5. Filaments joined to the corolla, their ends thickened. Anthers

arrow-shaped. Ovary, 2 uniovulate locules. Style, same length as stamens. Stigma thick, conical, lobulate. Two drupes joined at the base (one usually aborted), brown, large, oval, fleshy, with woody fibrous nut of a single flattened seed. Habitat.--Luzon. Blooms in July. _Plumeria acutifolia_, Poir. (_P. alba_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Calachuche_, Sp.-Fil.; _Kalatsutsi_, _Kalasusi_, Tag. Uses.--This tree, beloved for its fragrant flowers, has a wide therapeutic use in India and the Philippines. The bark is a bitter hydragogue cathartic and is given in decoction (5-10 grams to 200 water) principally for dropsy; however the milky juice of the trunk is preferable for this purpose, given in emulsion in doses of 0.50-0.80 grams. The bark and the tips of the branches are given as an emmenagogue. The bark of the root and of the trunk is an excellent remedy for blenorrhagia. The fresh bark is thoroughly comminuted and mixed with sweetened water in the proportion of 60 grams to 4 liters; this mixture is put in the sun for 4 days, and shaken from time to time. It is then strained and given in doses of 4-5 glassfuls a day, at the same time with refreshing and emollient drinks, and prolonged tepid baths. At first this preparation exerts a purgative action, but later acts upon the urinary organs, rapidly lessening the suppurative process in urethritis. The bark may also be associated with wine or beer, in the proportion of 30 grains to the liter, the dose being 2-4 small cupfuls a day and Dr. Grosourdy employs the extract of the bark in doses aggregating 0.20-0.25 gram a day, gradually increased till at the end of a week 6 grams are taken daily (Dr. J. Amadeo). The bruised leaves are applied locally to contusions to reduce the swelling. The juice is used externally as a rubefacient in rheumatic affections of the joints. In Concan they use a decoction of the root for diarrhoea. The flower buds are chewed with _buyo_, for intermittent fever and the juice is applied locally for itch. Peckolt and Geuther isolated from the bark the glucoside, _agoniadin_ (C_10_H_14_O_6_), which crystallizes in silky crystals fusible at 155°, slightly soluble in water, alcohol, bisulphuret of carbon, ether and benzine; soluble in nitric or sulphuric acids. In solution it is a golden yellow soon changing to green. Boiled in a dilute acid it splits into glucose and an undetermined substance. Oudeman obtained _plumieric_ acid (C_10_H_10_O_5_) from the milky juice deprived of its resin; the acid exists as microscopic, needle-like crystals, soluble in boiling water, alcohol and ether. It melts and decomposes at 130°. Botanical Description.--A tree, 12-18° high, commonly cultivated for ornament, well known in the islands, almost constantly bearing fragrant flowers, but rarely bearing fruit. Branches forked and peculiarly stumpy at the ends. Leaves alternate, broad lanceolate, entire, glabrous, the apices curved downward. Petioles short. Flowers creamy white, light yellow in the throat. Calyx 5-toothed. Corolla twisted, funnel-form, 5-lobed. Stamens 5, hidden in depths of the tube. Anthers dart- or arrow-formed. Style very short, thickened above. Stigma 2-parted. Two horizontal, cylindrical and long follicles joined at their bases, with numerous seeds in hollow receptacles, each seed encircled by a wing. _Alstonia scholaris_, Br. (_Echites scholaris_, L. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Dita_, Tag.; _Dallopawen_, Iloc.; _Dita_ or _Alstonia Tree_, Eng. Uses.--The trunk bark is a febrifuge of great importance; it is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India and is widely used in the Philippines. Personally I have had occasion to use it in several cases of malarial fever in the town of San Mateo near Manila. It is astringent, anthelmintic and antiperiodic, highly useful in chronic diarrhoea and dysentery, not only for its astringent effects but for its tonic and restorative action. As a tonic it gives as good results as quinine. The dry powdered bark is given internally in wafers of 20-30 centigrams. The infusion is prepared from 15 grams of the dry comminuted bark to 300 of water. The dose is 30-60 grams 2 or 3 times a day. Another convenient preparation is the tincture, 75 grams of the powdered bark macerated 7 days in 500 grams of alcohol, shaking from time to time. It is then filtered and enough alcohol added to make up the 500 cc. The dose is 4-8 grams a day. I have often used the following wine as a