A Hand-Book of Indian Products; Art Manufactures and Raw Materials (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1883 Excerpt: ... Carthamus tinctorius. Safflower. Vern.--Sanskrit, Kamalott ira; Bengali, Hindi and Dakhini Kusum; Tamil, Sendurgam, Kashumba; Telugu, Agnisikha; Burmese, Hshoo. An annual, 1 to 2 feet; grown extensively all over India. The seeds are used as food for poultry, and also yield an oil used for burning in lamps and for cooking, and supposed to be the principal ingredient of maccassar oil. In medicine, the seeds are considered laxative, and are also used in dropsy. The oil is used in rheumatism and paralysis. But the chief importance of the plant lies in the flowers, which yield a beautiful dye of various shades of colour, between red and yellow. The dye is obtained from the petals which contain two pigment principles, viz., safflower-yellow, obtained by pounding and macerating the flowers with soda, and safflower-red, which is the dye of commerce. The colours produced by safflower are, however, not very fast. The Dacca safflower is the best in India, and ranks next to that of China. A large quantity of safflower is yearly exported from India, but the trade has of late much decreased, owing probably to the discovery of aniline dyes. During the five years ending 1880-81 the exports of safflower were as follows: --Quantity. Value. Cwts. 1876-77...... 7662 30,467 1877-78...... 3698 14,880 1878-79...... 4977 18,671 1879-80...... 2411 18,145 1880-81...... 6675 35,115 Cassia auriculata. Tanner's cassia. Vern.--Hindi, Tarwar; Tamil Avarai; Telugu, Tangedu. A common shrub in Central and South India. The bark is one of the most valuable tanning substances of India. Mr.D. E. Hutchins, Assistant Conservator of Forests, Mysore, stated, in his report to the Government of India on dyes, that " in tanning its bark occupies in this country the position which oak bark does ...