DRUGS. 81 



PvOHUN Bark (Soyinida febrifuga). — A large tree of 

 Central and Southern India, belonging to the natural order 

 Meliacese. The bark is used in India as an astringent tonic 

 and antiperiodic, in intermittent fevers, general debility, 

 diarrhoea, and in the advanced stage of dysentery. It was 

 sent by Roxburgh to Edinburgh at the end of the last cen- 

 tury, for trial, and was introduced into the Edinburgh 

 Pharmacopoeia in 1803, and into the Dublin Pharmacopoeia 

 in 1807. 



CowHAGE or Cow-itch (Mucuna pruriens). — A strong 

 climbing leguminous plant, common throughout the tropics 

 of India, Africa, and America. It produces a large number 

 of pods from 2 to 4 inches long and about half an inch wide. 

 They are slightly curved, of a dark brownish colour, and 

 thickly covered with stiff sharp hairs, which are easily de- 

 tached from the valves, and penetrate the skin, causing an 

 intolerable itching. These hairs have long been known as a 

 vermifuge ; and in this country began to attract attention 

 at the latter part of the last century. As a drug, cowhage 

 was introduced into the Edinburgh Pharmacopoeia in 1783 

 and into the London Pharmacopoeia in 1809. It is now 

 seldom used in European practice. 



Wild Black Cherry Bark {Prunus serotina). — A 

 plant of variable habit, widely spread over North America, 

 forming a shrub in some localities, and in more favourable 

 situations growing to a height of 60 feet. It belongs to the 

 natural order Rosacese. The bark has a high reputation in 

 America as a mild tonic and sedative, and was introduced to 

 notice in this country in 1863, but is not much used with 

 us in medical practice. 



Cherry Laurel Leaves {Prunus Lauro-cerasus.) — 

 This well-known evergreen shrub thrives well with us, and 

 in other countries where the winters are not severe. It is 

 a native of the Caucasus provinces of Russia, Noi-th-western 

 Asia Minor, and Northern Persia, and has been introduced 

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