NATIVE WILD FLOWERS 
purple. The flowers are inconspicuous, hidden at the base 
of the scape by the sheath. They are of two kinds, the sterile 
and fertile; the former, placed above the latter, consisting of 
whorls of four or more stamens and two to four-celled 
anthers; the fertile or fruit-bearing flowers of one-celled 
ovaries. The fruit when ripe is bright scarlet, clustered 
round the lower part of the round fleshy scape. As the 
berries ripen the hood or sheath withers and _ shrivels 
away to admit the ripening rays of heat and light to the 
fruit. 
The root of the Indian Turnip consists of a round 
wrinkled fleshy corm, sometimes over two inches in 
diameter; from this rises the simple scape or stem of the 
plant, which is sheathed by the base of the leaves. These 
are on long naked stalks, divided into three ovate pointed 
leaflets, waved at the edges. 
The juices of the Indian Turnip are hot, acrid, and of a 
poisonous quality, but can be rendered useful and harmless 
by the action of heat; the roots roasted in the fire are no 
longer poisonous. The Indian herbalists use the Indian 
Turnip in medicine as a remedy in violent colic, long 
experience having taught them in what manner to employ 
this dangerous root. 
The Arisema belongs to the natural order Araceae, 
most plants of which contain an acrid poison, yet under 
proper care can be made valuable articles of food. Among 
these are the roots of Arum (Colocasia) mucronatum, 
and others, which, under the more familiar names of 
eddoes and yams, are in common use in tropical countries. 
(Lindley. ) 
The juice of A. triphyllum, our Indian Turnip, has been 
used, boiled in milk, as a remedy for consumption. 
Portland Sago is prepared from a larger species, Arum 
maculatum (Spotted Arum). The corm, or root, yields a 
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