tonic for convalescents and patients suffering from general debility: Finely powdered bark, 25 grams, muscatel or dry sherry one bottle; macerate a week, shaking every day, and filter; dose 1/2 wineglass with equal parts water a few minutes before each meal; children or very weak patients should take it after eating; it should always be diluted. G. Grupe, a Manila pharmacist, treating the bark in 1883 by the same process as that used in the preparation of quinine, obtained a bitter substance which he named _Ditaine_. According to Grupe Dr. Pina used this substance with great success in the treatment of malarial fevers, but neither Grupe's report nor Pina's experiment are of any scientific value, inasmuch as they have neglected to mention the doses in which the so-called alkaloid was employed. Later analyses by Hesse and Jobst revealed several principles: two alkaloids _ditamine_ (C_16_H_19_NO_2_), soluble in ether; _Ditaine_ or _Echitamine_ (C_22_H_28_NO_4_ + H_2_O) insoluble in ether, soluble in water; acetic acid and two amorphous substances dextrogyrous in ethereal solution, one of them a resin, _Echicauchina_ (C_25_H_40_O_2_), the other neutral, _Echiretin_ (C_35_H_56_O_2_); two crystallizable principles, dextrogyrous: _Echicerin_ (C_30_H_48_O_2_), _Echitein_ (C_42_H_70_O_2_) and _Echitin_ (C_32_H_52_O_2_). _Ditaine_ is employed under the same circumstances and in the same dose as quinine. (The Hindoo writer, K. L. Dey, states that the plant yields an inferior quality of gutta-percha.) Botanical Description.--A tree, 50 or more feet high, the trunk covered with small eminences resembling the scars of thorns. Branches radiating. Leaves radiating, 5, 6 or more, somewhat elliptical in form, pointed at the apex. Petioles very short, with a pointed glandule on the inner surface of the base. Flowers white, terminal, in umbellate racemes. Calyx very short, 5-toothed. Corolla twisted, tubular, the limb 5-lobuled; throat open, encircled with down. Stamens 5, hidden within the throat and inserted on the tube. Filaments almost wanting. Anthers arrow-shaped. Style as long as the stamens, somewhat flattened, a scarcely visible line throughout its length. Stigma bifid, placed above a cylindrical zone, two follicles, 1° long and 1'' thick, twisted like a string, containing the seeds in a row. Seeds cylindrical with a hairy awn at both ends. Habitat.--In the forests of Luzon, especially in Batangas. Blooms in April. _Nerium odorum_, Aiton. (_N. oleander_, L. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Adelfa_, Sp.; _Baladri_, Tag.; _Sweet-scented Oleander_, Eng. Uses.--In the Philippines and in Spain this plant is well known to be poisonous. The bark and the leaves of both the red-flowered and white-flowered varieties are boiled in cocoanut oil and the product is used for inunction in itch and other skin diseases. The bruised root is a useful application for chancroids. We have stated that the plant is poisonous, and indeed it is actively so in the tropics. It is now recognized as an energetic cardiac poison, comparable with strophanthus, destined to play an important part in therapeutics. Dr. Pouloux has made a study of the hydro-alcoholic extract of oleander and reports that it exerts a marked effect on the heart of frogs and rabbits, arresting them in systole. Where there is asystolia, such as we encounter in Bright's disease, without compensation, it stimulates the heart and increases the urine in the same manner as digitalis. No contraindications to its use are as yet known. It occasions no disagreeable symptoms and may be used many days consecutively provided that the daily dose does not exceed 10-15 centigrams. The poisonous properties of the plant reside in two alkaloids isolated by Lukowsky from the leaves: _oleandrine_, extremely toxic and _pseudo-curarine_, as its name indicates, resembling curare in its action. Oleandrin is yellow, semicrystalline, soluble in water, alcohol, ether, chloroform and olive oil; fusible at 70-75° and changing to a greenish oil. With HCl it forms a crystalline salt. It is a violent irritant of the mucous membranes and given internally it causes emesis, diarrhoea, tetanic convulsions and death. It arrests the cardiac movements in doses of 25 milligrams. Loiseleur-Deslongchamps experimented with the drug on his own person, using a solution of 30 grams of the extract in 120 grams of wine. He began by taking three drops of this preparation four times a day, adding a drop to each dose every day, so that at the end of 12 days he was taking 48 drops between 6 a. m. and 9 p. m. He reached a maximum of 64 drops a day but was forced to abandon his experiment at that point on account of the unpleasant symptoms induced--loss of appetite, great weakness and muscular pains. His deduction was that the plant contained a "destructive and irritant principle." The experiment is of interest as demonstrating the maximum dose of the drug. The active principles of the plant reside principally in the leaves and bark, but that they are abundantly present in other parts is proved by the death of several soldiers in Corsica from having eaten meat roasted on a spit of oleander wood. Botanical Description.