List of the Plants of Chile. 249 



sence, which, administered in small doses, produces immediate and 

 salutary effects in children suffering from verminous affections. Steu= 

 del, Roemer and Schultes cite in their works the Chenopodium and 

 the Herniaria Payee, Molina, which are only synonyms of the C 

 Ambrosioides and midtijidnm, Linn. A seed called Qiiinua is em- 

 ployed to give taste to the Aloja an agreeable and refreshing drink, 

 when it is not too much aromatised. Not having seen tlie plant 

 which yields this product, I do not know positively, whether it be- 

 longs to the C. guinea, or to another species of the same genus. 



Chironia Chilensis. W. Vulgarly Cachanlagua. A plant very 

 frequent on the arid plains of the low grounds, and in the pastures 

 on the hills. It is very much used in this kingdom, and particularly 

 in the country, where it is preserved in packets from year to year. 

 The principal virtue attributed to it is. that of thinning the Mood. 

 My prescribed limits do not allow me to examine in detail the action 

 of the medicine, nor of many others used by the people, who are 

 commonly guided by ancient traditions, and by the blind and gross 

 empiricism of quacks. This point, important to medicine and the 

 country, would be more properly considered in a treatise on indige- 

 nous Materia raedica. The only observation I may now make. In 

 passing, is that the 'modus operandi' of the bitter principle of the 

 Gentians is sufficiently known to persuade us that cachanlagua pos- 

 sesses tonic, stomachic and vermifuge properties, analogous to Peru- 

 vian bark, but in a less degree. Sprengel has retained this plant in 

 the genus Chironia. Persoon and Steudel in Erythraa, Richard. 

 The examination of its capsule, in a state of maturity, authorises me 

 to believe that it should make a part of the latter. Besides, its re- 

 semblance to the lesser Centaury of Europe, the E. Centaurium., 

 Rich., appears to confirm this opinion. 



Chlidanthus fragrans. Lindl. A different genus from the Pan- 

 cratium L. with which this plant has been classed by Poiret and 

 Sprengel, (P. Luteum.) I have seen it cultivated in gardens, where 

 it is called ariruma. Its pleasant odor enhances the value of the spe- 

 cies, and it should obtain a place in every flower garden. 



Chlorea. Lindl. The species of this genus, of the family of the 

 orchideaj, are sufficiently numerous. It appears they belong exclu- 

 sively to Chile, but their specific characteristics are very subject to 

 variation, even in the same individual, which has probably contribu- 

 ted to the augmentation of the list. They are found in the stony pas- 

 tures of the mountains, and in the arid spots near the CachapuaL If 



