SARSAPARILLA. 



73 



tangentally extended, as seen in Honduras sarsaparilla, or they 

 may be narrowly oval, as seen in the Mexican variety. 



The secondary deposits may be uniform in width, as 

 in Rio Negro sarsaparilla, or this deposit of cellulose may 

 be found almost entirely on the inner surface, as' in the 

 Jamaica variety. 



Below is given the differences, in a tabular form, of the 

 four varieties of sarsaparilla which are recognized by trie new 

 National Dispensatory. 



VARIETIES OF SARSAPARILLA. 



The Honduras sarsaparilla see figs, i and table, may 

 be taken as the typical variety. It is of a gray or light brown 

 color, striped or slightly wrinkled, about half an inch in di- 

 ameter. When a cross section of the root is made it exhibits 

 a thick parenchyma, or, as it is commonly called, bark, loaded 

 with starch. While the Honduras is the variety generally used 

 in this country, the Jamaica is the only one recognized by the 

 British Pharmacopoeia, and the Mexican is the only one the 

 Germans recognize as officinal. There are nearly 600,000 Ibs. 

 annually used in the United States. 



