206 PAWPAW SEED PARAGUAY TEA. 



PAWPAW SEED. Asimlna trlloba, Dur. 



N.O. Anonacea. 



Distinctive character Seeds flat, oblong-oval, with 

 the greyish hilum at one end, brown and slightly 

 polished, with darker brown pinnate lines on the sur- 

 face, about i inch long and -f inch broad and inch 

 thick. The seed has ruminated, horny albumen, and 

 exudes oil when pressed by the nail. Taste and odour, 

 resinous. 



PARAGUAY TEA. Ilex Paraguensls, A. St. Mil. 



N.O. Aquifoliacta. 



Syn. Mate", Yerba Mat6, Jesuit's Tea, Brazil Tea. 

 Part used. Leaves. 



Action Stimulant, diuretic. The peculiar properties 

 it possesses are chiefly due to Caffeine. Its action 

 resembles such stimulants as Tea, Coffee, and Coca, 

 although different from either. Is used largely in South 

 America as a Tea substitute. If taken in large doses it 

 acts as a purgative. 



Preparation Fluid extract : Dose, -1 drachm. 



Distinctive character The leaves are sold in two 

 forms. The Brazilian is sold in the form of roughly 

 powdered leaves and stalks. The Paraguay kind, 

 which is considered the best, consists of broken leaves 

 only. The leaves are coriaceous in texture, but are 

 rarely perfect enough to show their form. The charac- 

 teristic features under the microscope are the thick 

 striated cuticle, the straight-walled polygonal cells of 

 the epidermis, and the stomata overhung by three or 

 four contiguous cells. Taste, bitterish. Flavour, re- 

 calling those of tea, lime flowers, and orange. 



