AN  ESSAY  ON  SASSAFBAS  OFFICINALE. 
483 
with  lichens,  but  immediately  below  this  the  reddish-brown  color 
of  the  bark  is  apparent.  The  inner  layers  of  the  old  bark  are 
much  lighter  in  color,  whilst  the  new  bark  in  contact  with  the 
alburnum  is  nearly  white.  On  old  trees  the  bark  of  the  trunk  is 
deeply  corrugated  and  furrowed.  Michaux  says  the  color  of  the 
old  bark  is  very  much  like  that  of  cinchona,  which  is  true  of  the 
red  cinchona.  The  wood  of  sassafras  is  coarse  grained,  and  when 
young  is  nearly  white,  but  the  heart  wood  of  old  trees  has  a  red- 
dish cast  due  to  the  deposition  of  more  or  less  sassafrid  in  its 
cells.  The  root  wood  is  nearly  white  in  roots  of  four  inches  in 
diameter,  easily  split  and  in  distinct  annular  rings.  The  live 
bark  immediately  in  contact  with  the  wood  is  nearly  white  or 
cream  colored,  fleshy  and  perfectly  free  from  a  trace  of  brown ; 
it  is  nevertheless  highly  astringent  and  pungent  to  the  taste. 
When,  however,  the  air  acts  upon  it  but  for  a  short  time  it  rapidly 
colors  reddish  brown,  and  eventually  assumes  the  hue  of  cin- 
chona, a  change  due  to  the  oxidation  of  its  tannic  acid. 
The  wood  of  sassafras  when  well  seasoned  possesses  considerable 
ability  to  resist  decay,  due  no  doubt  partly  to  the  presence  of  a 
little  volatile  oil.  It  is  used  for  posts  and  stakes,  and  the  larger 
timber  has  occasionally  been  made  into  furniture  ;  veneers  of  the 
knotty  curled  wood  were  some.years  ago  much  esteemed  for  fancy 
cabinet  work.  When  the  white  young  wood  is  dried  with  the 
sap  in  it,  the  exposed  surfaces  acquire  a  reddish  tint.  The  heart 
wood  is  considerably  darker  than  the  alburnum,  and  it  is  said 
that  a  variety  exists  with  the  heart  wood  of  a  red  color,  but  I  am 
inclined  to  think  this  statement  applies  to  the  heart  wood  of  the 
roots  of  trees  cut  for  some  years. 
The  bark  of  the  trunk  of  sassafras  is  but  slightly  impregnated 
with  volatile  oil,  which  resides  chiefly  in  the  inner  bark  of  the 
root  along  with  much  tannic  acid  ;  and  this  inner  bark  is  the  true 
medicinal  part  of  the  plant,  although  the  United  States  Pharma- 
copoeia simply  directs  the  bark  of  the  root.  The  British  Pharma- 
copoeia and  other  European  authorities  recognize  the  whole  roots? 
bark  and  wood  together. 
The  pith  of  the  young  succulent  shoots  is  recognized  in  the 
officinal  list  of  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia,  under  the  name 
"  Medulla  Sassafras."    The  uses  of  this  portion  are  solely  as  a 
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