--A small tree, about 6° high. Leaves coriaceous, lanceolate, entire, glabrous. Flowers in terminal cymes, rose-color or white, single or double. Calyx 5-parted. Corolla 15 petals, the inner ones larger, disposed in 3 groups of 5. Stamens 10, fixed on receptacle; filaments short. Style shorter than stamens. Two follicles, sharp-pointed, channeled, containing many imbricated seeds each with an awn. ASCLEPIADACEÆ. Milkweed Family. _Calotrops gigantea_, R. Br. (_Asclepias gigantea_, Willd. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Kapal-kapal_, Tag.; _Swallow-Wort_, Eng.; _Mudar_, Indo-Eng. Uses.--This plant is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India as an alterative, tonic, diaphoretic and emetic. J. J. Durant, having observed that the natives used it for dysentery, experimented with it quite successfully in that disease. For adults he gradually raised the dose from 1.10 to 4 grams, preferring smaller doses, however, for mild cases. To children he prescribed 5-10 centigrams for each year of age, 3 or 4 times a day. He remarked that the effects produced were identical with those of ipecac administered in Brazilian fashion. The part of the plant used is the dry root powdered. The usual dose is 15-50 centigrams 3 times a day, gradually increased; as an emetic 2-4 grams. The milky juice that escapes from the stem on the slightest abrasion is a drastic purgative, given commonly in dropsy, lumbricoids, etc. Pledgets of cotton impregnated with the juice and packed in the cavities of carious teeth, relieve toothache. It is applied locally for various skin diseases, including syphilitic ulcers, and as a depilatory. Some races of India, such as the Rajputs of the districts of Allahab and of Khangor, use this milk-juice to poison their female infants whom they are accustomed to regard as a vexatious burden. Therapeutically they use it with honey, locally for sore throat. The dry and powdered juice has been used in small doses as an alterative in the treatment of tuberculous leprosy, but it has not given results any better than many other drugs. In syphilis and mercurial cachexia its results are less doubtful. In 1881 Dr. Riddell obtained a sort of gutta-percha from the juice, previously observed by Professor Redwood. Mooden Sheriff states that the most active parts of the plant are the root bark and the dried juice. He adds that the action of the juice is irregular and even dangerous, and that the bark is active in direct proportion to its age. He recommends that the inert tuberous layer of the bark be removed; prepared thus and powdered it is emetic in doses of 2.50-3 grams. Duncan claims to have isolated from the bark an active principle which he called _mudarin_ from "mudar," the Indian name of the plant. Following the same process Flückiger was unable to obtain the substance, but did isolate 1 1/2% of an acrid resin, soluble in ether and in alcohol; a mucilage and a bitter principle decolorized by chloroform and ether. It is probable that this is the active principle of the "Calotropis gigantea." Warden and Waddell in 1881 isolated a substance crystallizable in nodular masses, with the formula C_17_H_28_O, analogous to the _albana_ of gutta-percha. Botanical Description.--A small tree, 7-8° high, with straight stem, branched and woody. Leaves sessile, opposite, cleft at the base, oval, fleshy and woolly. Flowers lateral in simple umbels of 3 or more flowerets. Calyx 5-cleft. Corolla monopetalous, 5 acute lobes, white, of rare and beautiful form. Nectaries 5, united throughout their length with the receptacle, their bases curved like the sides of the fleur de lis. Above the nectaries is a 5-angled crown, the extremity of the receptacle; in each angle a black anther. Two large follicles narrowed at the ends, woolly, the apex somewhat curved to one side, containing many imbricated seeds, each with a tuft of long hairs. Habitat.