HISTOKY. 3 



and Korea that so closely resemble ginseng in appear- 

 ance that even experts find difficulty in detecting them 

 when mixed with the true root. These roots, however, 

 have' no value, and are appreciated only by the unprin- 

 cipled men who use them as adulterants of true ginseng, 

 or as substitutes therefor. 



Search in America, however, resulted more favor- 

 ably. A plant (Panax qmnquefolium) , Fig. 2, was 

 found that not only resembles the Chinese root (P. 

 ginseng) in appearance, but possesses its medicinal 

 qualities. In 1714 Father Jartoux, a missionary among 

 the Chinese, published "A Description of a Tartarian 

 Plant called Gin-seng" in the Philosophical Transactions 

 of the Eoyal Society of London, a copy of which shortly 

 afterward came under the eye of Father Lafitau, a mis- 

 sionary among the Iroqnois Indians in Quebec. Believ- 

 ing that there might be such a plant growing in the 

 Canadian forests, Lafitau made diligent inquiry and 

 untiring search for it, and after about two years his 

 efforts were successful. In 1716 the plant now known 

 as American ginseng was found near Montreal. 



Koots were gathered and dried by the Indians and 

 sent to China, where they were so well received that a 

 considerable trade in ginseng sprang up. The roots 

 'were purchased from the collectors at about thirty-five 

 cents a pound, and were often sold in China for ten or 

 twelve times that amount. At that time all the trading 

 in thisxoot was done by the officers and crew of a French 

 trading organization, the " Company of the Indies." 

 When, however, the directors of the company discovered 

 that there was a wide margin of profit to be made upon 

 this root, they assumed control of the industry and pro- 

 hibited the private ventures of their employes. This 

 move had a marked effect upon the price, which quickly 

 rose to more than five dollars a pound. Good prices 

 such as these might possibly have been maintained had 



