109 



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ATROPA. A genus of plants of the 

 natural order Solanacece ; or byMiers made 

 the type of a new family called Atropacece. 

 The genus is known hy its five-parted 

 calyx : its bell-shaped corolla formed of Ave 

 united petals ; five stamens adhering to the 

 lower part of the tube of the corolla, with 

 their anthers opening by long slits ; a two- 

 celled ovary and succulent fruit, each con- 

 taining several seeds. 



The Deadly Nightshade (A. Belladonna) 

 is found wild in Southern Europe andWest- 

 ern Asia, also in this country, frequently 

 on chalky soils, and not uncommonly m 

 the vicinity of ruins. Though the stems 

 die dowu annually, they spring from a 

 perennial rootstock, and form in summer 

 time a bushy plant, with stalked egg- 

 shaped entire leaves of a dull green 

 colour, and a peculiar heavy smell. The 

 flowers are borne on short drooping 

 flower-stalks in the axils of the leaves, or 

 in the forks of the stem ; they have a 

 widely-spreading bell-shaped calyx, deeply 

 divided into five-pointed segments, and a 

 bell-shaped corolla, somewhat less than an 

 inch in length, and of a dull purplish-brown 

 colour.but whitish or yellowish at the lower 

 portion (uppermost as the flower hangs 

 on the bush). The berry is of a dark shin- 

 ing black colour, about the size and form 

 of a cherry, of a sweet or mawkish taste, 

 and placed at the bottom of the permanent 

 spreading calyx. All parts of the plant are 

 poisonous. It is supposed to have been the 

 plant which produced such remarkable and 

 fatal effects on the Roman soldiers during 

 their retreat from the Parthians under 

 Mark Antony, as recorded in Plutarch's 

 life of Antony. Buchanan relates the de- 

 struction of the army of Sweno the Dane, 

 when it invaded Scotland, by the berries of 

 this plant. They were mixed with the 

 drink which the Scots, according to the 

 terms of the truce, were to supply to the 

 Danes. 



When taken in large or poisonous doses, 

 Belladonna produces a peculiar form of 

 delirium, widely-dilated pupils, great thirst 

 and dryness of the mouth, and ultimately 

 coma and death. The poisonous principle 

 is an alkaloid called atropin, which exists 

 in all parts of the plant, and is of a fright- 

 fully poisonous nature. Belladonna is much 

 used in medicine in small doses in the 

 shape of an extract ; this and the alka- 

 loid atropin are also used as an external 

 application. Belladonna is employed as a 

 sedative to allay pain and spasm, and to 

 relieve incontinence of urine, for which 

 purpose it has a remarkable effect. It is 

 frequently smeared round the eye in cases 

 ■where it is necessary to dilate the pupil, 

 this being one of the peculiar effects of 

 Belladonna. It is said by homceopathists 

 to act as a preventative of scarlet fever, as 

 the use of Belladonna causes dryness and 

 redness of the throat, such as also occurs 

 in scarlet fever ; hence, on the principle of 

 like curing like, the use of Belladonna is 

 recommended for this disease. It has been 

 recently discovered that quantities of Bel- 

 ladonna, which -would seriously affect 



| adults, can be taken with impunity by 

 ; children, and also that the action of Bel- 

 ladonna and of Opium are so mutually 

 antagonistic that the one maybe employed 

 as an antidote to the other. Valuable as j 

 Belladonna is as a remedy, it is obvious 

 that it should never be employed except by 

 a duly qualified person. In cases of poison- 

 ing by Belladonna, the stomach-pump and 

 emetics should be had recourse to as 

 speedily as possible. 



Airopa Belladonna. 



The mandrake was formerly referred to 

 this genus, but is now included in the 

 genus Mandragora. [M. T. M.J 



ATROPAL. An ovule which never al- 

 ters its original position ; same as Ortho- 

 tropal. 



ATTALEA. The name of a genus of 

 lofty palms, natives of tropical South 

 America. The leaves are large and pinnate. 

 The fruits hang in large clusters, each nut 

 consisting of three cells, and containing as 

 many seeds, a circumstance which serves 

 to distinguish the genus from all its al- 

 lies. 



A.funifera, called by the Brazilians Pias- 

 saba, yields a fibre of much value, derived 

 from the decaying of the cellular matter at 

 the base of the leaf-stalks, and the conse- 

 quent liberation of the fibrous portions. 

 This fibre is much used in Brazil for the 

 purpose of rope-making, and in this country 

 is employed for making brooms to sweep 

 the streets. A fibre, having the same 

 name, is also produced from another palm 

 called Leopoldinia Piassaba. 



The seeds of A. funiferci are known as 

 Coquillanuts ; they are three or four inches 

 long, oval, of a rich brown colour, and 

 very hard in texture; hence they are much 

 used in turnery for making the handles 

 of doors, umbrellas, &c. The seeds of A. 

 compta, the Pindova Palm of Brazil, are 



