Sarasin, ascertained that it grew near Quebec, but though he 

 found it to be used a little medicinally by the Indians, it had no 

 extraordinary reputation with them. 



From Canada the French of Quebec began to export it through 

 France to China. The profits at first were very great, and Indian 

 labour, save for the collecting of Ginseng, became unobtainable 

 about Quebec. These profits led to the discovery of the root over 

 some of the States of New England, and to the exportation taking 

 large proportions. The usual exhaustion of the supply followed ; 

 poor roots were gathered, until a miserable cargo" sent from 

 Bordeaux to China found no purchaser, and for the time the trade 

 terminated about 1810. When later the trade was renewed 

 American roots took the lowest price and continue to do bo. 



Ginseng is a tonic and stimulant and some attribute to it 

 aphrodisiac properties, but these are doubtful. The Chinese 

 believe that it prolongs and sustains life more than any 

 other drug. 



It has been tried in Europe and North America, and almost 

 discarded except as a demulcent. Bigelow says of it (Med. Bot., ii., 

 p. 82) that in his time it was sold as a masticatory, and adds, " it 

 is certainly one of the most innocent articles for this purpose. 

 Its place in medicine is near liquorice, but it is not active." 



Undoubtedly European opinion is largely based on experiments 

 with American roots. It is not clear that the Asiatic root is as 

 inert as the North American. Some writers say it is more active, 

 which seems possible, but an exact statement cannot be made. 

 Possibly the most, valued kinds are really less inert than others. 



The cultivation of Ginseng is very similar everywhere. The 

 necessary shade has to be provided either by planting under trees, 

 or by some form of covering. Butz (oji. rit.) at p. 21 figures the 

 lattice shading used in the United States ; and for the methods in 

 vogue in North America reference can be made to his article, and 

 to the Kew Bulletin (1893, p. 71). 



The method in use in Japan is described by Fesca in Beitrdge 

 zur Kenntniss der Japanischen Landtvirthshaft, ii., pp. 333-336. 

 The plants are shaded throughout the summer by means of a 

 thatched straw roof. 



Henry, in a letter to Kew, describes the cultivation in South 

 China as follows : — 



"My native collector procured the specimens sent forward 

 under Nos. 11,407 and 11,407a in the mountains lying about 50 

 miles south-east of Mengtse. Here the cultivation of the plant is 

 carried on in small plots in clearings of the forests by some of the 

 peculiar aborigines named Yao-jen. The seeds are sown about 

 5 inches apart in carefully prepared soil. In the second year the 

 young rhizomes, from which the leaves and rootlets have been cut 

 oflf, are transplanted to other plots ; and in the fourth year the 

 rhizomes are dug up and sun-dried. The growing plants are pro- 

 tected from the glare of the sun by rude stagings made of vertical 

 stakes across which are laid leafy branches of trees. This mode 

 of cultivation under partial cover is also used by the Chinese in 

 Hupeh in the case of huang-lien (Coptis Teeta, Wall.), another 

 valued drug-plant. 



