ON SALEP. 
23 
all the powers of the herb; it forms a very strong but very 
pleasant bitter, by no means unpalatable. It is grateful to the 
stomach, and diffuses throughout the system a general 
warmth." The dose is a tea-spoonful. 
If given in substance, the dose is one scruple, powdered. 
Another point of interest connected with this plant arises 
from the circumstance of its having been supposed by Gui- 
bourt to constitute the Calamus verus of the ancients. 
This supposition is based by him upon its characters. It has 
been shown, however, by Fee, by drawing a parallel be- 
tween the description of the two plants, that such an assump- 
tion cannot be relied on, as the characters of Calamus verus, 
which are given by Theophrastus, Dioscorides, and Pliny, 
have no correspondence with those of gentian, and the sensi- 
ble qualities also are different. J. C. 
ART. V. — ON SALEP. By Augustine Duhamel. 
The term Salep is applied to a preparation which is made 
from certain bulbous roots belonging to plants of the tribe 
Orchidex, and which commerce brings to us from Natolia, 
a province of Asiatic Turkey, and Persia. 
The orchideous plants are very numerous, and are supposed 
to exceed fifteen hundred species. They belong to the class 
Gynandria, and are remarkable for the anomalous structure 
of their flowers, from the circumstance of the pistils and sta- 
mens growing united together. They are found scattered 
throughout the face of the globe, and in all countries not re- 
markable for extreme frigidity or dryness. They grow most 
luxuriantly in the hot, damp parts of the East and West In- 
dies, Madagascar, the humid forests of South America, and 
similar situations in Europe. They are noted for their ex- 
treme beauty, singular variety, and delicious perfume. The 
different species vary a great deal in the aromatic principle 
