uzedarach.

{{smaller|It has a Sp. Gr. of 0.9023 ; at 04°/40° ; Saponification number, 196.9 ; iodine number, 52. The oil is solid at the ordinary temperature.

264. M. dubia, Cav, h. f. b. l, i. 545.

Syn. : — M. Superba, Roxb ; M. Robusta, Roxb. 369.

Vern. : — Nimbara, limbada (Bomb.)

The fruit, kala khajur, kuáru khajur (Bomb.) ; Dingkur-long (Assam) ; Lapshi (Nepal) ; Kadu khajur (Guz.) ; Mallay vembu (Tam.) ; Bevu, letta-beru, kád-bevu, Karibevin, ara-bevu (Kan.)

Habitat : — Wild and cultivated in the Eastern and Western Peninsulas.

A very large handsome tree, deciduous, very fast-growing. Bark smooth, dark brown or dark purplish brown, thin. Wood soft, sapwood grey, heartwood reddish white. Young parts stellate-mealy. Leaves crowded, very large, l-3ft. or more, bi-or somewhat — tripinnate, pinnæ 3-6 pair, distant, opposite or nearly so ; leaflets 2-5 pair, in each pinna and a terminal one, stalked, oval or ovate, slightly oblique at base, acuminate, coarsely shallowly crenate, the lowest often again pinnate, glabrous ; rachis cylindric, glabrous, dilated at base. Corymbose panicles numerous, 4-8in. long. Peduncle axillary, stellate-scurfy. Calyx-segments lanceolate, acute, stellate-mealy. Petals white, linear-oblong, obtuse reflexed, stellate-mealy