Am^Xi89hiarm'}       Vegetable  Drugs  Used  in  Mexico.  75 
Turner acece. — Turnera  aphrodisiaca,  Ward,  grows  in  San  Luis 
Potosi  and  other  parts  of  Northern  Mexico;  its  common  name  is 
damiana  de  California. 
Verbenacece. — Verbena  supina,  Mocino,  is  used  under  the  name  of 
cantuezo,  as  a  substitute  for  Lavandula  Stoechas,  Linne. 
Lippia  citriodora,  Kunth,  known  as  ccdron.  Leaves  in  whorls  of 
3  or  4,  lanceolate,  acute,  entire,  8  to  10  cm.  long,  2  cm.  broad,  the 
secondary  nerves  forming  with  the  midrib  nearly  a  right  angle  ;  odor 
lemon- like;  taste  aromatic.  They  possess  antispasmodic  properties. 
Urticacece. — Cecropia  mexicana,  Hemslcy,  is  the  coilotapalo  of 
Michoacan  and  the  valley  of  Mexico.  Its  milk-juice  is  used  as  an 
escharotic  for  indolent  ulcers,  and  for  destroying  corns  and  warts. 
Ficus  (Urostigma,  Miquel,)  nymphsefolia,  Linne.  From  incisions 
made  into  the  bark  tescalama  is  obtained.  The  milk-juice  forms 
roundish  masses,  varying  in  size,  soft,  elastic  and  adhesive,  ductile 
when  mixed  with  vegetable  or  earthy  substances ;  gray,  in  thin 
layers  white  and  transparent,  on  exposure  to  the  air  turning  hard 
and  yellow  (hence  it  is  to  be  kept  under  water),  in  boiling  water 
becoming  very  soft  and  more  adhesive ;  odor  urinous,  disagreeable  ; 
tasteless.  According  to  Dr.  Altamirano  it  contains  caoutchouc  15, 
amatlin  (resin  soluble  in  alcohol)  55,  ether-soluble  resin  5,  pectin 
and  salts  17,  and  insoluble  matter  2-5  per  cent.  Sand,  ashes, 
earthy  matters,  vegetable  fragments,  and  chicle  are  used  for  adulte- 
ration, the  latter  being  recognized,  according  to  Uribe,  by  boiling 
with  water  when,  in  the  presence  of  chicle,  the  liquid  will  become 
yellow,  and  with  hydrochloric  acid  rose  colored.  Tescalama  is  used 
as  a  substitute  for  ocuje  de  la  Habana  (see  Amer.  Jour.  Phar.,  1886,  p. 
23),  for  fractures,  as  a  plaster  against  urinary  affections,  etc. 
Altamirano  has  used  it  in  the  preparation  of  porous  plasters. 
Zygophyllacece. — Larrea  mexicana,  Moric.,  is  the  gobernadora  de 
Mexico  (see  also  Amer.  Jour.  Phar,,  1885,  p.  601),  and  grows  in 
the  northern  Mexican  States;  also  in  the  United  States  from  Texas 
and  Southern  Colorado  westward,  where  it  is  known  as  creosote- 
bush,  owing  to  its  peculiar  odor.  The  leaves  are  employed  in 
Mexico  in  the  form  of  fomentations  and  baths  against  arthritic  pains, 
and  the  infusion  internally  in  dysuria.  Analyzed  by  Chavez,  the 
leaves  were  found  to  contain  tannin,  resin,  volatile  oil,  etc.  The 
resin  exuding  from  the  plant  is  useful  for  varnishes.  The  buds  pre- 
served in  vinegar  are  a  substitute  for  capers. 
