(io8) 



2388. Mescal rum or brandy.— Distilled from the preceding. 



2388.1. Manioca. Cassava. Yuca. — The root of Manihot palmata (Veil.) Muell. 

 Arg. (Euphorbiaceae — Spurge Family). Native of tropical America and 

 cultivated. 



2388.2. Liquor de Manioca. — A liquor distilled from the preceding. 



2389. David's root. — The root of Chiococca alba (L.) A. Hitchc. (Rubtaceae — 



Madder Family). Native of tropical America. Used by the West Indian 

 natives in the preparation of a beverage. Acquired in Jamaica by J. A. 

 Shafer. 



2390. Mavi. — An undetermined bark used in Porto Rico in the preparation of a 



beverage. Acquired by L. M. Underwood. 



2391. Caapi root and leafy branch. 



2392. Caapi. — A non-alcoholic beverage prepared by soaking in water the root of 



Banisteriopsis Caapi (Spruce). (Malpighiaceae— Malpighia Family.) 

 Nature of northwestern Brazil and cultivated. It produces a profound 

 narcotic effect, with great and agreeable hallucinations. A slightly excessive 

 dose may cause stupor and death. 



2393. Kava. Kawa. — The rootstock and root of Macropiper latifolium (L.f.) Miq. 



(Piperaceae — Pepper Family). Native of Polynesia and cultivated. 

 The source of a beverage much used in the Pacific Islands. 



Proximate Principles or Plant Constituents 



Proximate principles are substances of definite chemical 

 composition existing naturally in the living body, such as 

 sugar, starch, quinine and oxalic acid. It is in their proxi- 

 mate principles that the toxic, medicinal, nutritive and 

 other physiological properties of plants reside. In many 

 cases, these principles are extracted in the pure state, for 

 human use. In others, the plant body, or part of it, con- 

 tains the useful principle employed. In such cases, it is 

 often desirable to know the percentage of proximate prin- 

 ciple that the substance contains, the process of determining 

 it being called assaying. Chemical analysis is in large part 

 the determination of the proximate principles and their 

 amounts. In the use of many medicines and some foods, 

 the statutes require that when sold under their legally 

 recognized title, they must contain not less than a named 

 percentage of useful constituent. Such articles are called 

 standardized, and their number is being steadily increased. 

 The method is applicable to a very large portion of the 

 products in common use and nothing else constitutes such 



