KAMALA  , a red

powder formerly used in medicine as an ant helmintic and employed in India as a yellow dye . It is obtained from Mallotus philippinensis, Mull., a small euphorbiaceous tree from 20 to 45 ft. in height, distributed from southern Arabia in the west to north Australia and the Philippines in the east . In India kamala has several ancient Sanskrit names, one of which, kapila, signifies dusky or tawny red . Under the name of wars, kanbil, or qinbil, kamala appears to have been known to the Arabian physicians as a remedy for tapeworm and skin diseases as early as the loth century, and indeed is mentioned by Paulus IEgineta still earlier . The drug was formerly in the British Pharmacopoeia, but is inferior to many other anthelmintics and is not now employed .