Flora Medica

ARISTOLOCHIA.Stems climbing to the tops of trees, taper, flexuose; shoots striated,downy or woolly. Leaves on long stalks, cordate, entire, witha long point, smooth and roughish above, downy beneath. Pedunclesaxillary, solitary, in pairs, or in threes, four tunes shorter than thepetioles. Calyx brownish pink, 2 inches long, tubular, villous inside,bluntly hexagonal with an ;oblique 1-lipped, tongue-shaped, glandularlimb which is reflexed at the apex. Capsule oblong, bluntly hexangular.The stems when stripped of their bark resemble cords, andare employed in Peru as ropes. Used by the Peruvian Indians as aremedy for dysenteries, malignant inflammatory fevers, colds, rheumaticpains, and various diseases arising from fatigue. Antiseptic, odontalgic,sudorific. Flavour bitter, camphorous, balsamic. The Indians alsoapply it pounded or bruised fresh to the bites and stings of reptiles andinsects, as a powerful antidote to their poison. Ruiz.706. A. trilobata Linn. sp.pL 1361. Willd. iv. 151. Swartzobs. 341. Jacq. eclog. t. 26. Bot. reg. xvii. t. 1399. A. trifidaLam. enc. ii. 249. Woods in the West Indies.Stem shrubby, twining, round. Leaves on long stalks, cordate,3-lobed; the lobes oblong, obtuse, nearly equal; stipules combinedinto 1 large, cordate, roundish leaf. Flowers solitary; the peduncleand ovary taken together shorter than the petiole, large, paleyellow.Tube of the calyx inflated, cylindrical, angular, with 6 shortobtuse unequal spines at the base ;broken inwards in the middle,2-lipped; one of the lips being very large, cordate, brown-purple,puckered, with a very long, twisted linear point or tail. Reputed tobe an antidote to the bites of serpents. If taken in doses of from 6-20grains it is a sudden and powerful sudorific.707. A. anguicida Linn. sp. pi. 1362. Jacq. amer. 232. 1. 144.Thickets of Carthagena.Roots branched, pithy, filled with a bitter orange nauseous fetidjuice. Stems round, at the base corky, at the upper part smoothish,striated, twining; about 10 feet high. Stipules large, solitary, converging.Leaves cordate-acuminate, entire, flat, smooth on each side,netted underneath, with a short downy stalk. Peduncles axillary, solitary.Flowers greenish, with purple veins ;the limb on one side lanceolateacuminate. The juice of the root chewed and introduced into themouth of a serpent so stupifiesit that itmay for a long time be handledwith impunity; if the reptile is compelled to swallow a few drops itperishes in convulsions. The root is also reputed to be an antidote to1. serpent-bites. Jacquin, c.708. A. Serpentaria Linn. sp. pi. 1363. Woodv. t. 106. Bigelowmed. bot. iii. t. 49. A. officinalis N. andE. handb. ii. 400.pi. med. t. 144. Woods in the southern and middle parts ofthe United States.Height most commonly under a foot. Root extremely fibrous, andsending up a number of stems, which are simple or slightly branched,jointed, flexuose, and often with a reddish tinge. Leaves alternate, onshort petioles, oblong, entire, acuminate, heart-shaped, at base 3-nerved.The flowers grow close to the ground, like those of Asarum ;theyhave a stiff leathery texture, and a dull brownish purple colour. Thepeduncle which supports them has one or more bracts, and gradually343 z 4