Am.  Jour.  Pharm. ) 
Sept.,  1879  J 
Melia  Azedarach. 
443 
tate  of  lead,  the  filtrate  from  which  contained  sugar,  gum  and  extract- 
ive matter.  The  precipitate  was  dissolved  in  alcohol,  the  solution- 
decomposed  by  sulphuretted  hydrogen,  and  the  filtrate  evaporated  ;  it 
yielded  1 7 J-  per  cent,  of  residue,  consisting  chiefly  of  tannin,  which1 
gives  a  greenish-black  color  with  solution  of  chloride  of  iron.  Statice 
is  powerfully  astringent.  In  domestic  practice  it  is  freely  used  in  some 
parts  of  the  coast  line  as  a  remedy  for  diarrhoea  and  dysentery,  to 
restrain  morbid  discharges  from  mucous  surfaces,  as  a  gargle  in  sore 
throat  and  aphthous  condition  of  the  mouth  and  fauces,  and  as  a  styp- 
tic in  passive  hemorrhages.  If  it  were  necessary  to  pay  the  cost  of 
importation,  statice  would  probably  be  held  in  as  high  estimation  by 
the  medical  profession  as  kino  and  catechu.  It  can  be  tinctured  and 
employed  for  all  the  purposes  for  which  these  popular  remedies  are 
given  ;  it  may  also  be  given  in  decoction  or  infusion.  Its  abundance 
and  valuable  properties  should  cause  it  to  be  brought  before  the  med- 
ical profession  and  to  be  more  generally  used. 
MELIA  AZEDARACH,  Lin. 
By  Joe  Jacobs,  Ph.G. 
Abstract  from  an  Inaugural  Essay. 
This  beautiful  tree  is  highly  appreciated  in  the  Southern  United 
States  for  the  beauty  of  its  flowers,  the  elegance  of  its  foliage  and  the 
medicinal  uses  to  which  it  is  applied  ;  as  a  shade  tree  its  popularity  is 
equal  to  that  of  the  maple  in  the  North.  It  appears  to  be  indigenous 
to  Asia,  but  is  planted  as  an  ornamental  tree  in  Southern  Europe, 
whence  it  was  introduced  into  and  naturalized  in  the  United  States  at 
an  early  period,  after  the  settlement  of  Carolina  and  Georgia.  It  is 
not  found  farther  north  than  Virginia,  as  the  severity  of  the  climate  of 
the  more  northern  districts  destroys  it.  The  common  names,  pride  of 
China  and  pride  of  India,  undoubtedly  originated  from  its  rare  beauty  ; 
Indian  lilac  from  the  resemblance  of  its  flowers  to  those  of  the  com- 
mon syringa,  and  head  tree  from  the  use  of  the  nuts  in  rosaries,  to  which, 
also,  the  German  name  Paternosterbaum  (paternostertree)  alludes.  In 
the  southern  States  it  is  known  as  China-berry,  and  to  the  young  as 
popgun  tree,  in  allusion  to  the  use  of  its  green  fruit. 
The  tree  attains  a  height  of  30  to  40  feet,  and  from  15  to  20  inches 
in  diameter  \  it  grows  rapidly,  reaching  the  height  of  12  or  15  feet  in* 