--Bauang, Taal and the volcanic island of Taal. Blossoms in April. _Tylophora asthmatica_, Wight. (_Asclepias asthmatica_, Roxb.) Nom. Vulg.--(?) Uses.--We are ignorant of the uses the Filipinos make of this plant. It is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India, the dry powdered leaf being the part employed, and its emetic, diaphoretic and expectorant properties are well known in that country. Roxburgh has used the root as an emetic and Anderson has employed it in the same manner as ipecac in dysentery. Later the experience of Anderson was confirmed by O'Shaughnessy; though in place of the root he used the leaf, the properties of which he regards as more certain and uniform. Dr. J. Kirkpatrick has noted that the juice of the root and its powder are used by the natives of Mysore as an emetic, and adds that he himself has used it for that purpose in a thousand cases with good results. In its effect on dysentery as well as in its emetic effect it resembles ipecacuanha. He used the powder in doses of 1.20-1.80 gr., to which he added 3-6 centigrams of tartar emetic when he desired to obtain an energetic emetic action. Like O'Shaughnessy he prefers the powdered leaves. He considers it a good substitute for ipecac, not only as an emetic, but as a remedy in asthma, dysentery and catarrhal affections; Drs. Oswald and Mooden Sheriff have made the same observations. The latter advises the administration of the juice of the plant for snake bites till vomiting is produced; then follow with diffusible stimulants. The emetic dose of the powdered leaves is 1.20-1.80 grams, the expectorant and diaphoretic dose 10-30 centigrams. The concentrated infusion of the leaves has an acrid taste. Tannic acid, the neutral acetate of lead and caustic potash produce with it an abundant precipitate; the perchloride of iron colors it a dark green. Broughton, of Ootaemund (India), informed Hanbury and Flückiger, from whom we quote, that in 1872 he obtained a very small quantity of crystals from a large quantity of leaves. He had not enough to make an analysis, but injected a solution of the crystals into a dog with resulting vomiting and diarrhoea. Botanical Description.--A vigorous plant with scandent stem 2-4 meters long, the more recent growth woolly. Leaves opposite, entire, 5-12 centimeters long and 2-6 broad, oval or rounded. Petiole striated and short. Flowers in umbelliferous cymes, compound, axillary, solitary and alternate, with woolly peduncles; hermaphrodite, regular, small, of a pale green color inside and a light purple outside. Calyx gamosepalous, with 5 lobules. Corolla gamopetalous, 5 oval, twisted lobules. Staminal crown composed of 5 fleshy scales, joined to the staminal tube. Stamens 5, inserted on the throat of the corolla, filaments joined to form a very short tube with anthers straight, short and crowned by a membranous bilocular appendix. The gynoecium consists of 2 unilocular ovaries each containing an indefinite number of ovules. Style with a pentagonal stigma which bears in each angle a glandular body. Fruits compound with two separate follicles, large, lanceolate, smooth, 8-10 centimeters long and 5 in circumference. Each encloses a seed, hairy, albuminous with straight embryo and flattened cotyledons. Habitat.--Mountains of San Mateo. LOGANIACEÆ. Logania Family. _Strychnos Ignatii_, Berg. (_S. Philippensis_, Blanco; _Ignatia amara_, L.; _Ignatia Philippinea_, Lour.) Nom. Vulg.--_Pepita Fruta_, Sp.-Fil.; _Pepita sa katbalongan_, _Kabalongan_, Tag., Pam.; _Pangaguason_, _Aguason_, _Kanlara_, _Mananaog_, _Dankagi_, _Katalonga_, _Igasud_, Vis.; _St. Ignatius Bean_, Eng. Uses.--The part of the plant employed is the seed, known in addition to the above common names as Pepita de San Ignacio and Pepita de Cabalonga (for _katbolongan_). The natives handle it with the greatest imprudence, selling everywhere in the markets and in the Chinese shops, called _tindang-bayang_. It is not only a remedy among them, but a sort of panacea, to which they attribute, among other virtues, that of expelling evil spirits, simply worn about the neck. They grate it with a piece of earthen pot, mix with a little "tuba" vinegar and apply it to the temples for headache. In bites of poisonous animals they advise the application of the powdered seed over the wound, a treatment which instead of being beneficent might easily be harmful to the patient. Before proceeding further, let us give the chemical composition of the seeds in order that their uses may be the better understood. _Strychnine_ is found in them in the proportion of 