ON  THE  KINDS  OF  RHUBARB  IN  RUSSIAN  COMMERCE.  217 
chiefly  through  Siberia  to  the  fair  at  Nishni-Nowgorod,  since 
1863  imported  to  Moscow  by  the  firm  of  Kaplan  &  Co.  Packed 
in  chests  and  barrels  up  to  200  lbs.  in  weight. 
Pieces  weighing  from  one  to  seven  ounces,  mostly  uncut,  or 
cleft  merely  longitudinally ;  shape  resembling  the  Moscovitic. 
Entirely  or  partly  mundified,  but  the  latter  peeled  superficially 
after  drying.  Nearly  all  with  holes  made  on  drying,  but  rarely 
bore-holes,  and  these  made  only  in  imitation  of  the  Moscovitic 
root.  Color  the  same  as  in  former.  Surface  mostly  smooth, 
frequently  bearing  evidence  that  the  powder  was  not  fixed  by 
attrition  during  transportation,  but  added  artificially.  Mean 
length  2f  inches,  greatest  thickness  If  inches.  Texture  more 
or  less  loose,  frequently  porous ;  pulverulent  ring  strongly 
marked ;  radiating  circles  indistinct,  within  the  ring  these  ra- 
diating systems  are  very  rarely  circularly  arranged,  outside  the 
ring  still  more  rarely  indicated  ;  but  here  the  medullary  rays 
radiate  very  uniformly ;  these  rays  formed  mostly  of  five  rows 
of  cells  beside,  and  of  five  and  more  rows  above  each  other  ;  the 
interlacing  of  the  veins  on  the  surface  is  therefore  far  less  dis- 
tinctly rhombic.  Cells  of  medullary  rays  elongated,  rectangular, 
their  coloring  matter  mostly  yellowish  or  reddish  brown.  Starch 
in  the  centre  and  toward  the  circumference  more  abundant,  oxalate 
of  lime  in  smaller  quantity ;  clusters  of  the  same  flat  radiating. 
3.  South- Chinese  Rhubarb  enters  commerce  usually  from 
Canton  in  chests  of  130  lbs.,  (147J  lbs.  Russ.,)  lined  with  tinned 
sheet-iron.  Partly  peeled,  partly  unpeeled,  mostly  uncleft,  with 
very  small  bore-hole,  frequently  wanting  and  not  made  with  a 
knife  as  was  done  at  Kiachta.  Surface  generally  covered  with 
little  powder.  Mean  weight  3  oz.,  larger  pieces  as  much  as  7 
oz.,  smaller  about  1  oz.  Mean  length  3  inches,  greatest  thick- 
ness 2J  inches.  More  compact  than  former  and  rarely  porous. 
Color  darker,  externally  as  well  as  inside.  Microscopic  texture 
and  appearance  under  the  magnifier  similar  to  former,  but  more 
compact,  the  veins  darker  to-  greyish  brown.  Starch  granules 
in  some  specimens  smaller  than  in  former. 
I  do  not  consider  here  the  rarer  and  inferior  kinds,  particular- 
ly the  so-called  cylindrical  Canton  rhubarb  (stick  rhubarb),  which 
appears  to  be  cultivated  in  the  East  Indies,  probably  a  kind  of 
