Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 2.djvu/606

 T A M

TAN

between which is the pulp ; it confifts 'of only one cell. The feeds are angular, and of a flatted figure ; and are three in each pod. Linnm Gen. Plant, p. 9. "We owe the knowledge of the ufe of Ta?narinds, in medicine, to the Arabians. The antient Greeks knew nothing of them ; and Serap'ion, Mefue, and Avicenna, are the firft authors who prefcribe them.

The fruit of the Tamarind which is what we ufe, is only the piflil of the flower f welled into a pod ; this is greenilh at firft, hut grows brownifh or reddifh, as it ripens ; its common fize is four inches in length, and one in breadth j and it is undu- lated on the back, and deeply notched in three or four places at the front, which is terminated by a large rib, which runs From the pedicle oh which it grows, to the end of the pod, and there frequently terminates in a fort of hook. This fruit is, propeily fpeaking, Eompofed of two pods, the one inclofcd within the other j the outer pod is flefhy, and of the twelfth of an inch in thicknefs when" frefh, and the inner one is thin as a fine piece of parchment ; between thefe two there is an intermediate fpace of about a quarter of an inch all the way ; and this fpace is filled up with a very toft and pulpy fubftance, of a tart but very agreeable tafte, which is what we ufe in medicine. This is blackifh and of a vifcous texture, and is traverfed by three large veflels, or rather bun- dles of veffels, one of which runs all along the back of the pod, and the two others are placed on the oppofite fide, and often there are feveral ramifications of veflels, which run off different ways from thefe. Thefe veflels carry the vinous juice, which afterwards hardens into the vifcous 'matter of the pulp ; but this is not all their office, for they alfo convey nou- rishment to the feeds in the inner pod.

We ufe the Tamarinds only in medicine ; but the Africans, and the People of many of the Oriental nations, where they are common, make them into a fort of" confec't with fugar, which they eat as a delicacy, and which cools them in the violent heats of their climates ; and at the fame time keeps their bowels in a proper ftate of laxity. The four tafte of this fruit proves, that acid particles abound greatly in it* and a chemical analy- fis of it gives farther proof of this. There is indeed no al> kali to be obtained fom Tamarinds, otherwife than by diftil- l'uig them in a retort with quick-lime. A limple analyfis of them yields no other principles but acid and fulphur. Six pounds of Tamarinds mixed with fix pints of water, will yield fix drams of eflential fait ; this however requires a long time to cryftallize, net fixing itfclf to the fides of the veflels under two months ftanding; in all this time however the liquor never grows mouldy, as fuch liquors ufually do ; and it in . this fomewhat refembles tartar, dr the eflential fait of grapes, which never feparatcs itfelf from their juice under a very long time. Indeed, to be allured of gaining all the eflential fait of any plant, the liquor ought to be covered half an inch deep with oil, to prevent its fpoiling, and fullered to Hand a whole year unmoved in the fame vcflcl. The fait of Tamarinds in all things refembles cream of tartar ; it is fharp to the tafte, and will not diflblve in cold water. It does not detonate on the fire, nor yield any vinous fmcll, when moiftened with oil of tartar. Tamarinds diffolved alfo in common water, and fet in digeftipn for feveral months, yield on dill illation only an acid fpirit, like that from vinegar.

It is not uncommon in thofe places where Tamarinds arc fre- quent, to find an eflential fait cryftallized on the branches of the tree, this greatly refembles cream of tartar in all rcfpcels, and is no other than the genuine fait of the plant formed by the fun's drying up the accidentally extravafated juices ; nor is this peculiar to this tree alone, but many others are at times found with their juices thus extravafated, and their falts thus cryftallized by the heat. The leaves of that large fpecies of maple, which wc vulgarly but improperly called the fycamore, are often in hot feafons found thus covered with cryftals of their effeniial fait which is fweet, and very much of the nature of fugar ; and thelime- trees have their leaves often covered with a like faccharine matter, which being wafted off from them and the liquor given any perfon to drink, is found to have the tafte and the purgative virtue of manna. Mem. Acad. Par. 1699. Sec the article Tamarinds, Cyd.

TAMARISCUS, the Tamarifk-tree, in botany, the name of a genus or trees j the characters of which are thefe. The flower is of the rofaceous kind, being eompofed of a number of petals, arranged in a circular form ; the piftil arjfes from the cup, and finally becomes a capfule, refemblinjr that of the willow of a long figure and membranaceous ftruclure and containing feeds winged with down. Toarn. Lift p ' 661. ' v '

The fpecies olTamarijk, enumerated by Mr, Tournefort are

" thefe : 1 . The fhrubby thick-leaved Tamartjk, called the Ger- man Tamarijk. And, 2. The tall arborefcent fine-leaved Tamar*yk, called the French Tamarijh. It is a very remarkable property of this tree, that its fait made in the way of other lixivial falts is no alkali, but a mere fal falfus. The (alt of guaiacum alfo approaches to the nature of this.

TAM ATIA, in zoology, "the name of a very ftrangc bird of the Braids, it is of the Gallimda, or moor-hen kind, but very ^ifttTcnt from the European birds of that genus.

