762 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[March, 29, 187?. 
In the cells of the parenchymatous tissue, which 
does not itself require other notice, and lying chiefly 
alongside the liber cells, are great numbers of small 
crystalline bodies, irregularly prismatic in shape and 
intensely doubly refractive. They are precisely 
similar to the crystals found in the testa of the seed, 
and figured by Quekett in his “Lectures on Histology” 
as a typical form of this particular “ raphide.” The 
liber cells are also very doubly refractive, and a care¬ 
fully mounted section (in balsam) forms a very effec¬ 
tive polariscope object, and admirably adapted for 
exhibition at “Chemists’ Association Soirees.” 
Quercus Cortex. —The structure of this bark is 
somewhat complex, and requires considerable skill 
in the use of reagents to avoid errors of interpreta¬ 
tion. Not itself adulterated, it plays sometimes the 
part of an adulterant, and on this account it is de¬ 
sirable that we should make ourselves familiar with 
its structure. To fully describe every detail of its 
structural element would occupy considerable space, 
and prove tedious to most. It will perhaps suffice if 
I indicate the more important points, and the mode 
of their demonstration. The general tissues of the 
outer barks do not differ greatly from those of other 
barks. Certain sclerogenous cells aggregated in 
groups of a dozen or more, and liber tubes are alone 
of importance. Many of these hard cells or “ stellate 
cells” are of abnormal form, and will strongly remind 
the diatomist of the well-known campylodiscus. 
They are porous, their pores being of two characters, 
one very minute, the other large and bifurcate. The 
central cavity is frequently large and filled with a 
nitrogenous substance, probably the original cell sub¬ 
stance, that stains intensely with magenta. The 
large, bifurcate pores also frequently stain, and then 
remind one forcibly of Dr. Beale’s celebrated drawing 
of the capillary exudation of fluid bioplasm through 
the cell walls of Torula, but it is not easy to believe 
that these excessively hard cells can be sufficiently 
alive and active to manifest such a phenomenon, and 
it is much more probable that the staining of these 
pores is purely mechanical. At the same time it 
must be mentioned that the whole bearing of the 
central cavity and these stained pores towards reagents 
is that of active, living bioplasm. The question, 
however, is one liardlv suited for discussion here. 
The stellate cells now spoken of differ widely in size, 
and are also found singly amongst the cells of the 
outer barks. They are easily recognisable in the 
pondered bark, qnd are very well shown by Dr. 
flassall in his “Adulterations Detected,” where typical 
cells only are shown. Their form is much more 
varied than is indicated in that work. 
Tile inner bark IS the most interesting and the most 
difficult. It can only be studied in very carefully cut 
sections stained with magenta or with solution of 
indigo (B. P.). The chief difficulty in the examina¬ 
tion is caused by the great variety of cells present, 
and by the fact that these are in all stages of develop¬ 
ment. A well stained (indigo) section, shows the rela¬ 
tions of the cell contents to the cell wall very beauti¬ 
fully, and also demonstrates very admirably the various 
germinal cells of the new bark. The liber tubes are 
best studied in radial sections (sections cut downwards 
and parallel with the surface) very slightly stained 
after slight washing in dilute liquor potassse. And in 
this portion of the bark lies a pons asinorum, which 
cost me considerable trouble to cross. The liber cells 
themselves do not differ from ordinary liber to any 
extent, but with these are rows of somewhat globose 
cells, very inaccurately depicted in the drawing in 
Dr. Hassall’s book, where they are shown as long cells 
—longer than the liber cells, with internal septa. This 
is exceedingly wide of the truth, the fact being that 
the length of these cells does not exceed the width of 
the liber cells, and that their contents are not granular 
or cldorophyIlian, but crystalline and fluid. The error 
has evidently arisen from not using reagents. A 
simple section examined in water or glycerine does 
look somewhat as shown, and specimens of the powdered 
bark similarly examined are seen to contain similar 
structures. 
These cells are exceedingly interesting and charac¬ 
teristic. Their walls are thin, beautifully transparent, 
and imperforate. They contain only fluid, and, each 
cell, a single flat four or six-sided prismatic crystal, 
beautifully doubly refractive and consisting of some 
salt of lime. A carefully made section, washed with 
dilute potash and alcohol, and mounted in glycerine,, 
at once shows the true nature of the tissue, and is 
also a very splendid object (of doubtful permanence) 
when examined by polarized light. Stellate cells 
are also found with the liber, and but somewhat 
rarely, embryo vessels, or cells partaking of the first 
stage of the characteristic vessels of the oak. 
A thin transverse section of the bark, stained with 
dilute perchloride of iron, shows the whereabouts of 
the astringent principle of the bark very successfully. 
In such a section the liber cells are seen to be wholly 
unstained, whilst the parenchymatous cells and the 
cells of the more purely cellular tissues are stained a 
deep blue-black. The stellate cells also, as a rule 
are not stained. The contents of the central cavity 
of the liber cells stain always, but the contents of 
the stellate cells either do not stain or not so 
deeply. This observation, it may be remarked, re¬ 
quires careful use of a moderately high power on 
a very successfully prepared section. This use of 
ferrous salts gives rather divergent results from 
the results of chemical analysis of the different por¬ 
tions of the bark. For whereas the outer barks 
are said to be comparatively inert (as regards tannic* 
acid), the whole of the sections that I have examined 
show large quantities present in the mesophloeum 
cells,—weight for weight far larger quantities than in 
the liber region proper, if depth of colour produced 
may be taken as a guide. It is quite possible, and, 
indeed, likely, that in the outer regions the acid may 
not be so easily removed from the tissues, and there¬ 
fore those portions may be of less economic value. 
(To be continued.) 
FALSE CHINA ROOT. 
BY E. A. WEBB. 
At the weekly drug sales on the 6tli inst., there 
was offered, among other things, by public auction, 
a parcel that was described as China Root, but 
which in reality was nothing more than that curious 
fungoid production that has been named Pachymct 
cocos, a full description of which may be found in 
a paper, illustrated by very truthful engravings, 
in the “ Linncean Transactions,” vol. xxm. page 94, 
also in the Pharmaceutical Journal, in a paper 
entitled “ Notes on Chinese Materia Medica, by Mr. 
Daniel Hanbury. ... ., 
Mr Hanbury there describes this drug (for so it 
may be called) as resembling “ large ponderous 
rounded tubers, having a rough blaclush-brown 