1/2-1 1/2 and _brucine_ 1/2%-1.4%. Flückiger and Hanbury by drying it over sulphuric acid and burning it with "cal sòdica" obtained 1.78% of nitrogen which represents 10% of albuminoid material. Strychnine and brucine exist in combination with igasuric acid discovered by Ludwig in 1873. The proportion of both the alkaloids is greater than in the seeds of nux vomica which contain only .25-.50% strychnine and .12-.05% brucin, although some authors give it as high as 1.01%. Strychnine can be obtained more readily and in larger proportions from St. Ignatius bean, but it is generally obtained from nux vomica seeds on account of the cheapness of the latter. It is more energetic than nux vomica and its use in medicine should be condemned, preference, however, being given to the official preparations among which the best known is that commonly called "Bitter Drops of Beaumé," of which the following is the composition: Grated St. Ignatius' beans 500 grams. Potassium carbonate 5 grams. Soot (?) 1 gram. 60% alcohol 1,000 grams. Macerate for 10 days, strain, express and filter. Dose, 1-16 drops in a little water or wine before each meal, for dyspepsia, anæmia, convalescence from fevers, and other conditions in which a tonic is indicated. The indications for the use of this drug are the same as those for nux vomica, keeping in mind the difference in dose. Botanical Description.--This plant grows in the deep forests of Samar and Masbate. That industrious and distinguished botanist, D. Regino García, found it growing abundantly in Paranas, Island of Samar. It is a robust vine, the trunk sometimes as thick as a man's thigh, climbing to the tops of the highest trees, apparently without preference as to its host, inasmuch as he saw it growing indifferently on _Ficus_, _Dipterocarpus_, _Litsaca_, etc. The seed which most interests us and is very common, is about the size of an olive, round and convex on one side, angulose and flattened on the other by being compressed with many others within the fruit which contains 50 of them. Its surface is blackish with a gray-blue tinge. It is hard and corneous. Its taste is extremely bitter. Branches opposite, smooth, the ends square. Leaves opposite, oval, much pointed at the apex, entire, glabrous, with 3 prominent nerves. Petioles very short. Flowers in panicles of many flowerets. Calyx inferior, 5-cleft, very short. Corolla 6-7 times longer than the calyx, funnel-form, 5-lobed. Anthers 5, sessile, fixed in the throat of the corolla. Ovary very small. Style filiform, same length as the stamens. Stigma truncate and thick. Drupe globose, often oval, large, smooth, with thick, woody shell of a single compartment containing seeds as described above. BORAGINACEÆ. Borage Family. _Ehretia buxifolia_, Roxb. (_Carmonea heterophylla_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Mangit_, _Alangitngit_, Tag., Vis. Uses.--The leaves dried in the shade are used in some Visayan towns, in infusion to take the place of tea. The root is used by the Hindoo physicians as an alterative. Dr. R. Ross has employed it for that purpose in a decoction of 60 grams to 500 cc. of water; 60 cc. a day of this preparation gave him good results in secondary and constitutional syphilis. The Mohammedans of India consider the root an antidote for vegetable poisons. Botanical Description.--Small tree, 5-6° high, trunk straight. Leaves alternate or bunched in 3's or 4's at the nodes, lanceolate or spatulate, 3-toothed at apex, sometimes serrate toward the apex, set with short, stiff hairs. Petioles very short. Flowers axillary, in racemose panicles of a few flowers each. Common peduncle long, pedicel short. Calyx free, bell-shaped, persistent, divided almost to base into 5 narrow, downy parts. Corolla bell-shaped, 5 oval lobules. Stamens 5. Ovary oval, within the flower. Style bifid. Stigmas simple, truncate. Drupe globose, with hard, slightly furrowed putamen of 6 locules and solitary seeds. Habitat.--Malinta and many other parts of the Visayas. Blooms in January. CONVOLVULACEÆ. Convolvulus Family. _Ipomoea hederacea_, Jacq. (_I. nil_, Roth.; _Convolvulus nil_, L. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Bulakan_, Tag.; _Kala-Danah_, Indo-Eng. Uses.--This plant is not used as a medicine by the Filipinos, but is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India from which we copy its indications and official preparations. The seed is the part employed, its cathartic properties being much like those of jalap, though less energetic. An excellent substitute for the latter is 2 or 3 grams of _kala-danah_ seeds in powder form, and no unpleasant effects attend its operation. The official preparations are: Extract of Kaladana.