452      INFLUENCE  OF  OIL  OF  SASSAFRAS  UPON  TOBACCO. 
pipe  until  my  head  was  very  disagreeably  impressed,  and  then 
reloading  with  a  mixture  of  sassafras  bark,  a  few  pulFs  of  which 
invariably  dispelled  the  unpleasant  sensations." 
I  have  again  and  again,  in  my  own  person,  verified  the  state- 
ment of  Dr.  Thompson  ;  but  have  generally  used  the  oil  of  sassa- 
fras, putting  a  few  drops  on  the  end,  and  allowing  time  for  its 
absorption  and  diffusion  through  the  cigar. 
Is  there  any  chemical  analogy  between  oil  of  sassafras  and 
tannic  acid  ?  Or  is  there  any  explanation  of  this  identity  of 
effect  ?  Is  their  action  purely  chemical  and  on  the  nicotine  ? 
or  is  it  physiological,  and  on  the  nerve- tissue  ? 
Indulge  me  in  some  other  extracts,  which  appear  to  me  of 
great  practical  value,  if  true,  in  reference  to  the  anti-narcotic 
and  other  powers  of  the  sassafras  : 
I  added  a  drop  of  the  oil  of  sassafras  to  every  two  grains  of 
extract  of  hyoscyamus.  Being  very  susceptible  to  the  influence 
of  nervous  stimulants,  I  began  by  taking  a  common  sized  pill, 
and  increased  the  dose  until  I  took  five  at  once,  without  produc- 
ing any  other  effect  than  a  most  delightful  sleep,  such  as  I  had 
not  enjoyed  since,  when  a  child,  I  used  to  fall  down  under  the 
shade  of  a  tree  when  at  play." 
He  made  for  a  lady  a  syrup  of  butternut,  containing  sixty 
grains  of  hyoscyamus  and  thirty  drops  of  oil  sassafras  to  the 
half  pint.  Her  little  daughter,  in  the  absence  of  the  family, 
drank  a  quantity  which  "  contained  at  least  thirty  grains.  No 
injurious  effects  followed." 
He  gave  to  a  negro  suddenly  seized  with  spasm  in  his  pres- 
ence, during  the  prevalence  of  cholera,  a  quantity  of  a  like  mix- 
ture, containing  "  forty  grains  of  hyoscyamus.  In  a  few  minutes 
the  spasm  relaxed,  and  the  man  assisted  all  day  in  burying  the 
dead." 
"I  had  tested  its  power  (oil  of  sassafras)  fully  in  destroying 
the  poison  of  insects  and  reptiles,  such  as  mosquitos,  fleas^ 
spiders,  bees,  wasps,  etc.-;  and,  on  one  occasion,  had  an  oppor- 
tunity of  testing  its  powers  over  the  venom  of  the  snake  known 
as  the  copperhead,  and  found  it  succeeded  promptly." 
The  little  book  from  which  the  above  extracts  are  taken  was 
published  ten  years  ago.    I  have  seen  no  notice  of  it  by  the 
