POLYGALACEiE. 



225 



Others again appear to have saponaceous qualities, the bark of several spe- 

 cies of Monnina being used as a substitute for soap, and is also said to be 

 efficacious in bowel diseases. 



Polygala. — Linn. 



Sepals persistent; the interior wing-like. Petals 3, their claws adnate to the stamineal 

 tube, the inferior one carinate. Ovary 2-celled, ovules solitary in each cell. Pericarp 

 compressed, obovate, obcordate or elliptical. Seeds pubescent, carunculate. 



This very extensive genus consists of herbaceous and shrubby species, 

 which are found in all quarters of the globe, but most numerous in America 

 and southern Africa. The name is derived from two Greek words, signify- 

 ing much milk, from an idea entertained by the ancients, that cows feeding on 

 these plants had an increased secretion of that fluid. Many of the species 

 have been used medicinally, as tonics, expectorants, and diuretics, and all of 

 them are endowed more or less with these qualities. 



P. Senega, Linn. — Stems numerous, simple ; leaves lanceolate, with scabrous margins. 

 Racemes spiked. Flowers on very short pedicels, wings orbicular-ovate. Capsule nearly 

 orbicular. 



Torrey and Gray, Fl.' i. 131 ; Bigelow, Med. Bot. ii. 97; Barton, Veg. 

 Mat. Med. ii. Ill ; Stephenson and Churchill, ii. 103. 



Common Names. — Seneka snake root ; Rattlesnake root ; Senega rattle- 

 snake root. 



Foreign Names. — Polygale de Virginie, Senega, Fr. ; Senegawurz, Klap- 

 perschlangenwurz, Ger. ; Poligala virginiana, It. 



Description. — The root is contorted, ligne- 

 ous, branching, and perennial. Stems annual, Fig. 114. 

 numerous, simple, erect, somewhat terete, of a 

 brownish-red below and green above, about a 

 foot in height. The leaves are alternate, lance- 

 olate, acuminate, and scabrous at their mar- 

 gin. The flowers are in a somewhat dense, 

 terminal spike, of a greenish-white or reddish 

 colour. The sepals are all obtuse. The pe- 

 tals are small, with the crest small and the 

 lateral segments obtuse. The style is short, 

 somewhat rostrate. The capsule is obcordate, 

 invested by the persistent calyx, and contain- 

 ing two, oblong-ovate, slightly hairy seeds, of 

 a blackish colour. 



The Seneka snakeroot is found in 

 most parts of the United States, but is 

 most abundant to the south and west; 

 it generally grows on hill sides and in 

 dry woods, flowering from June to Au- 

 gust, the spike opening gradually, so 

 that it often presents seed at the lower 

 part, whilst the upper flowers have not 

 expanded. The root, which is the offi- 

 cinal portion of the plant, as found in 

 commerce, varies in size from the thick- 

 ness of a quill to that of the little 

 finger. It is much contorted, and pre- 

 sents a tuberous head, with the remains 



15 



w Sir 



P. senega. 



1. Detached flower. 2. Keel with stamens 



adhering. 3. A seed. 



