172 LEGUMINOS^. 



of the (dried?) plant, he obtained 22 cubic centimetres (f5vj.) of 

 sparteine, which we may estimate as equivalent to about J per mille. 



Stenhouse ascertained that the amount of sparteine and scoparin 

 depends much on external conditions, broom grown in the shade yield- 

 ing less than that produced in open sunny places. He states that 

 shepherds are well aware of the shrub possessing narcotic properties, 

 from having observed their sheep to become stupified and excited when 

 occasionally compelled to eat it. 



The experiments of Reinsch (1846) tend to show that broom con- 

 tains a bitter crystallizible principle in addition to the foregoing. The 

 seeds of the allied Cytisus Lahurnurti L. afford two highly poisonous 

 alkaloids, Gytisine and Laburnine, discovered by A. Husemann and 

 Marme in 1865. 



Uses — A decoction of broom tops, made from the dried herb, is 

 used as a diuretic and purgative. The juice of the fresh plant, pre- 

 served by the addition of alcohol, is also administered and is regarded 

 as a very efficient preparation. 



SEMEN FCENI GR^CI. 



Semen Foenugrceci ; Fenugreek ; F. Semences de Fenugrec ; G. Bocks- 



honrisamen. 



Botanical Origin — Trigonella Foenum grcecum L., au erect, sub- 

 glabrous, annual plant, 1 to 2 feet high, with solitaiy, subsessile, whitish 

 flowers ; indigenous to the countries surrounding the Mediterranean, in 

 which it has been long cultivated, and whence it appears to have spread 

 to India. 



History — In the old Egyptian preparation Kyj)hi, an ingredient 

 " Sebes or Sebtu " is mentioned, which is thought by Ebers to mean 

 fenugreek. This plant was well known to the Roman writers on 

 husbandry, as Porcius Cato (B.C. 234-149) who calls HFo&n'wm Grcecuni 

 and directs it to be sown as fodder for oxen. It is the r^At? of 

 Dioscorides and other Greek writers. Its mucilaginous seeds, "siliquse" 

 of the Roman peasants, were valued as an aliment and condiment for 

 man, and as such are still largely consumed in the East. They were 

 likewise supposed to possess many medicinal virtues, and had a place in 

 the pharmacopoeias of the last century. 



The cultivation of fenugreek in Central Europe was encouraged by 

 Charlemagne (a.d. 812), and the plant was grown in English gardens in 

 the 16th century. 



Description — The fenugreek plant has a sickle-shaped pod, 3 to 4 

 inches long, containing 10 to 20 hard, brownish -yellow seeds, having 

 the smell and taste which is characteristic of peas and beans, with addi- 

 tion of a cumarin- or melilot-flavour. 



The seeds are about ^ of an inch long, with a rhomboid outline, 

 often shrivelled and distorted ; they are somewhat compressed, with 

 the hilum on the sharper edge, and a deep furrow running from it and 

 almost dividing the seed into two unequal lobes. When the seed is 

 macerated in warm water, its structure becomes easily visible. The 



