17 



rendered limpid, has been recommended as a specific in 

 incontinence of urine, proceeding from spasm (Enuresis 

 spastica), and is given in doses of a tablespoonful at in- 

 tervals. The Iceplant is common in the neighbourhood 

 of Cape Town, especially in the sandy flat near Riet- 

 valley, where it flowers in the midst of summer. 



39. Mesembryanthemum tortuosum. Lin. Stem short. 

 Branches procumbent, elongated, divaricating, twisted. 

 Leaves connate, pointed, entire, oblongo-ovate, con- 

 cave, somewhat pustular, keeled, crowded. Lobes of 

 the calyx unequal. 



This species, a native of the Karroo, appears to possess 

 narcotic properties. The Hottentots, who know it by the 

 name of Kauw-goed, are in the habit of chewing it, and 

 become intoxicated, while the farmers use it in the form of 

 decoction or tincture, as a good sedative. 



HYDROCOTYLE. Lin. 



(^UmbellifercB.) 

 V. — 2. PENTANDRIA DIGYNIA. LIN. SYST. 



40. Hydrocotyle Centella. Cham. SufFruticose. Stems 

 filiform, decumbent, geniculate, flexuose. Leaves 

 stalked, oblongo-lanceolate, 3-nerved, subfalcate, pu- 

 bescent, acuminate, entire. Flowers 3-5 polygamous, 

 umbellate, whorled, axillary. Involucral bracts 4-5, 

 ovato-lanceolate, acute. Petals glabrous. 



The roots and stalks of this plant are astringent, and a 

 decoction of them is used with efiect by many colonists in 

 violent diarrhoea. They are also said to be of great service 

 in cases of dysentery, after the necessary evacuations have 

 been previously procured, and where the disease has as- 

 sumed a chronic form. Among the farmers, the plant is 

 known under the name of Persgras ; it inhabits the Cape 

 and Stellenbosch districts, and grows abundantly about 

 Vlaggeberg. 



41. Hydrocotyle asiatica. Lin. Stems slender, pros- 

 trate, creeping. Leaves stalked, reniform, crenato- 

 dentate, ribbed, smooth. Flowers small, axillary. 

 Umbels simple, few-flowered. Leaf and Jiotoer-^isXks 

 slightly tomentose. 



Found in moist, shady localities, at watercourses, and 

 in the beds of empty rivers, throughout a great portion of 



c 



