84 SCIENTIFIC AND APPLIED PHARMACOGNOSY 



Literature. Slade, Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1905, p. 262; Heyl and 

 others, Jour. Amer. Chem. Soc., 1911, p. 206; Ibid., 1913, p. 258; 

 Ibid., 1913, p. 803. 



Black Hellebore consists of the rhizome and roots of Helleborus 

 niger (Fam. Ranunculaceae), a perennial herb indigenous to the 

 Eastern and Southern Alps and also cultivated. The rhizome is 2.5 

 to 7.5 cm. long, 6 to 12 mm. in diameter; with numerous short, 

 knotty branches and short, brittle roots; externally, of a grayish- 

 black color; internally, with a characteristic dicotyledonous structure; 

 odor slight; taste sweet, somewhat bitter and acrid. The drug con- 

 tains two crystalline glucosides; helleborin, a narcotic poison with a 

 burning taste, and helleborein, a cardiac stimulant and having a 

 sweetish taste. The former gives a violet-red color with concentrated 

 sulphuric acid and the latter a deep violet color with the same reagent. 

 The drug also contains a volatile oil, two acrid resins, an acrid fixed 

 oil, aconitic acid and gallates of calcium and potassium. 



The rhizome of Helleborus viridis (so-called " Green Hellebore ") 

 a plant found in Middle and Southern Europe, has been used similarly 

 to that of H. niger. It contains the same principles as H. niger, the 

 helleborein apparently predominating. 



False Hellebore is the entire herb of Adonis vernalis (Fam. 

 Ranunculaceae) and other species of Adonis indigenous to Europe 

 and Asia. The drug contains adonidin, a mixture of several prin- 

 ciples, the most important being the amorphous glucoside picra- 

 donidin, a principle resembling digitalin in its physiologic action. 



COLCHICI CORMUS. Colchicum Corm. The corm of Col- 

 chicum autumnale (Fam. Liliacese), a perennial bulbous plant 

 native of and growing in moist meadows and pastures of England, 

 Southern and Middle Europe and Northern Africa. The corm is 

 collected in early summer before the flowering period, deprived of 

 the membranous, scaly coat, cut into transverse pieces, and dried at 

 a temperature of 65 C. Tubers that are collected in the fall, either 

 during the flowering season or later, are considered to be more active. 

 The commercial supply is obtained from England and Germany. 



Description. Obconical, with a groove on one side, sometimes 

 with fragments of the flower-stalk, usually in transverse, reniform 

 sections from 15 to 20 mm. long, about 12 mm. wide and 3 to 5 mm. 

 thick; externally dark brown, longitudinally wrinkled; fracture 

 short, mealy; internally light brown, with numerous scattered 

 fibro vascular bundles; odor slight; taste bitter and acrid. 



Inner Structure. Consisting mostly of starch-bearing paren- 

 chyma and a few scattered concentric fibrovascular bundles having 



