CAULOPHYLLUM  THALXCTROIDES,  (BLUE  COHOSH.)  203 
ON  CAULOPHYLLUM  THALICTROIDES,  (BLUE  COHOSH). 
By  Albert  E.  Ebert,  of  Chicago. 
(An  Inaugural  Essay,  presented  to  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy,  1864.) 
This  plant,  likewise  known  as  Squaw  root,  Pappoose  root,  is 
indigenous  to  the  United  States,  growing  in  low  moist  grounds 
near  running  streams,  bearing  berries  of  a  dark  blue  color  when 
ripe,  from  which  it  derives  its  name  "Blue"  Cohosh.  The  root 
is  the  part  used  in  medicine,  being  principally  employed  by  the 
so-called  Eclectic  practitioners.  The  root  consists  of  a  thick  ir- 
regular bent  or  contorted  body,  or  caudex,  from  a  quarter  of  an 
inch  to  half  an  inch  in  thickness,  often  several  inches  in  length 
and  furnished  with  many  slender  radicles  from  four  to  eight 
inches  long.  The  color  is  externally  yellowish  brown,  internally 
whitish,  with  a  light  brown  pith  running  through  the  centre  of 
the  root.  The  taste  is  at  first  sweetish  bitter,  but  after  chewing, 
it  becomes  somewhat  acrid,  leaving  a  peculiar  irritant  sensation 
on  the  fauces. 
The  root,  as  usually  met  with  in  the  shops,  comes  in  the  pressed 
state  from  the  Shakers.  Not  having  facilities  for  collecting  suf- 
ficient of  the  root  for  this  series  of  experiments,  I  had  to  resort 
to  the  drug  as  found  in  the  market. 
A  quantity  was  reduced  to  a  coarse  powder,  and  macerated  48 
hours  in  water.  The  whole  was  then  transferred  to  a  distillatory 
apparatus  and  distilled.  The  distillate  obtained  was  neutral  to 
test-paper,  not  milky  or  fluorescent,  had  no  perceptible  odor,  and 
but  a  slight  taste  of  the  root.  This  would  indicate  the  absence 
of  a  volatile  oil. 
Another  portion  of  the  powdered  root  was  exhausted  with  cold 
water.  This  infusion  had  a  dark  brown  color,  and  the  peculiar 
taste  of  the  root.  When  first  prepared,  it  was  perfectly  limpid, 
but  soon  became  turbid  on  standing.  A  portion  of  this  infusion, 
when  agitated  with  a  weak  solution  of  corrosive  chloride  of  mer- 
cury, let  fall  a  copious  precipitate. 
With  another  portion  a  strong  infusion  of  nutgalls  produced  a 
curdy  precipitate,  and  another  portion,  when  boiled  and  allowed 
to  cool,  deposited  a  flocculent  precipitate,  these  tests  indicating 
the  presence  of  Albumen.  A  watery  decoction  was  next  prepared 
from  the  bruised  root,  filtered  and  concentrated,  and  precipitated, 
