ACINI. 
tables ; the silvic, in the pine; the stearic, in 
saponified fat ; and the tartaric, in the grape or 
in the lees of wine. Three organic acids of im- 
portant character, not included in the list below, 
are the tannic, found in such barks as are capable 
of tanning leather ; the humic, constituting the 
most valuable part of mould or vegetable soil ; 
and the hydrocyanic or prussic, noted for its 
dreadfully poisonous power, and found in peach 
blossoms, laurel-leaves, sloe-flowers, and bitter 
almonds. We shall, in their appropriate places, 
give brief separate articles on these three acids, 
on the more important of the other organic acids, 
and on the nitric, the phosphoric, the sulphuric, 
and the carbonic acids — Ure’s Dictionary of Chem- 
istry.—Thomson’s Chemisiry of Organic Bodies.— 
Thomson's Chemistry of Vegetables —Boussingault’s 
Rural Economy.—Lnebig’s Chemistry of Agricul-. 
ture—Davy’s Agricultural Chemaisiry. 
ACINI. Berries which hang in clusters, as 
mulberries; also the granules, kernels, or small 
stones of grapes and other berries; also numer- 
| ous little granules, dispersed through the sub- 
stance of the horse’s liver, and supposed to asist 
in separating the blood from the bile. 
ACINUS. The annual plant wild basil, very 
common on dry arable lands in many parts of 
England, especially on gravelly or chalky hills. 
ACNIDUS,—popularly Virerntian Hemp. A 
small genus of plants, of the goosefoot tribe. The 
only well-known species is an annual, and a na- 
tive of North America; it flowers in June and 
| July; and it has lanceolate leaves, and somewhat 
smooth, sharp-angled capsules. 
ACONITE, Monxsnoop, or Wo1irsspane—bo- 
| tanically Aconi/tum. A genus of tall, ornamental, 
free-flowering, perennial, herbaceous, and very 
‘| hardy plants, of the ranunculus tribe. The num- 
ber of known species is about 120. Several of 
the species are very commonly grown in gardens, 
and bear a close resemblance, in general appear- 
ance of both stem and leaf, to some of the most 
common species of larkspur. The flowers of the 
most common kind are dark blue, helmeted, large, 
and scentless; they are produced in solitary, 
simple, upright, spike-like panicles; and, when 
judiciously intermixed with contemporaneous 
flowers of other genera, they make an imposing 
figure in a bouquet. But the whole genus, in all 
the parts of its plants—roots, stem, leaves, and 
flowers—is poisonous, and ought either to be ex- 
pelled from garden-culture, or grown only within 
limited conditions. Any parent who suffers it to 
grow within the reach of his children is either 
ignorant, fool-hardy, or florist-mad ; and any ama- 
teur who is not willing to adopt some of the finest 
larkspurs as a substitute for it, deserves to be 
condemned for a season to regale himself on docks 
and dandelions. The species best known to gar- 
deners are those designated Wapellus, alpinum, 
lycoctonum, Japonicum, pyreniacum, ochroleucum, 
album, barbatum, orientale, anthora, pyramidale, 
tortuosum, cammarum, and uncinatum. The kinds 
37 
ACORNS. 
with blue flowers are believed to be much more 
poisonous than those with white or yellow flowers ; 
and several are poisonous in the most virulent 
degree. Every part of the very common species, 
Aconitum Napellus, is poisonous in its green state ; 
yet, when dried and properly prepared, it becomes 
an useful medicine in fever, rheumatism, schir- || 
rus, and other cases, but, of course, cannot be ad- | 
ministered with safety except by a skilful phy- || 
sician. The dose of powdered aconite is one or 
two grains. Externally, as an embrocation, the 
tincture has been usefully employed in neural- 
gic affections. It should be applied in this form 
by means of a small piece of sponge attached to 
the end of a stick. The root is gathered in the 
spring before the leaves appear. The leaves are 
usually collected when the flowers begin to ap- 
pear. Neither the leaves nor the root have any 
smell, but when chewed they slowly occasion a || 
sense of tingling and numbness in the tongue 
and interior of the mouth. Large doses excite 
symptoms of gastric irritation, followed by stupor, 
convulsions, coma, and death. A person having 
eaten some leaves of the plant, and become mania- 
cal, the surgeon who was called to his assistance 
declared that the aconite was not the cause of 
his disorder ; and, to convince the persons present 
that the plant was harmless, he eat freely of it, 
and soon after died in great agony. By far the 
worst species is the Aconitum ferox, sometimes 
called Aconztum virosum, a native of the Nepaul 
mountains, in places 10,000 feet above the level 
of the sea. Three other species are natives of 
the same regions, and are known by the inhabi- 
tants to be strong poisons. “ But this species,” 
says Dr. Wallich, in his recent ‘ Plantze Asiaticze 
Rariores,’ “ exceeds them all in virulence, and is , 
probably the most deleterious vegetable poison of 
continental India. This dreadful root, of which 
large quantities are largely imported, is equally 
fatal when taken into the stomach or applied to 
wounds, and is in universal use in poisoning 
arrows, and, there is too much reason to suspect, 
| 
for the worst purposes.” 
ACONITE (Winter). See Hetimzore, 
ACONITIA, or Acontt1inz. The chemical base, 
or active principle, found in the root of the 
several species of aconite. It is the most viru- 
lent poison known; not excepting prussic acid. 
As prepared by Morson of London, one-fiftieth of 
a grain has endangered life; and the hundredth 
part of a grain has produced a feeling of numb- 
ness, weight, and constriction which has lasted a 
whole day. 
ACORNS. The seed or fruit of the oak. They 
were used as food by the early Greeks, by the an- | 
cient Britons, and by other primitive tribes of || 
the human race; but those used by the. Greeks 
were much sweeter and more succulent than 
English acorns are, and those used by the ancient 
Britons appear to have been gulped down more 
in obedience to Druidical superstition than under 
the direct promptings of a regular appetite. 
