186 EUPHORBIA. No. 37. 



a 



violent in their operation; but have since been found 

 to be manageable and safe; the action is always pro- 

 portionate to the quantity taken, which does not hap- 

 pen with common Ipecac. As a cathartic they have 

 been found equal or better than Jalap or Scammony; 

 requiring only half the dose, ten grains will com- 

 monly purge well, while twenty-five to thirty grains 

 produce repeated evacuations from the stomach. 

 Given in large doses they excite violent vomiting, 

 attended with heat, vertigo, dizziness and debility. 

 The E. corollata. appears to be the most efficient 

 since it purges at the dose of three to ten grains, and 

 vomits at ten to twenty* But a diversity has been 

 noticed in various constitutions, the same doses being 

 sometimes inert, cathartic or emetic, or both in some 

 instances; they often produce nausea even in small 

 doses, and then act as diaphoretics like Ipecac, to 

 which they are preferable by having no unpleasant 

 taste, nor exciting pains and spasms. 



The medical properties reside in the thick bark of 

 the root, which forms two thirds of the whole root, and 

 produces one twelfth of watery extract, and one tenth 

 of alcoholic extract. They may be substituted to 

 Ipecac in all the pharmaceutical preparations, wine, 

 tincture, extratt, &c.; the emetic dose of the wine is 

 an ounce, of the extract three to five grains. When 

 used as a diaphoretic and expectorant, the dose is 

 three or four grains of the powder : it may be com- 

 bined with opium or antimonials. The bruised root 

 applied to the skin, produces vesication in about twelve 

 tours, which lasts two or three days j this property 



