Kola Nut

Kola Nut, the seed of Cola acuminata, a sterculiaceous tree, 40 feet high, native to west tropical Africa. In the Western Soudan, where it is known as the Guru nut, it is highly valued, being used to clear and sweeten muddy water, to assist digestion, and to allay hunger. About 1865 it was brought into notice as a source of caffeine, of which it contains over 2 per cent., or more than the best coffee, together with glucose and more theobromine and three times as much starch as cacao-beans, which belong to the same natural order. A somewhat bitter chocolate has been prepared from these nuts. About 1,000 baskets of 3 cwts. each are annually imported into Senegambia from Sierra Leone for transmission to France and Germany. The Bitter or Male Kola (Garcinia Kola) contains no caffeine.