SARSAPARILLA. 95 



In Mexican sarsaparilla the cortical portion is from 

 three to four times as thick as the central portion. The 

 epidermis is quite often present, with root hairs. The 

 hypodermis is three to five layers of cells wide, the outer 

 angles of the cells are thickened; the lumen is small. 

 The cortical cells vary in starch content. The endoder- 

 mis cells are usually radially elongated, thickened on the 

 sides and inner walls, of small lumen as a rule (though 

 sometimes the lumen is considerable). The pith is 

 broader than the woody ring, poor in starch, and rich in 

 acicular crystals of calcium oxalate. 



In Jamaica sarsaparilla the cortex is usually half as 

 wide as the central portion. The epidermal hairs are usu- 

 ally more numerous than in other types. The hypodermis 

 is arranged in two or three rows, its cells thickened on the 

 outer wall and usually with small lumen. The cortex 

 cells are poor in starch, and apt to be richly pitted. In 

 the endodermis sheath, the cells are radially elongated, 

 thickened on lateral and inner walls, and pored. The 

 pith is as large as the woody cylinder, also pitted. Starch 

 is scanty. 



Powdered Honduras Sarsaparilla. — A mixture of sev- 

 eral sarsaparillas is almost impossible to detect, there- 

 fore an average powder will be described. The chief 

 microscopical characteristics are starch, crystals, paren- 

 chyma tic cells, both thick- walled and thin- walled, hairs, 

 endodermis sheath cells, vessels, fibres, and phloem 

 elements. 



The starch grains are very numerous, in twos, threes, 

 fours, or even more decompounded ; the hilum is usually 

 centric and the edges are rounded. Single grains range 

 from 5 to 15 microns in diameter, the compound grains 

 varying from 12 to 20 microns. The crystals are of the 

 acicular variety of calcium oxalate ; they vary in size, but 

 average about 60 to 80 microns in length. 



The parenchymatic cells of the hypoderm are thick- 