--Dose, 30-60 centigrams in pill. Powdered seeds 500 grams. Alcohol 2 liters. Water 4 1/2 liters. Tincture of Kaladana.--Dose, 8-12 grams. Seeds 75 grams. Alcohol 500 grams. Compound Powder of Kaladana.--Dose, 3-3 1/2 grams. Powdered seeds 150 grams. Acid tartrate of potassium 270 grams. Powdered ginger 30 grams. The last is an excellent substitute for the corresponding preparation of jalap. Resin of Kaladana.--Dose, 30-50 centigrams. It is prepared like resin of jalap and is a safe and sure purgative. In mass it has a dark color, but is gray when powdered. The odor is rather unpleasant, the taste sweetish and then acrid, nauseous, persistent, exciting the saliva and irritating the fauces. It was introduced into practice by Dr. G. Vidie. Botanical Description.--A twiner with round, downy stem. Leaves heart-shaped, 3-lobed, the middle one broad-lanceolate, the lateral ones rather rectangular with petioles of equal length with the leaves. Flowers large, rose color or pale blue, in axillary cymes of 2 or 3 flowers each. Calyx, 5 long, downy parts. Corolla bell-shaped, 5 faint lobes. Stamens 5, free, inserted in the corolla. Ovary free, 3 biovulate locules. Style simple. Stigma trilobed. Seed vessels globose with 3 locules each containing 2 seeds. Seeds convex on dorsum, 1/2 cm. broad by 1 cm. long, testa black. Habitat.--Manila. Blooms in August. _Ipomoea pes-capræ_, Roth. (_Convolvulus pes-capræ_ L. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Katagkatag_, _Lagayray_, _Lampayog_, _Bagasoa_, _Kamigag_, _Daripay_, _Tagaray_, _Arodayday_, _Lambayog_, Tag., Vis.; _Lambayog_, Iloc. Uses.--The dry, powdered leaves are dusted over bruises and ulcers. The entire plant is very mucilaginous and the bruised fresh leaves are applied like poultices to cancers and ulcerating tumors. In India the boiled leaves are applied locally in colic and in rheumatism; the juice is given internally in dropsy as a diuretic, the pounded leaves at the same time serving as a poultice to the oedematous parts. Botanical Description.--A plant that creeps extensively, the stem taking root. Leaves with 2 well-marked lobules. Flowers rose-lilac color, in axillary panicles with long pedicels. Corolla very large, bell-shaped, the limb 5-angled and 5-nerved. Stamens 5, unequal in height. Stigma globose, marked by a line; later it divides in two. Seed vessel ovate, 2-celled, in each cell 2 downy seeds convex on one side, angular on the other. Habitat.--Very common on the seashore. Blooms in January. _Ipomoea Turpethum_, R. Br. (_Convolvulus Turpethum_, L.; _C. maximus_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Albohol_, Sp.; _Turpeth Root_, _Indian Jalap_, Eng. Uses.--The root, known in the Philippines as "turbita," is a purgative and is a component part of the tincture of jalap, one of the most positive and active of known cathartics. But turpeth root is seldom used alone, for its action is so uncertain that Sir W. O'Shaughnessy pronounced the plant unworthy of a place in the Pharmacopoeia of India. The dose of the powder is 1-4 grams, the resin 40-50 cgms., the decoction of the root 4-12 grams. The active principle is a resin soluble in ether and a glucoside, _turpethin_, C_34_H_56_O_16_. In the east of India they make offerings of the flowers to the god Shiva, and also put them to more practical use by applying them to the head for neuralgic headache. Botanical Description.--A vine with quadrangular stem. Leaves heart-shaped. Flowers axillary, numerous, in umbels. Calyx deeply cleft in 5 imbricated, ovate, fleshy parts. Corolla bell-shaped, folded. Stamens 5, unequal in height. Ovary inserted on an hypogynous disk, with 2 biovulate compartments. Style same length as stamens. Stigma bilobulate, globose. Seed vessel square, encircled by calyx, 2 locules each with 2 seeds. Habitat.--Common in Bauang and Pasig. Blooms in November. SOLANACEÆ. Nightshade Family. _Solanum nigrum_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Hierba mora_, Sp.; _Konty_, _Onty_, _Gamagamatisan_, Tag.; _Lagpakon_, _Bolagtob_, _Lubilubi_, Vis.; _Kuty_, _Lubilubi_, Bic.; _Black_ or _Common Nightshade_, Eng. Uses.