ULMUS — ELM. 243 



ever, must he conceded — stillingia is certainly not without activity. Nov/, 

 while it is not claimed to act specifically in syphilis, the fact seems well es- 

 tablished that in certain cases, hy stimulating the secretory functions, it 

 exerts a very beneticial intluence. The same may be said of its action in 

 s(!rofulous and cutaneous ail'ections. It luidoubtedly dosciTes more care- 

 ful examination than it has hitherto had, in order that its sphere of use- 

 fidness may be more accurately defined. • 



URTICACE/E. 



Chnmrtrr of (he Onh'r. — Plants Avith alternate or opposite, stipulate 

 leaves, and moncecious, dicjecious or, rarely, perfect tlowers. Calyx regu- 

 lar, monosepalous, or with 2 to 5 or more divisions. Stamens as many 

 as the segments of the caWx, aiid opposite them. Ovary free, 1-celled, 1- 

 ovuled, rarely 2-celled ; stylo or stigma simple. Fruit 1-seeded. 



A very large order of cliiefly tropical plants, comprising several well- 

 characterized sub-orders. Not very well represented in North America. 



ULMUS.— Elm. 



Ulmus fulva INIichaux. — Slipper;/ Ebn, Red Elm. 



Drscnplion. — Flowers polygamous. Calyx bell-shaped, 7- to D-lobed. 

 Stamens 7 to 'J, with long, slender filaments. Ovary 2-C(!lle(l, each cell 1- 

 ovuled ; styles 2, diverging. Fruit a 1-celled, 1-seeded, membranaceous 

 samara. 



A medium-sized tree, 20 to GO feet high, 1 to 2 feet in diameter, with 

 a rough, light-gray bark and reddish wood. Leaves alternate, 4 to N 

 inches long, ovate-oblong, taper-pointed, doubly serrate, i-ough aUn'e, solt- 

 downy beneath. Flowers reddish, pubescent, in lateral cluster.s, preced- 

 ing the leaves in March and April. 



Habitat. — In rich, rather dry soil, from Western New England to Lake 

 Superior and southward. 



Fart Cficd. — Tiie inner bark — official name, Ilnnis — I'ltitcil Statrfi Phar- 

 ■tnaropd'ia. 



('(mstituentt<. — The only important constituent of slipper}' elm bark is 

 an abundance of mucilage. 



Prrparationt^. — ]Mucilago idmi — mucilage of elm. — I'mlrd Sfatr.-i Pltar- 

 macopa'ia. This is merely an infusion of the slicetl bark in boiling water. 



Medical Properlie.x and Cxes. — Slippery elm is demulcent and slightly 

 nutritious. It is used lai'gely in acute intlainmatory and febrile allections. 

 either alone or .slightly acidulated with lemon-jp.ice, and is one of the most 

 valuable agents of its class, seldoni or never deranging the stomach. Ex- 

 ternally it is often employed in the form of a poultice, being first gi'ound 

 or torn into shreds, and made into a mass of proper consistence with ijoil- 

 ing water. It h;is also been employed, in the form of tints, to dilate tho 

 neck of the uterus and fistulous tracts. 



