A%Je°c%™*rm'}        Medicinal  Plants  of  the  CM  Indians.  619 
a  fibrous  texture.  The  color  externally  is  dull  brown  and  on  the  inner 
surface  yellowish.  Another  form  of  the  bark  consists  of  thinner 
pieces  torn  into  fine  shreds.  It  is  used  in  coughs,  half  an  ounce,  in 
the  form  of  decoction,  being  the  dose. 
The  inner  bark  of  the  poplar  is  eaten  in  the  spring  by  the  Indians, 
and  is  considered  to  act  as  a  mild  purgative.  Mr.  Haydon  says  he  has 
eaten  pounds  of  it  without  any  effect  being  produced.  It  is  at  that 
time  of  the  year  pleasant  in  flavor,  being  sweetish  and  very  tender. 
Wetchus-y-usk-wa,  or  Service  Tree,  (Pyrus,  Sp.?) — This  is  in  the 
form  of  thin  shreds  scraped  off  the  young  branches.  It  is  of  a  yellowish- 
white  color  on  the  inner  surface,  and  of  a  purplish-brown  on  the  outer. 
It  has  a  slightly  bitter,  very  astringent  taste,  and  a  strong  tea-like 
flavor.  It  is  used  by  the  Indians  in  pleurisy  and  inflammatory 
diseases. 
We-suh-a-pup  (Kalmia  angustifolia,  L.),  Bitter  Tea. — The  twigs 
with  leaves  and  flowers  are  used  in  bowel  complaints  and  as  a  tonic.  A 
small  handful  is  boiled  in  two  pints  of  water,  and  a  teaspoonful  taken 
occasionally.  A  nearly  allied  species  K.  latifolia,  is  said  to  ha,ve  cured 
an  obstinate  case  of  diarrhoea.  In  this  instance  an  ounce  of  the  leaves 
was  boiled  in  eight  ounces  of  water  down  to  four  ounces,  and  thirty 
drops  of  the  decoction  were  given  four  times  a  day.  When  given  six 
times  a  day  this  quantity  caused  vertigo.  A  case  of  poisoning  from 
the  use  of  Kalmia  latifolia  is  on  record,  in  which  glowing  heat  in  the 
head,  loss  of  sight,  coldness  of  extremities,  were  followed  by  nausea 
and  vomiting  (Edinburgh  Med.  Journ.,  1856,  p.  1014),  and  subse- 
quently formication,  weakness  of  the  limbs  and  great  prostration  of  the 
circulation,  remaining  for  several  hours.  It  is  pointed  out  in  the 
United  States  Dispensatory  (p.  1678)  that  K.  angustifolia  most  likely 
possesses  similar  properties.  It  is  remarkable,  therefore,  that  it  should 
be  used  as  a  tonic  by  the  Cree  Indians.  The  coldness  of  the  climate 
may,  however,  modify  the  development  of  the  poisonous  principle,  and 
species  closely  allied  to  a  poisonous  one  are  not  always  poisonous,  as  in 
the  case  of  Aconitum  heterophyttum,  or  even  A.  paniculatum,  the  latter 
nearly  resembling  the  poisonous  A.  Napellus.  Among  other  drugs 
mentioned  by  Mr.  Haydon  as  being  in  common  use  by  the  Cree  Indians 
are — Cedar  leaves  (Juniper us  virginiana  f)  and  Galium  boreale  as  diu- 
retics ;  Aetata  spicata,  L.,  and  Iris  versicolor,  L.,  as  purgatives ;  Mentha 
canadensis,  L.,  in  the  form  of  tea,  as  a  stomachic  j  Lobelia  Kalmii,  L., 
as  an  emetic;  Solidago  Virgaurea,  L.,  as  a  tonic;  Fleabane  (Erigeron 
