84 



AMERICAN ROOT DRUGS. 



GOLDTHREAD. 



Coptis trifotia (L.) Salisb. 



Other common ««»tcs.— Coptis, cankerroot. mouthroot, yellowroot. 

 Habitat and range.— Thi^i pretty little perennial is native in damp, mossy 

 woods and bogs from Canada and Alaska south to Maryland and Minnesota. It 

 is most common in the New England States, northern New York and Michigan. 

 f.nd in Canada, where it frequents the dark sphagnum swamps, cold bogs, and 

 the shade of dense forests of cedars, pines, and other evergreens. 



Description of plant.— Anyone familiar with this attractive little plant will 

 j!gree that it is well named. The roots of goldthread, running not far beneath 

 the surface of the ground, are indeed like so many tangled threads of gold. 

 The plant in the general appearance of its leaves and flowers very closely re- 

 t^embles the strawberry plant. It is of low growth, only 3 to 6 inches in height, 

 and belongs to the crowfoot family (Ranunculacete). The leaves are all basal, 

 and are borne on long, slender stems ; they are evergreen, dark green and shining 

 on the lipper surface and lighter green beneath, divided into three parts, which 

 are prominently veined and toothed. A single small, white, star-shaped flower 



is borne at the ends of 

 the flowering stalks, ap- 

 pearing froin May to Au- 

 gust. (Fig. 11.) The 5 

 to 7 sepals or lobes of the 

 calyx are white and like 

 petals, and the petals of 

 the corolla, 5 to 7 in 

 number, are smaller, club 

 shaped, a n d yellow at 

 the base. The seed pods 

 are stalked, oblong, 

 compressed, spreading, 

 tipped with the persist- 

 ent style, and containing 

 small black seeds. 



Description of root. — 

 Goldthread has a long, slender, creeping root, which is much branched and fre- 

 quently matted. (Fig. 11.) The color of these roots is a bright golden yellow,. 

 As found in the stores, goldthread consists usually of tangled masses of these 

 golden-yellow roots, mixed with the leaves and stems of the plant,, but the root is 

 the part prescribed for use. The root is bitter and has no odor. 



Collection, prices, and uses. — The time for collecting goldthread is in au- 

 tumn. After removing the covering of dead leaves and moss, the creeping 

 yellow roots of goldthread will be seen very close to the surface of the 

 ground, from which they can be very easily pulled. They should, of course, be 

 carefully dried. As already stated, although the roots and rootlets are the 

 parts to be used, the commercial article is freely mixed with the leaves and 

 stems of the plant. Evidences of the pine-woods home of this plant, in the. form 

 of pine needles and bits of moss, are often seen in the goldthread received for 

 market. Goldthread brings from GO to 70 cents a pound. 



The Indians and early white settlers used this little root as a remedy for 

 various forms of ulcerated and sore mouth, and it is still used as a wash or 

 gargle for affections of this sort. It is also employed as a bitter tonic. 



Goldthread was official in the United States Pharmacopoeia from 1820 to 1880. 

 107 



Fir. n.—Go\dthiead {Coptis4rifoUa). After Lloyd's Drugsand Medi- 

 cines of North America. 



