394 OUCIUDEJE. 



t. 4, very similar plants, are used as Rasna. The Marathi 

 peasants call these plants Kcinhher. 



Ordinary hazar Rasna both in Calcutta and Bombay consists 

 of long branching roots, having something the appearance of 

 sarsaparilla^ but of a dark greyish-brown colour. The bark is 

 thin and marked by numerous longitudinal furrows, the 

 substance of the root light-brown and very fibrous ; a transverse 

 section shows the woody portion to be arranged in wedge- 

 shaped bundles. The root is inodorous, and has a starchy 

 bitterish and astringent taste. 



In Bombay a second kind of Rasna is sold at a much higher 

 price, which bears no resemblance to the oi'dinary commercial 

 article ; it occurs as straight pieces of a root about the size of a 

 ■crowquillat the thickest part, gradually tapering to a point, and 

 tied up in small bundles with thread. This root is of a light 

 brown colour, with a thick and very hard bark; it has a faint 

 peculiar odour when powdered, which recalls that of ipeca- 

 cuanha. It is called KhadaM-rasna in Bombay. Under this 

 name we have also received the roots of TylopJwra adhmatica. 



Chemical composition. — The standard Busna of the Indian 

 bazars yielded the following principles when an alcoholic 

 extract of the whole dried plant was treated in a similar manner 

 to that described under Jibanti p. 390 : a — resin acid of a cho- 

 colate colour, insoluble in petroleum ether and other: /3 — resm 

 acid soluble in ether : neutral yellow resin : an alkaloidal 

 principle: a white neutral principle: a neutral fluorescing 

 principle. In physical and chemical properties the first five 

 principles were similar to those described under Jihanti. An 

 examination of the more expensive lldsna of the Bombay 

 market gave the following results :— 



A tincture prepared with 80 per cent, alcohol, gelatinized on 

 concentration, after separation of the whole of the alcohol, the 

 extract was agitated with amylic alcohol, and water acidulated 

 with acetic acid. Amylic alcohol was selected for the first 

 extvactiou, because preliminary experiments indicated that 

 when petroleum ether or ether was used for agitation with an 



