DRUGS. 71 



referred. In 1882 seeds were sent to Ceylon, Calcutta, Fiji, 

 Jamaica, Mauritius, and Seychelles, but few of them, 

 however, germinated. Since then M. Triana has de- 

 scribed cuprea bark as being derived from a species of 

 Remijia, a genus allied to Cinchona. This identification 

 ■was interesting, as proving that the presence of febrifugal 

 alkaloids is not confined alone to the genus Cinchona. 

 Analysis showed that the better sorts of cuprea bark 

 contained on an average 1 '8 to 1 '9 of sulphate of quinine, 

 very rarely reaching 2 per cent., and in some varieties 

 almost entirely absent. The reason this bark has found 

 favour with manufacturing chemists is because of its 

 freedom from cinchonine, and the readiness with which it 

 pulverises. It is, however, very little used at the present 

 time. liemijia pedunculata and li. Purdieana are said to 

 furnish cuprea bark. 



Ipecacuanha (Cephaelis fyecaciumha). — This plant 

 probably ranks next in importance to the ciiichonas, 

 both as regards the medicinal value as well as the interest 

 attached to the attempts to introduce its cultivation in 

 India. True ipecacuanha is a creeping herbaceous plant 

 belonging to the same natural order as cinchona — namely, 

 Rubiacese. It is a native of Brazil, and produces long 

 wiry roots marked by annulated rings ; these roots creep 

 for some distance beneath the surface of the ground. For 

 commercial purposes they are dug up, cleansed of the 

 adherent earth, and carefully dried. Ipecacuanha is a 

 valuable expectotant and emetic, and is of very great 

 importance in the treatment of dysentery. It is a singular 

 fact that so long ago as 1648 it was pointed out by 

 Marcgrav and Piso that the powdered root of ipecacuanha 

 was a specific cure for dysentery. This information, how- 

 ever, appears not to have been acted upon till 1813, when 

 it was confirmed by Surgeon Playfair, and again in 1831 a 

 series of reports were published by the Madras Medical 



