Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 18.djvu/398

384 very slightly increased, and the liver is hardly more stimulated by the pressure of the diaphragm and abdominal walls during the walk than it would have been had the patient remained quietly at home. Time is an important element in many cases. Many a hard-worked man has his day so fully occupied that he can not give up more than a quarter or half an hour to exercise, and it is of importance that in this limited period he should get as much exercise as possible, and the best way to employ this brief time is by taking horse-exercise. I believe it is to the late Lord Palmerston that we owe the saying that "the outside of a horse is the best thing for the inside of a man," and it is very near the truth. A brisk trot for fifteen minutes will cause more pressure upon, and stimulation of, the liver than a lazy lounge of an hour or more. The time for this will depend in a great measure upon the engagements of the patient. It should not be taken immediately after a meal, and for most men whose days are fully occupied almost the only time to take it is before breakfast. A cup of milk, or a small cup of tea or coffee, with a piece of bread and butter or a biscuit, may be taken just before starting, and then the regular breakfast will be taken with greater appetite and better digestion after the exercise is over.

By careful attention to the removal of waste products, and to the prevention of absorption of poisonous substances from the intestine, by regulation of the diet, regulation of the bowels, and exercise, in the ways just mentioned, I believe that the nervous exhaustion and depression from which brain-workers suffer may be greatly diminished, even although it may not be entirely prevented.—Practitioner.



HE flora of Guiana includes a considerable number of plants of different families whose organs contain fatty matters. The most important of these plants, both on account of the abundance and quality of the oil it yields, is the carapa (Carapa Guianensis, D'Aublet; Xylocarpus carapa, Spr.; crabwood of the English), a plant of the family of the Meliaceæ, the family of which the Pride of India is the best known representative. It is one of the largest trees of the country, reaching a height of from sixty-five to a hundred feet, and a diameter of from a yard to a yard and a half. The wood is of a grayish or reddish color, and of excellent quality, is much in demand on account of the ease with which it is worked, and is used for shingles, cabinet, carpenter's and carriage work. The leaves are abruptly pinnate, with smooth, oval leaflets about a foot long and ending in a projecting 