616 MELANTHACB^. 



probably the plant referred to. Hyacinthiis orientalis is the common 

 cultivated Hyacinth, of which the Haarlem florists had at one time 

 upwards of 2000 varieties. The mania for Tulip bulbs was formerly 

 carried to a great extent, and the price given for approved kinds was 

 enormous. Many hundred varieties of tulips are known. Gordyline 

 austmlis, the Ti of New Zealand, and C. Banhsii, yield fibres. 



Order 198. — Melanthace^, the Colchicum Family. {Mono- 

 Perigyn.) Perianth petaloid, in 6 pieces, which are sometimes slightly 

 coherent, usually involute in aestivation. Stamens 6 ; anthers usually 

 extrorse. Ovary 3-celled ; ovules numerous ; style 3-parted ; stigmas, 

 3, undivided. Fruit a 3-celled capsule, with septicidal or loculicidal 

 dehiscence. Seeds with a membranous spermoderm ; albumen densej 

 fleshy; embryo very minute. — Plants with bulbs, tubers (fig. 110, 

 p. 48), or fibrous roots, having parallel-veined leaves, sheathing at the 

 base. The flowers are sometimes polygamous. They are natives of 

 various parts of the globe, but are most abundant in northern countries. 

 The order has been divided into three sub-orders :■ — 1. Veratrese or 

 Melanthese, rhizome fibrous, dehiscence of capsule septicidal, flowers 

 frequently unisexual. 2. Colchiceae, rhizome bulbous, dehiscence 

 septicidal. 3. tJvulariesB, rhizome bulbous or fibrous, dehiscence 

 loculicidal. There are 34 known genera and 130 species. Examples 

 — Melanthium, Asagrssa, Veratrum, Tofieldia, Narthecium; Col- 

 chicum ; Uvularia. 



The plants of the order have in general poisonous properties. Many 

 are acrid, purgative, and emetic, and some are narcotic. Among the 

 medicinal plants of the order, the most important is Colchicum autum- 

 nale, Meadow Saffron, or Autumn Crocus. It is found in England 

 and Ireland, and in the greater part of Middle and Southern Europe. 

 On the Swiss Alps it ascends to 5500 feet. The corm (fig. 110, 

 p. 48) and the seeds are the officinal parts. They contain a peculiar 

 alkaloid called Colehicin, which seems to be analogous to Veratrine.- 

 Colchicum in large doses acts as a narcotico-acrid poison. In medi- 

 cinal doses, in the form of extract, vinegar, tincture, and wine, it is 

 used in the cure of gout and rheumatism. It is sedative, cathartic, 

 and diuretic. Colchicum variegatum, according to Planchon, is pro- 

 bably the true Hermodactyle of the Greek and Arabian physicians, 

 who used it for diseases of the joints. The rhizome of Veratrum album, 

 the White Hellebore of the Greeks, is an irritant narcotic poison, its 

 properties being due to the presence of an alkaloid called Veratrine. It 

 has been used as an emetic and purgative, especially in mania, and it 

 has been administered as a remedy for gout. CevadOla is the fruit of 

 Asagrcea officinalis, a native of Mexico. The fruit and seeds contain 

 ■the alkaloid veratrine, in combination with a peculiar fatty acid called 

 cevadic or sabadillic acid. Cevadilla or Cebadilla is used in cases of 

 neuralgia and rheumatism. 



