N. 0. ERICACE^. 729 



Seeds ellipsoid, compressed, not margined ; numerous, very 

 small, (1-50 of an inch in length). 



Uses: — An infusion of the leaves is used by the natives as 

 an antispasmodic (Ph. Ind.). 



The dry herbs and seeds are said to be entremely acrid, 

 and, according to Dymock, the dust of the former irritates the 

 throat and nostrils like tobacco. Lisboa states that the seeds 

 contain an acro-narcotic poison, and that they are preferred to 

 Dhatura as a poison, when rapid effect is desired. No 

 mention is made of the plant in Indian medical works ; indeed, 

 it would appear to be more widely known as a poison than 



esteemed as a drug. 



Six ounces of the dry herb yielded to rectified spirit half an ounce of dark 

 brown resinous extract (Dymock). 



703. Codonopsis ovata, Benth. h.f.b.l, in, 433. 



Vern. : — Ludut (Chenab). 



Habitat : — Western Himalaya, from Kashmir to Garhwal. 



Perennial herbs. Root woody, fusiform, large. Stem, 6-12in., 

 decumbent, then erect. Leaves ovate hairy both surfaces, 

 alternate and opposite, obtuse or acute, i-J by i-Jin., petiole 

 i~im. Peduncles 3-6in., terminal. Calyx-lobes elliptic oblong, 

 f-iin. approximate at base, minutely pilose. Corolla broadly 

 campanulate 1-1J by ^-f in. widened upwards, sky-blue. Capsule 

 depressed, obconic, i-Jin. broad ; beak Jin. long. Seeds narrowly 

 ellipsoid, T yn. long. 



Use : — The roots and leaves are made into poultices and em- 

 ployed in the treatment of bruises, ulcers, and wounds 

 (Aitchison). 



N. 0. ERICACEAE. 



704. Gaultheria fragrantissima, Wall., h.f.b.i., 

 in". 457. 



Habitat : — On the mountains of N. and S. India, Nepal to 

 Bhutan ; gregarious in the Nilgiri, Travanacore Hills, Burma, 

 Ceylon, upper zone. 



A large stout shrub in India, usually small low and much 



