242 MATERIA MEDIC A AND THERAPEUTICS. 



sugar, and a neutral crystallisable active principle, koussin, or 

 cossin, C 31 H 38 Oi . 

 Dose. ^ to |- oz. 



Preparation. 



Infusum Cusso. 1 oz. in 4 fl.oz. boiling water for one dose ; 

 to be drunk without straining. 



ACTION AND USES. 



Taken in the large doses necessary, kousso is apt to cause 

 nausea, vomiting, colic, and slight diarrhoea. Its principal 

 action is as an anthelmintic, the tape-worms (Tsenia solium, 

 Taenia mediocanellata t and Bothryocephalus latus) being fea"dily 

 killed by it. It is used for this purpose only, and rarely in 

 England. It may or may not require the assistance of a 

 purgative to expel the dead worm. The powdered flowers, 

 either in compressed masses or suspended in an aromatic water, 

 are said to be much more active than the officinal infusion. 



MYRTACE^B. 



Caryophyllum CLOVES. The dried unex- 

 panded flower buds of Caryophyllus aromaticus. 

 Cultivated in Penang, Bencoolen, and Amboyna. 



Characters. About six lines long, dark reddish-brown, 

 plump and heavy, consisting of a nearly cylindrical body 

 surmounted by four teeth and a globular head, with a strong 

 fragrant odour, and a bitter spicy pungent taste. It emits oil 

 when indented with the nail. 



Composition. Cloves contain 20 per cent, of the officinal 

 oil, tannic acid, and gum. Oil of cloves consists of eugenol 

 (eugenic acid), C] H l2 O2, chemically resembling phenol (carbolic 

 acid), and a turpentine. A crystalline body, eugenin, isomeric 

 with eugenol, and a neutral body, caryophyllin, isomeric with 

 camphor, can also be obtained from cloves. 



Preparations. 



1. Oleum Caryophylli. Oil of cloves. The oil distilled in 



Britain from cloves. Colourless, when recent, becoming 

 red-brown, with the odour and burning spicy taste of the 

 clove. It is one of the few volatile oils heavier than 

 water. Dose, 1 to 4 min. 



2. Infusum Caryophylli. 1 in 40. Dose, 1 to 2 fl.oz. 



Cloves and Oil of Cloves are also contained in several pre- 

 parations of other drugs. 



