Note 44 — Part II
Reading edition
Narra is the native name of the valuable timber trees in the genus Pterocarpus, especially P. indicas; it is sometimes called “the mahogany of the Philippines.” The species alluded to by Viana is probably P. Blancoi, called apálit by the Pampangos; “the decoction of the wood is nephritic” (Official Handbook).
Catbalonga (pepitas de San Ignacio) is one of the native names tor Strychnos Ignatii, one of the species from which the drug strychnine is obtained. See Jagor’s interesting note on this plant (Ignatia amara, L., or Strychnos Ignatii, Berg.) in his Reisen, pp. 213, 214; he says that it is used (under the name pepita de Catbalonga) as a household remedy in many families in Filipinas, and is regarded by the superstitious as a charm against poisons of all kinds. ↑