Its head is Yery large, its eyes large and black, its- beRk\IS two fingers breadth long, and one broad, fhaped (omewjut like a duck's, but pointed at the end ; its upper chap is- black, its under one yellow ; its legs are long, and the thighs; in great part naked ; its toes are long ; its tail is very fborr. Its head is black, and its back and wings of a plain duifcv brown. Its belly is of the fame brown, variegated with white* See Tab. of Birds, N°. 44. MarggravSs Hift. Brafii.

TAMBOSj in Peruvian antiquity, buildings placed at certain, diftanccs for the lodging of the princes of that country, in their travels through their dominions. See Mr. de la Con- damine, in Mem. de PAcad. de Berlin, Tom. 2. p. 435. who tells us (p. 438.) that he faw feveral remains of th'rf* Tambos, in his journey from Quito to Lima.

TAMNUS, in botany, the name of a genus of plants, called by the old writers Bryonia nigra, and from them in Engliih black bryony.

The characters of this genus are thefe : The flower confifts of one leaf fafhioned like a bell, open at the mouth, and di- vided into fcveral fegmehts. Some of theft arc fteril, or mate flowers, having no embryo ; and others fruitful or female flowers, having in their center an embryo, which afterwards becomes a berry, ufually of an oval figure, and covered with a fort of hood of a membranaceous ftructure ; this berry is full of roundifh feeds. This is a climbing plant, as well as tlic white bryony, but it has none of the tendrills which that has.

The fpecies of this genus, enumerated by Mr. Tournefort, are thefe : 1. The cluftcry Hack bryony, with (mall yellowiih green flowers. 2. The black bryony, with a larger white flower. 3. The American black bryony, with leaves like thofe of the citrul, Tournefort, Inft. Bot. p. ic2.

TAMO ATA, in zoology, the name of an American frefh-* water fifli, called by the Portuguese Scldido-. It is a finall oblong fift, with a flat head, tbmewhat like that of a frog Its mouth is fmall, and from each angle of it there hanr* a long Angle filament, by way of a beard. It has no teeth, and itseyesare extremely fmall. Ithas eight fins ; two atthe gill* of one finger in length, and hard and firm like horns \ two oft the belly, of a fofter fubftance ; and one on the middle of the back, another near the tail, and another fmall one oppo- fite to it on the belly : Its tail is the eighth. Its whole head is covered above with a hard coat like a ftiell ; and its body with a fort of coat of mail made up of oblong hard iquarn- mofe bodies, dented at their edges. Its colour is a fort of rufty iron colour. It is accounted a very well-taftcd fifh. It lives only in frefh-water rivers ; and it is faid, when the water where it is dries up, it will crawl out upon the land and go in fearch of more. See Tab. of Fifties, N°. 34, Marggrave's Hift. Brafii.

TAMPOE, in natural hiftory, the name of an Eaft- Indian fruit, approaching to the figure of the Mangouftan, but not near fo agreeable to the tafte. This fruit is very much o£ the fize, fhape, and colour of fome of our common ftimmei; apples ; but its fkin is very thick and tough, and it has no crown. The Indians eat it in places where better fruits-, are" fcarce, and in fome places call it the Mangouftan.

TAN [Cyd.) — Flowers of 'Tan. Flower of Tan .is a name ^ given by the people employed in the tanning- trade, to a yel- low fubftance, often found upon old Tan, or oak bark broken to pieces, which has been ufed as Tan, and is of no farther; fervice.

The name, however, is very improper ; and though every- body converiant in 7ff«-yards muft have (ecu the thing, yet; it has always parted as an efHorefcence of the bark, till the cu- rious Mr. Marchand enquired more accurately into its nature, and found it to be a plant of itfelf, wholly different fronj the matter of the Tan; and to which the bark which had been often wetted and dried again, ferved as a proper matrix. He found it to be more nearly allied to the fpunge, than to any other genus of plants, and therefore named it fpongia fitgax mollis fava & a?na:na in pulvure cariario nafcens, foft, beautiful, yellow fading fpunge, growing on Tanners bark. It makes its appearance moft frequently in the fummer months, and is then feen in fmall tufts of a beautiful yellow colour, on different parts of the old heaps of bark. It appears at firft in form of a thin yellow fcum, and is of a fort of jelly-like ftruclure ; but it every day grows larger and thicker, till it ftands above half an inch out from the furface of the bark. As it grows, its furface becomes more and more cavernous and fpungy, the pores or holes being of different diameters, and the interfticial matter forming a fort of net-work more or lefs regular, and often interrupted by irregular prominences in feveral parts ; and, in fine, when the growth is compleat, the whole more refembles a fpunge, than any other vegetable fubftance, and is of a deep yellow colour, and eonfider ably- thick and tough confiftence ; there are no roots to be difcover- ed ifluing from it ; its fmell is like that of rotten wood, and its tafte is fomewhat ftyptic. It always appears in the warm months, and always upon fuch old Tan as has begun to fer- ment, and is in the ftate in which our gardeners ufe it for hot-beds. If it happens to ftand expofed to the fouth fun, it is but of fhort duration ; but if it be in a fteltered place, it wilt laft a considerable time, and -often fpread itfclf to a great 1 extent,