170 A COMPENDIUM OF 
Aconitum, Aconite, Aconitum Napellus— 
Natural order Ranunculaceze. Common names, 
Monkshood, and Wolfsbane. Aconite has al- 
ready been described under the head of roots, 
but as the leaf plays an important part in med- 
icine, I will again give a short description of the 
plant. This perennial plant is a native of Eu- 
rope and northern Asia, and is cultivated both 
for its ornamental flowers and for medicine. 
The leaves of the plant under consideration, are 
inclined to be cordate in shape, palmately cut, 
each segment of which is lanceolate and toothed 
(dentate), somewhat wedge-shaped in their out- 
lines; when dry, odor slight and not peculiar, 
but the taste decided, producing a tingling sen- 
sation to the tongue and a bitter acridity to the 
palate. The flowers occur in spikes or racemes 
of a bright blue color, helmet or cowl shape; 
each corolla has five petals, two superior and 
three inferior; they are small and often abor- 
tive. The leaves contain the same constituents 
as the root, but in much less proportion. The 
alkaloid aconttia, acotine, aconttine, or aconttina, 
as it is variously termed, is obtained, as a rule, 
from the root, and occurs both as an amorphous 
and crystalline substance of a creamy color, 
very poisonous. There are six or seven varie- 
ties of aconite. See Dispensatory, 17th Ed., 
page 108. 
Aurantii, Orange, Citrus vulgaris of Risso.— 
Natural order Aurantiacee, This handsome 
evergreen tree, when full grown, is quite im- 
posing, and adorns many broad acres and gat- 
dens of the warmer portions of the world. It 
1s a native ofAsia, and largely cultivated for its 
