290 



PHY 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



PHY 



plants, have a great many buds, which are all of the same 

 nature, and may be considered as repositories of many other 

 annual plants. They are, therefore, not simple, but, like the 

 polypes in the animal kingdom, compound bodies. Below 

 the bark in these plants, there are, according to the species, 

 the rudiments of a number of buds, which, by a due supply 

 of sap, may be finally evolved. New-formed branches of 

 clipped willows, are therefore not to be considered as repro- 

 duced parts. We learn from chemical analysis, that the con- 

 stituent parts of vegetables are very different from those of 

 animals. Carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, are the simple 

 substances of which plants are principally composed. Azote 

 is perceptible in all the parts of animals, excepting in the 

 fat. It is found in few plants, and that only in particular 

 parts. Carbon, is the chief constituent of vegetables. It is 

 from this that plants in dry distillation emit so great a quan- 

 tity of carbonic acid gas, and leave behind them many pieces 

 of coal. Sulphur and phosphorus, both of which abound in 

 animals, are but rarely observed in the vegetable world. 

 Sulphur becomes perceptible in the roots of the Rumex 

 Patientia, after they have been rubbed and immersed in 

 water. Sulphur and phosphorus are both visible in plants 

 of the fifteenth class, (Tetradynamia,) which also contain 

 azote. They are found also in the seeds of the different 

 species of grain. The seeds of Sinapis alba, and Triticum 

 cestivum, when distilled, emit phosphorus ; and the ashes of 

 all plants of the Tetradynamia class contain phosphate of 

 lime. Potash, or vegetable alkali, exists in almost all plants, 

 though in very small proportions. The Filices, the Erigeron 

 Canadense, the fruits of the Syringa vulgaris and jEsculus 

 Hippocastanum, are alone particularly supplied with it. It 

 is found most frequently in combination with vegetable 

 acids. Soda is peculiar to marine plants. Lime is a risi- 

 duum found in the ashes of plants, and was formerly com- 

 bined with vegetable acids. It is most plentiful in the Chara 

 tomentosa, a pound of which yields six ounces of carbonate 

 of lime. In the Fungi, at least in the Peziza and Byssus, 

 not a particle of lime can be discovered. Alumina, silica, 

 and magnesia, are not nearly so general. The first occurs 

 very seldom. Silica exists in the ashes of most vegetables, 

 but is found chiefly in the Grasses. In the Bambusa arun- 

 dinacea, it produces a peculiar concretion. It also forms 

 a constituent part of the fibres of plants. It appears to 

 exist in the wood of the Alnus glutinosa and Betula alba, as 

 the wood when turned upon the lathe frequently appears to 

 glitter. Magnesia is much less frequent than lime. Some 

 plants, however, possess it in as great a degree. Thus, the 

 Salsola Soda has in one pound nearly five drachms of pure 

 magnesia. Barytes is alleged by some to exist in the Grasses. 

 Iron, but still more frequently manganese, is perceptible in 

 the ashes of almost every plant. The following salts, com- 

 pounded from neutrals, are the most abundant in the vege- 

 table kingdom : Sulphate and muriate of potash, sulphate 

 of lime, sulphate of soda is not common. It is found in 

 the Tamarix gallica. Muriate of soda exists in several ma- 

 rine plants, and is found in a crystallized form on the leaves 

 of a South American plant. Nitrate of potash is seen in the 

 Borrago officinalis, Helianthus annuus, Mesembryanthemum 

 crystallimim and edule, Achillea miUefolium, Fumaria offici- 

 nalis, Sonchus arvensis, &c. &c. Nitrate of magnesia, in 

 Zea Mays. 



" From the chemical principles now premised, various sub- 

 stances are formed, according to the diversity of proportion, 

 and the particular kind of combination. TTiese are called 

 the more immediate constituents of vegetables. The follow- 

 ing are all that have hitherto been discovered: 1. Mucilage, 



a tasteless friable substance, destitute of smell, and soluble 

 in cold or warm water, to which it communicates a viscidity. 