--In the Philippines the entire plant is boiled and used for food, with the precaution of pouring off the first 2 or 3 waters in which it is cooked, which contain an active principle capable of causing such disagreeable symptoms as vertigo and nausea. A decoction of the leaves serves to cleanse chronic sores and in fact improves their condition; it is also used as a lotion for various forms of dermatitis, for erysipelas and old burns. The plant is narcotic, antispasmodic and like belladonna it dilates the pupil. In India the decoction is given internally, 200-250 grams, for hypertrophy of the liver, and it is considered a good diuretic and alterative. For such uses they heat the above dose in a clay vessel till the color changes from green to brown, when it is cooled and given next day. Its action is diuretic and hydragogue-cathartic. Mooden Sheriff recommends this treatment highly, and for dropsy further advises the aqueous extract, 12 grams during the day divided into 3 or 4 doses. Small doses of 30-60 grams of the decoction prepared as above described, are of use in some chronic skin diseases such as psoriasis. In 1821 Defosses, of Besançon, obtained _solanine_ from the fruit, previously isolated from the _S. Dulcamara_. Botanical Description.--A plant about 2° high, stem straight, 3-4-angled, with white dots. Leaves lanceolate. Flowers white, in 2-ranked racemes. Calyx inferior, 5 persistent teeth. Corolla, 5 petals somewhat down-curved. Berry small, black when ripe. Habitat.--Universally common. Blooms in January. _Capsicum fastigiatum_, Bl. (_C. minimum_, Roxb.) Nom. Vulg.--_Chili picante_, Sp.-Fil.; _Sili_, Tag.; _Capsicum_, _Red Pepper_, etc., Eng. Uses.--The fruit of this species of pepper plant is called _agí_ in Cuba and Porto Rico; it is in common use as a condiment in the Philippines. As a tonic and stimulant it is a useful article of food in hot countries where the digestive functions become sluggish. Used in moderation it prevents dyspepsia and consequent diarrhoea. It is used as a gargle for hoarseness, decreasing the congestion of the larynx and vocal cords. Gargle.-- Tincture of capsicum 8 grams. Water 160 grams. Mix. Recently capsicum in powder, extract, or tincture, has been recommended internally in the treatment of incipient hemorrhoids. The dose is .50 to 3 grams of the powder in pills or capsules; watery extract, 0.30-0.60; tincture, 10-30 drops. The _C. annuum_, L., and other varieties of red pepper serve the same uses as the above. Botanical Description.--Stem 4-angled. Leaves opposite, ovate-lanceolate, entire. Petioles short. Flowers greenish-white in little clusters, drooping. Corolla wheel-shaped. Fruit straight, conical, slender, scarcely 1' long. Habitat.--Universally common in the islands. Blooms at all times. _Datura alba_, Nees. (_D. Metel_, Roxb. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Talamponay_, Tag., Pam.; _Takbibung_, Vis.; _Dhatura_, Indo-Eng. Uses.--The applications of this species are identical with those of _D. Stramonium_ and it is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India. It is antispasmodic, narcotic and toxic, and is used quite commonly with criminal intent in India and Indo-China. The cooked and bruised leaves make an efficient poultice in articular rheumatism. The symptoms of poisoning by "dhatura" are: dilatation of the pupil, general malaise, dryness of the fauces and skin, hallucinations, rapid pulse, coma and death or permanent mania. The dry leaf is smoked to abort asthma, and though its action is uncertain, it is one of the many remedies that should be tried, which though ineffective in one case may in another afford positive relief in this distressing disease. Not more than 1.50 grams should be smoked in one day and their use should be discontinued if any symptom of intoxication supervenes. The Pharmacopoeia of India contains a tincture made from 75 grams of the ground seeds and 500 grams of alcohol. Dr. Waring states that 20 drops of this tincture are equivalent to 6 centigrams of opium and that in some cases it has given him better narcotic results than the opium. The extract is made from 500 grams of the powdered seeds, 500 cc. ether, 500 cc. alcohol and 500 cc. water. Dose, 5-20 centigrams a day in 4 doses. The _D. fastuosa_, L., known in Manila by the common name of _Talamponay na itim_, Tag., possesses the same properties as the above. The Filipino physician, Sr. Zamora, successfully employed a poultice of bruised leaves cooked in vinegar and applied to the forehead and backs of the hands to reduce the fever of tuberculous patients. Neither the leaves nor seeds of these two varieties of _Datura_ have been studied from a chemical standpoint, but there is little doubt that the active principle is the _daturine_ (atropine and hyoscyamine) that exists so abundantly in _D. Stramonium_. