i0&.^^H HORTUS , JAMAICENSIS. ' n? 



CH.AW STICK. GOUANIA. 



'C/.. 23, o)i.\.-~-Pobjgamiamonoeci(i. Nat. or, Ilhamni. 



This is so named in honour of Antoine Gouan, M. D. aiitiior of some cekbrated bo- 

 tanical works. 



GfN. CHAR. Hi'njmphrodite fl(ys.''ers. Cdyx a one-Jt;;fol, s;ipe>ior, funnel-form, 

 five-cleft, ijerianili; tube pernumeut, segments ovate, acute, spreading, decidu- 

 ous ; there is no corolla ; the stamens are five filansents, subulate, leniith of the 

 calvx, and alternate with the segments ; anthers roundish, incumbent, veiled ; 



veil like a cowl, elastic ;. the pistil has an inf&rior germ, subulate style, half three- 

 cleft, and bbtnse stiginas ; the pericarp is a dry fruit, three-sided," divisible into 



- three seeds ; Veeds three parts of the fruit, roundish, inclined to <hree-sided, two- 

 xvinged. Males on ike sanw plant. Calyx, corolla, and stamen:;, as in the htr- 

 Oiiaphrodite ; stigmas obscure or none. There is only oiic species, 



DOMINGENStS. -DOMINGO. 



Jladi.v fruticpm liitea, g'ycyrrhiza: similis, cortice fusco dentihus 

 vtuildificandis inscrviev.s. Sloane,- v. 2, p, 18o, t. 232, 'f. 2, 3. 

 :'S'ari>ientosus fvliis waiU venosis^ capsulis trigoiiis racemosis. 

 Browne, p. 172. 



"This plant is very common in Jamaica, has a shrubby stem, which climbs like hops 

 Ly axillary tendrils. The leaves are ovate;, or oblong-ovate, acuminate or blunt, with 

 a point, unequally serrate-toothed, or slightly crenate only, smooth, deep green, al- 



ternate, petioled, two inches long; racemes -uirnished with one or two lealiets ; the 

 male flowers have no pistil whatsoever, but there are three or f lur flowers of an'hun- 

 dred that hav&a style- vvithout any germ. The bark and wood of this plant is of a plea- 

 sant bitter taste, and, being of a fibrous texture, i cut into sliost pieces, and very ge- 

 nerally converted into tooth brushes, which it is well adapted for, as it really whitens 

 and preserves the teeth better tlian any tooth powder. The stalk is seldom thicker than 

 the little finger, having a brownish bark, and yellowisii wood, and is very tough and 

 flexible. The juice raises a considerable ferment in the saliva, and a piece of the stalk, 



' put into any liquor and agitated, occasions fermentation in Uie liquor, as does that of 

 the common green withe. It is generally put in those cool-diiiiks often used in Ja- 



, maica, to which it yields an agreeable flavour. A decoction of the roots, like that of 

 man}' other bitters, is useful in dropsical cases ;. and the whole plant is reckoned a good 

 antiseptic. 



Dr. Wright says that this withe, chewed with the juice and swallowed, is an agree- 

 able stomachic, and useful for promoting an appetite, or removing pains in the sto- 

 mach from relaxation. What, however, is often called pain in the stomach, is an af- 

 fection of the liver, which should carefully be distinguished, as in this case all tonics 

 or bitters do mischief. If the liver be diseased, we have a sovereign remedy in calomel. 

 One grain, for six nights running, is generally sufScient, then [stopping for a few nights, 

 and beginning as before for a second or third time, is generally sufficient to remove 

 the complaint. /f'^r/jg"/i'. 



Attoo. I never could find any other name for this plant, and that I had from a 

 feegro. I tfike it to ie.the same jjlaiit that Sir H. Sloaae calls, in his catalogue ofJa- 



A a .inaicit 



