Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
June,  1890. 
Pencedanum  Canbyi. 
281 
of  letting  each  degree  of  fineness  represent  the  whole  drug,  and  who 
are  not  content  with  grinding  "moderately  coarse,"  separating 
the  finer  powder  by  sifting.  A  truly  representative  powder  for  per- 
colation, for  instance,  can  not  well  be  of  a  uniform  grain  ;  it  must 
needs  contain  more  or  less  "  fine  "  powder. 
SOME  INDIAN  FOOD  PLANTS. 
IV. — Peucedanum  Canbyi,  Coulter  and  Rose. 
By  Henry  Trimble. 
Contribution  from  the  Chemical  Laboratory  of  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy. — 
No.  73. 
Read  at  the  Pharmaceutical  Meeting,  May  20. 
The  following  report  of  this  plant  has  been  forwarded  by  Dr.  V. 
Havard,  U.  S.  Army  Surgeon,  at  Fort  Buford,  N.  Dakota.  It  is 
known  as  "  Chucklusa  "  by  the  Spokane  Indians  : 
"  Of  the  nine  or  ten  species  of  Peucedanum  which  are  bulbiferous 
in  North  America,  the  bulbs  of  this  species,  in  size  and  flavor,  are 
probably  the  best,  or  certainly  among  the  best.  They  are  preferred 
to  those  of  any  other  plant  by  the  Spokane  Indians,  the  Camas 
excepted. 
"  The  Chucklusa  is  a  native  of  Washington  and  Oregon.  It  does 
not  appear  to  be  much  diffused  and  has  only  been  reported  from  a 
few  localities. 
"  It  is  from  3  to  8  inches  high,  with  a  short  underground  stem 
from  a  thickened,  more  or  less  elongated,  rootstock  which  ends  in  a 
solid  tuber ;  leaves  finally  dissected  into  short  segments;  umbels  5 
to  10-rayed,  the  white  rays  1  to  2  inches  long  ;  fruit  with  narrow 
wings,  ovate-oblong,  4  lines  long,  and  half  as  wide. 
"  The  bulb,  buried  3  or  4  inches  under  ground,  is  globular  in 
shape;  the  transverse  diameter  from  ^  to  1^  inches  and  slightly 
exceeding  the  vertical  diameter.  It  is  covered  with  a  black  epider- 
mis, easily  rubbed  off,  and  entirely  made  up  of  a  white  farinaceous 
mass  with  a  granular,  homogeneous  texture.  In  taste  it  is  very 
pleasantly  palatable  with  a  slight  aromatic  flavor.  It  is  eaten  either 
raw  or  baked,  and  often  pounded  into  flour  from  which  a  nutritious 
and  wholesome  bread  can  be  made." 
