BABLAH

The rind or shell which surrounds the fruit of the mimosa cineraria ; it comes from the East Indies, as also from Senegal, under the name of Neb-neb. It contains gallic acid, tannin, a red colouring matter, and an azotized substance; but the proportion of tannin is smaller than in sumach, galls, and knoppern (gall-nuts of the common oak) in reference to that of gallic acid, which is considerable in the bablah. It has been used, in dyeing cotton, for producing various shades of drab; as a substitute for the more expensive astringent die-stuffs.