mimusops

[Gr. mimo =an ape, and ops = the eyes, face, countenance; so named because the flowers were supposed to resemble an ape's face.] 1. Bot .: A genus of Sapotaceæ. Calyx, six to eight parted; corolla with an outer row of six to sixteen and the inner of six to eight petals; ovary, six to eight-celled. Mimusops kaki has an astringent bark, yields a gum, and bears a sweet fruit eaten by the natives of India. M. elengi is a large evergreen tree largely cultivated in India. During the hot season it produces many small, fragrant flowers, which fall plentifully. The small, oval berries are eaten by the poorer Hindus. The sap-wood is large, whitish, and very hard, the heart-wood red. It is used for house-building, carts, and cabinetwork. That of M. indica , which grows only above sandstone, is used for sugar-mill beams, oil-pre es, house-posts, and turnery. M. littoral is, which grows in the And a man Islands, is used for bridges and house-posts. The berries of M. hexandra are eaten in India. Most species of the genus yield gums and their seeds oils. M. elengi yields the Pagoda gum of India, M. globosa the American gum Batata. The bark of M. elengi is used in India for tanning; boiled, it yields a brown dye used with myrabolans; that of M. littoral is , a red dye used in the And a mans. ( Calcutta Exhib . Rep ., .) 2. Pharm.: The barks of Mimusops elengi and of M. hexandra are astringent tonics; the decoction of the former is a gargle which produces salivation. Water distilled from the flowers is a stimulant medicine and a perfume. The powdered seeds of M. kaki are used in ophthalmia, the milk in inflammation of the ear and conjunctivitis.