 It is found in almost all plants, and in some forms the con- 

 stituent part ; for example, in the roots of the Althaea offici- 

 nalis, in the stalks of the Astragalus crcticus and gummifer, 

 in the leaves of the Malva rotundifolia, in the seeds of the 

 Pyrus Cydonia and Plantago CynopS, in the flowers of the 

 Verbascum Thapsus, &c. It exudes from the bark of some 

 trees like gum ; for example, Mimosa mlotica, Prunus domes- 

 tica and avium. 2 .Sugar possesses a peculiarly sweet taste, 

 dissolves in cold or warm water, and in spirit of wine. It is 

 found in a great many plants, but seldom pure, as it is ge- 

 nerally combined with mucilage, extractive 'acids, or neu- 

 trals which have an excess of acid, neutral salts. Pure su- 

 gar is obtained from Saccharum qfficinarum, Acer saccha- 

 rinum and dasycarpum. A mixture of honey and manna 

 differ very little from sugar. 3. Vegetable acids consist of 

 carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, and their diversity originates 

 in the variable proportion of these constituents. We are at 

 present acquainted with six kinds of vegetable acids, namely: 

 i. Tartaric acid, is found as supertartrate of potash in the 

 fruits of the Vitis vinifera, Tamarindus indica, Berberis vul- 

 garis, and Rhus typhinum, in the herb Melissa officinalis, 

 and Centaurea benedicta, in the roots of the Ononis, &c. : 

 11. Oxalic acid, which, like the former, is frequently com- 

 bined with potash, occurs as superoxalate of potash in dif- 

 ferent species of the Oxalis and Rumex. It is found per- 

 fectly neutralized in a great many barks and roots, and in 

 this state is particularly plentiful in Rhubarb : in. Citric 

 acid, is discovered combined with a little mucilage, in the 

 fruits of Citrus medica, Vaccinium Oxycoccus, Vitis idaa, and 

 Prunus Padus. It is found almost equally mixed with mu- 

 cilage and malic acid, in Ribes Grossularia, Rubus Idceus, 

 Ribes rubrum, Vaccinium Myrtillus, Pyrus Aria, Prunus Ce- 

 rasus, Fragaria vesca, &c. : iv. Malic acid, differs from the 

 preceding in this respect, that it never appears in a crystal- 

 lized form. It is found as pure acid, and never combined 

 with potash. It is contained almost pure, at least combined 

 only with sugar and mucilage, in sour apples, in the fruits 

 of the Sambucus nigra, Prunus spinosa, Sorbus aucuparia, 

 and Prunus domestica. The juice of several species of Se- 

 dum, Sempervivum, Crassula, and Mesembryanthenuim, con- 

 tains a great quantity of supermalate of lime: v. Benzoic 

 acid, may be sublimed without being destroyed* It is dis- 

 covered in the resin of the Styrax Benzoin, in the balsam of 

 the Myroxylon peruiferum, and Toluifrra Balsamum, and 

 the last of all in the fruit of the Vanilla aromatica: vi. Gal- 

 lic acid, possesses the property of precipitating iron black, 

 and is found combined with tannin in all plants of an astrin- 

 gent taste. 4. Starch does not combine with cold water, 

 but combines with boiling water, and forms a well-known 

 paste. It is a constituent of the different species of corn, 

 of bulbous roots, and others; such as, Orchis, Arum, Jatio- 

 pha Manihot, Solanum tuberosum, Bryonia alba and dioica, 

 Poeonia officinalis, &c. The pulp of some Palms is pure 

 starch ; for example, the well-known sago of Carota urens. 

 It is found in the seeds of some plants, as in jEsculus Hip- 

 pocastanum, Amygdalus communis, Lichen islandicus, ran- 

 giferinus, &c. and in many Liverworts. 5. Gluten seldom 

 occurs in the vegetable kingdom. It does not dissolve in 

 water of any temperature. Before being dried it is very 

 viscous, tenacious, and elastic; when dried, it resembles 

 horn, and burns with precisely the same smell. Upon the 

 whole, as it contains azote, it approaches nearer to animal 

 substances. It is separated from the flour of wheat by wash- 

 ing in cold water. It is found also in the juices of Beech 



