ARIOPSIS. A curious genus of plants 

 belonging to the Aracece, and similar to 

 the genus Arum in appearance, hence the 

 name. The species were formerly included 

 in the genus Remusatia, and consist of small 

 Indian herbs with inconspicuous stems, glo- 

 bular rhizomes, and glaucous heart-shaped 

 peltate leaves, on long stalks. The spathe is 

 nodding, boat-shaped, adherent to the 

 lower part of the spadix, on the upper 

 part of which the male flowers are placed 

 in little depressions; each little cavity 

 contains six globular anthers, bursting by 

 one pore. The female flowers at the lower 

 portion of the spadix, consist of obliquely 

 ovate ovaries with three to five stigmas. 

 The fruit is like a berry, but somewhat 

 dry, angular, one-celled, with four to five 

 placentas, and several seeds placed in two 

 rows along each placenta. A. peltata is 

 sometimes met with in cultivation as an 

 object of curiosity. [M. T. M.] 



ARIS.EM A. The plants of this genus 

 of the Arum family have tuber-like root- 

 stocks, from which proceed peltate, pedate, 

 palmate, or more rarely undivided leaves. 

 The spathe is rolled round the spadix at 

 the base, the spadix has unisexual flowers 

 below, itsjipper part covered with rudi- 

 mentary flowers ; the anthers are provided 

 with distinct filaments; the ovaries are 

 numerous, and contain 2-6 ovules, and 

 are terminated by very short styles. The 

 tuberous rootstocks of two species are 

 used by the natives of Sikkim Himalaya, 

 as food; they are beaten into a pulp with 

 water, and allowed to ferment, a process 

 which destroys their acridity. The Dra- 

 gon-root, or Indian turnip of America, is 

 the tuber of A. atrorubens, which fur- 

 nishes a kind of starch. [M. T. M.] 



ARISARUM. A genus of plants of the 

 Arum family, closely allied to Ariscema. 

 The lower part of the spadix has uni- 

 sexual flowers, but no rudimentary ones, 

 and is naked at the top ; the ovaries are 

 few in number, and have a distinct style. 

 The plants are herbaceous, with a tuberous 

 or branching and creeping rootstock, 

 heart-shaped or spear-shaped leaves, on 

 long stalks, and livid purple spathes. They 

 are natives of Southern Europe and the 

 Mediterranean region. [M. T. M.] 



ARISTA. The awn or beard of corn, or 



any such like process. 



ARISTATE. Furnished with an arista. 



ARlSTOhOCHIACEM(Aristolochice,Asa- 

 rinece, Pistolochince, Birthivorts). In the 

 tropical parts of both hemispheres, and 

 occasionally beyond those limits, occurs 

 a race of plants with singularly inflated 

 irregular flowers, consisting of a calyx 

 only, of a dull dingy colour, varying from 

 yellow to shades of chocolate, purple, or 

 brown, and often emitting an offensive 

 odour. A hot summer appears to be one 

 condition of their existence, with a few 

 exceptions, the most striking of which are 

 I Asarums, little stemless plants, wild in 



Europe and North America, and the Aris- 

 tolochia Clematitis, which has become as 

 it were naturalized in England. The wood 

 of these plants, when they have any, 

 consists of parallel plates, held loosely 

 together by soft medullary processes. The 

 ovary is inferior, with many ovules, and 

 for the most part consists of six cells, the 

 number three being, as in Endogens, 

 characteristic of the floral apparatus of 

 the order. In medicine these plants are 

 slightly aromatic stimulating tonics, use- 

 ful in the latter stages of low fever; 

 the taste is bitter and acrid; the odour 

 strong and disagreeable. They are also 

 said to be sudorific, emmenagogue, purga- 

 tive, and diuretic. The principal genera are 

 Aristolochia and Asarum, which see. 



ARISTOLOCHIA. A remarkable genus 

 of plants belonging to the family Aristolo- 

 chiacere, and characterized by the posses- 

 sion of a calyx of some other colour than 

 green, of an irregularly tubular form, in- 

 flated at its lower portion, and adherent at 

 its base to the ovary. The stamens are six 

 in number, and adhere to the solitary 

 style ; the fruit is a six-celled capsule 

 with numerous seeds. The wood of these 

 plants differs much in appearance from 

 that of Exogenous trees or shrubs in 

 general, as it consists of radiating plates 

 of wood, surrounding a pith and encircled 

 by the bark, not disposed in rings. 



The plants of this genus are for the 

 most part shrubs, generally climbing round 

 the branches of trees. They are abundant 

 in tropical South America, while a few 

 species are distributed throughout North 

 America, Europe, and India. One species 

 A. indica, is common to India and to New 

 Holland. The flowers of some of the 

 kinds are remarkable for the oddity of 

 their form, and for their large size. Hum- 

 boldt mentions one, A. cordata, as growing 

 on the shady banks of the Magdalena, and 

 having blossoms measuring four feet in 

 circumference, and which the Indian chil- 

 dren sportively draw on their heads as 

 caps. A. Clematitis, the common Birth- 

 wort, is found in this country, but gene- 

 rally in the neighbourhood of old ruins, as 

 if it had at some time been cultivated in 

 the gardens attached to such buildings ; 

 probably for medical purposes, as an aid 

 in parturition. It is a low growing shrub, 

 with slender erect greenish furrowed 

 stems, stalked heart-shaped leaves, in the 

 axils of which the yellowish trumpet- 

 shaped flowers are produced in clusters. 

 Others of the species had formerly a 

 similar reputation, such as A. rotunda and 

 A. langa. 



A. Serpentaria is the Virginian Snake- 

 root, furnishing the dimg known as serpen- 

 tary, which is esteemed in the southern 

 states of America as a cure for the bite of 

 the rattlesnake or of a mad dog. Its 

 effects, when given in large doses, are a 

 feeling of sickness, purging, and subse- 

 quently increased fulness of the pulse ; 

 hence it is still occasionally used as a 

 stimulant in fevers. 



