66 KA:^ UNCULACEyE. 



the drug. It has been used successfully as a substitute for quinine in the 

 treatment of intorniittcnts, in convalescence from acute disease, and in 

 general where a vegot.'d)le tonic is indicated. This fact is wortlij of vf.. 

 membrance, since there are numerous instances in which quinine is indi- 

 cated but (tannot be employed on account of idiosyncrasy. It is not, 

 however, as a substitute for <juinine that hych'astis has been most em- 

 ployed or has g.dned its greatest reputation. It seems to exert an es- 

 pecially .onic iuHuenco iipoa mucous surfaces, and has been tniploytnl 

 bcnvjlicially in a great variety of catarrhal aflbctions. Prior to its use in 

 scientihc medicine it had been employed by the aborigines as a topical ap- 

 plication in catan-hal alfections of the eyea and as a stimulant to old 

 ulcers. It is still used with benefit in such cases, lU'd in chronic coryza, 

 in gonorrluiv.i, leucorrhoea, hemorrhoids, and prohipsus an' Tha+, it 

 exerts an intluence upon the liver seems well demonstrated, and it has 

 been used with benetit in tori)id conditions of this organ, and in catarrhal 

 inflannnation of the gall-bladder and gall-duct. Though not directly 

 cathartic in its action, in certain cases of habitual constipation it jjroduces 

 a laxative ett'ect. It has been employed beneficially in glandular swell- 

 ings, luidoubtedly tlu'ough its general tonic power, and hence has prol> 

 ably derived its undeserved reputation as a remedy for cancer. 



XANTHORHIZA. 



Xanthorhiza apiifollaL'Heritier. — Yelhic-Root, Shrub Ydloio-Poot. 



l)t;Mrii>li()ii. — Calyx: sepals 5, petal-like, deciduous, spreading, ovate- 

 acuminate, brownish-purple. Corolla : petals 5, very small, 2-lobed, ele- 

 vated upon a claw, coloied like the sepals. Stamens 5 to 10, hypogynous, 

 filaments thick, purple, anthers adnate. Ovaries 5 t(» 15, each bearing two 

 pejidulous ovules attached to the middle. Pods l-iieeded, oblong, the style 

 becoming lateral during development. 



A sLruljby perennial, 1 to 3 fecc high, with a large rootstock and numer- 

 ous round, sliglitly bi'anched stems.. Outer bark gra\-, smooth, and shin- 

 ing ; witliiu bright yehow. Leaves alternate, unequally 1- to 2-piunaTe, on 

 long stalk?. Leaflets in two pairs with an odd terminal oiie, 2 to 3 inches 

 long, rhondjoid-ovate or lanceolate, tapering at the base, sessile, incisely 

 lobed and dentate, smooth, dai'k green above, lighter beneath Flowers 

 polygamous, in long, droo')ing compound racemes, appearing from April 

 to June. The rootstocl is from 3 inches to 1 foe or more in length, from 

 one-eighth to one-half inch in thickness, i^ore or less branched, yelloAvisb- 

 brown externally, internaUy of r. deep yellow, aul ha\'ing an exceedingly 

 oitter taste. 



HahiidL — Central New York (one station only) to the middle and upper 

 districts of the Caroliuas and Georgia, cluefiy along the uLouutaius and 

 highlands. 



