Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 09.djvu/284

TAMARIND 240 TAMILS It furnishes excellent charcoal for the manufacture of gunpowder. The pulp of the legumes pressed in syrup is a de- licious confection. The flowers and fruit are used in India as an astringent or as a mordant in dyeing, especially with safflower; the leaves furnish a yellow dye. The seeds yield a clear, bright, fluid oil, with an odor like that of the linseed; their powder mixed with thin SEED Pod tamarind: branch in flower seed-pod section glue makes a strong cement for wood. The West Indian and South American variety of T. indica (variety occident- alis) has legumes only 3 times as long as broad, whereas the Indian tree has them 6 times as long. The tamarinds sold in the United States are chiefly West Indian tamarinds. They differ from the Black or East In- dian tamarinds, of which the preserved pulp is black. In pharmacy tamarinds are used as gentle laxatives; they are refrigerant from the acids which they contain, and, when infused, constitute a cooling drink in fevers. They enter into the Confectio senme. In India the seeds are given in dysentery, etc.; in the Mau- ritius a decoction of the bark is given in asthma. TAMATAVE, a seaport on the coast of Madagascar and the chief commercial center of the island ; pop. about 15,000. TAMAULIPAS, (ta-mou-le'pas), a State of Mexico, bordering on Texas and the Gulf of Mexico; is about 400 miles long and 130 miles broad; area. 30,831 square miles; pop. about 257,000. The surface is diversified and the soil generally fertile. It produces most of the grains, fruits and woods of the tem- perate zone. Iron, silver, and salt are the chief mineral products. Stock of all kinds is raised and a considerable trade in them and other articles is carried on. The principal ports are Tampico and Matamoras. TAMBELAN ISLANDS, a group in the China Sea, between Borneo and Singapore. They are under Dutch con- trol. TAMBOURINE, or TAMBOURIN, an ancient pulsatile musical instrument of the drum class, popular among all Euro- pean people, but particularly those of the S. The Biscayan and Italian peas- antry employ it on every festal occa- sion. It is formed of a hoop of wood, sometimes of metal, over which is stretched a piece of parchment or skin; the sides of the hoop are pierced with holes, in which are inserted pieces of metal in pairs, called jingles. Small bells are sometimes fastened on to the outer edge of the hoop. It is sounded by being struck with the knuckles, or by dravnng the fingers or thumb over the skiUj^ which produces what is called "the roll, a peculiar drone. Also a stage dance formerly popular in France. It was of a lively measure, and accom- panied with a pedal bass in imitation of the roll." TAMBOUR WORK (French, tambour, a drum), a species of embroidery on mus- lin or other thin material, worked on circular frames which resemble drum heads. The practice of tambouring is rapidly being replaced by pattern weaving. See Embroidery. TAMBOV, a province of Russia, S. of Nijni-Novgorod and Vladimir, between the basins of the Oka and the Don; area, 25,710 square miles; pop. about 3,555,000. It IS one of the largest, most fertile, and most densely peopled provinces of cen- tral Russia. More than two-thirds of the surface is arable. The principal crops are corn and hemp. Before the World War vast numbers of excellent horses, _ cattle, and sheep were reared. The chief industrial establishments are distilleries, tallow-melting works, sugar works, and woolen mills. Tambov, the capital, 263 miles S. E. of Moscow, is built mostly of wood. It has a great trade in corn and cattle. Pop. about 71,500. TAMILS, the name of a race which inhabits South India and Ceylon. The Tamils belong to the Dravidian stock of