THE COMMERCIAL QUASSIA, OR BITTERWOOD. 251 



entire smooth, eliptical, acute at each end ; petiole winged, jointed, with 

 the joints obovate. Eacemes long, one sided, simple, terminal, rarely- 

 branched. Flowers large scarlet ; distant ; pedicels bracteate at the base, 

 jointed below the apex, and there having two little bracts." The wood is 

 white and Light, the bark thin, and of a grey colour — the whole plant is 

 intensely bitter. This was originally the Bitterwood of the shops, and was 

 imported in the form of white, scentless, very light, cylindrical pieces, of 

 1 — 2 inches in diameter, covered by a thin, greyish-white, and bitter bark. 

 It was chiefly shipped from Surinam, whence it was called Surinam Bitter- 

 wood. Its introduction into Europe occurred about the year 1756, after 

 which it came into very general use as a tonic and stomachic. Little, if 

 any, of this kind of bitterwood is now to be procured. Dr. Lindley tells 

 us, " I learn from Mr Lanee, who resided for many years in Surinam, that 

 although large quantities of Quassia were exported twenty or thirty years 

 since, yet that he did not hear of a single instance of its shipment during 

 the ten years he passed in Surinam. Quassia wood is, in fact, no longer 

 used even in that colony as a medicine, being thought to have some bad 

 properties, along with its intense bitter. The flowers are, however, still 

 infused in wine or water, as a stomachic." 



The second is the Quassia Simaruba of Linnseus — the Simaruba amara 

 of Aublet, the Simaruba officinalis of De Candolle. 



Simaruba bark was first sent to Europe in 1713 from Guiana, as the 

 bark of a tree called by the natives Simarouba. It thrives well in Guiana, 

 Cayenne, and Jamaica, and in the latter is known as the Mountain Damson, 

 Bitter Damson, and Stave Wood. The following is MacFayden's descrip- 

 tion of the tree : — " Flowers dioecious, male decandrous, stigmata 5-partite, 

 leaves abruptly pinnated, leaflets alternate, shortly petiolulated, pubescent 

 beneath. 



A tree about twenty feet in height, branches few, erect, terete, glabrous 

 leaves towards the ends of the branches, abruptly pinnated : leaflets 

 alternate, shortly petiolulated, oblong, glabrous and shining above, 

 pubescent and pale beneath. Panicles axillary, subterminal, divisions short, 

 few flowered, each furnished with a leafy reversely-wedged-shaped bract at 

 the base : flowers shortly pedicelled, yellow, dioecious — Flowers in June. — ■ 

 Male flowers with the calyx small, divisions obtuse, minutely ciliated. 

 Petals three times the length of the calyx, oblong, obtuse. Stamens length 

 of the petals, augmented at the base, with 10 ovate villous scales. Ovary 

 imperfect, 5 lobuled, destitute of style or stigma. Female Flowers on a 

 distinct tree and smaller than the male. Calyx and corolla as in the male 

 stamens ; ovaries 5, connected at the inner angle ; style erect, single, 

 stigmata 5 recurved. Fruit of five or by abortion 4 — 3 — 2 drupaceous 

 carpels, seated on the enlarged receptacle ; carpels oblong, size of a damson, 

 dark purple, smooth, shining, 1-seeded. Seed ovato- oblong, compressed." 



According to Linnseus and others, the male and female flowers are 

 mixed together on the same panicle. This is not the case with the Jamaica 

 plant, as was long ago pointed out by Dr. Wright, and since confirmed 

 by Dr. MacFayden. The bark of the old trees is black and a little fur- 



