276 LILIACEiE. 



ft 



Herbaceous perennials, with thick, knotted rootstocks. Steins leafless be- 

 low, leafy above, and bearing small axiUary flowers, which appear in early 

 summer. 



Polygonatum biflorum Elliott. — Smaller Solomon's Seal. 



Description. — Flowers greenish, one-half inch long, on 1- to 3-, com- 

 monly 2-flo\vere(l i)eduncles, nodding. Stem glabrous, 1 to 3 feet high, re- 

 curved. Leaves alternate, ovate-oblong, or lance-oblong, nearly sessile, 

 nommonly min "^Dly piibescent above, glaucous beneath. 



liahilat. — In rich woods ; common. 



Polygonatum giganteum Dietrich, — Oreat Solomon's Seal. 



DeHcription. — Flowers like the preceding but larger and on 2- to 8- 

 flowered peduncles. Entire plant glabrous. Stem stout, 2 to 8 feet high, 

 recurved. Loaves ovate, somewhat clasping, 5 to 8 inches long, the upper 

 oblong, nearly sessile, 



Haldlat. — In rich alluvial soil. 



Parts Used. — The rhizome and rootlet of both species — not official. 



Constituents. — Unknown. 



Preparations. — Commonly used in decoction or infusion. 



Medical Properlies and Uses. — Solomon's seal has a sweetish, mucilagi- 

 nous taste, followed by a faint sense of bitterness, and appeal's to owe what 

 little virtue it possesses to its mucilage. In decoction it ip emi)loyed as a 

 domestic remedy to allay irritation of mucous surfaces, ar d in rhus poison- 

 ing, where it acts by protecting the inflamed parts from the air in the same 

 manner a? other agents of like character. 



The rhizomes of several indigenous species of Smilacina, a closely allied 

 genus, possess similar properties and are used for the same purposes. 



ERYTHRONIUM.— Doc's Tooth Violei\ 



Erythronium Americanum Smith. — Adders Tonf/ue, Dog's Tooth 

 Violet. 



Description. — Perianth of (5 distinct, petaloid sepals, in 2 series, re- 

 curved or spreading above, deciduous ; the outer series greenish-yellow 

 without, yellow within, inner series all yellow. Stamens G, awl-shaped. 

 Style club-shaped ; stigmas united into one. Pod 3-valved, many-seeded.. 

 A low stemless perennial, sending up in early spring, from a deeply buried 

 corm, a pair of clasping elliptical-lanceolate, pale green leaves, commonly 

 mottled with purplish, and a smooth scape bearing a single nodding flower. 



Habitat.- In damp i:)laces in woods ; common. 



Part Used. — The corm — not official. 



Gonstit nents. — Unknown. 



Preparations. — It has been employed in powder and in infusion. 



Medical Properties and Uses.— T>oq'h iooi\i violet in full doses acts as 

 an emetic, but its iiritant properties are lost in drying, so that it becomes 

 bland and even edible. It has never been much used. 



