314 UMBELLIFER^. 



incense.i The largest roots, for which we are indebted to Professor 

 Dymock, are three inches in diameter at the crown, by 8 inches in 

 length. They are easily distinguished from the Sumbul by their 

 decidedly yellowish hue as well as by the absence of any musky odour. 

 We extracted by alcohol, from the root dried at 100° C, 26 per cent, of 

 a resin identical with that afforded by commercial Ammoniacum. 



Bombay Sumbul agrees with the Indian Sumhul as described by 

 Pereira." 



ASAFCETIDA. 



Gummi-resina Asafcetida vel Assafcetida; Asafcetlda; ¥. Asafatida; 



G. Asant, titinkasant. 



Botanical Origin — Two perennial umbelliferous plants are now 

 generally cited as the source of this drug; but though they are both 

 capable of affording a gum-resin of strong alliaceous odour, it has not 

 been proved that either of them furnishes the asafcetida of commerce, 

 ine plants in question are : — 



1. Fer-da FaHhex Boiss. (Narthex- Asafcetida Falconer), a gigantic 

 Herbaceous plant, having a large root several inches in thickness, the 

 crown of which is clothed with coarse bristly fibres ; it has an erect 

 stem attammg 10 feet in height, throwing out from neai- its base 

 upwards a regular series of branches bearing compound umbels, each 

 branch proceedmg from the axil of a large sheathing inflated petiole, 

 the upper of which are destitute of lamina. The radical leaves, l^ feet 



iged margin. When 



It has a large 



muivy jnice havmg a powerful smell of asafcetida. It commences to 

 glow m early sprmg, rapidly throwing up its foliage, which dies away 

 : T^ begmnmg of summer. It does not flower till the root has 

 acqmred a considerable size and is several years old. 



Narthex 



flr.,.r^ 7 , . ' .""*^" ^^^vv cAisLs ui scvcrai Dotanic garaens unu '^"^ 

 i^'!f'"^^,^"ce in that of Edinburgh, was discovered by Falconer m 



of Kashmir.3 



Assa foetidu 



Hasora (35° N. lai, 74°-30 E. long, north 



Hooker (Scorodosma fcetidwni 



In 



forni .f 1 %"-.""' ^e^**" /o^cifto JL. in Boissier, Flora orientalis ii. yy*j— -^^ 

 th;. r^T ! ' '^ }f ^"^^^^' summit of the root, and in general aspect, 

 hthfc.r'T^i'' ^^" preceding; but it has the stem (5 to 7 feet 

 at^lh. ^ '^^.' ^'^^ ^^^ ^rahdB, which are very numerous, collected 

 sheathinl r 'i "'"'1*^^ ^^^ stem-leaves have not the voluminous 

 NTu^^h^ 't^ ^y^-} ^'^ «^ ^t^iking a feature in Narthe^. In 

 obsolete • >^.!/ii. / ^Y ^'"^^ ''^^^ conspicuous,-in Scorodosma almost 

 cousiderabK « 1 .development of these organs in feruloid plants varies 

 ,-n., T}r^^' ^."^ lias been reiected bv Bpntbnm nnrl PTnnker as afford- 



mSre^'puCSThan^i^wt'^^ character. Scorodosma is apparently 



^ECenteTiaJ; mH^P^' o „ 'We refrain from citing localities m 



^ ; also Bentley, PAa,-^'^ »• P-. 2 857) Tibet, Beluchistan and Persia, where plant 

 ,9. J'. «am./o«m.ix. (1878) supposed to agree with that of Falconer 



208 

 4 



have been found by other collectors. 



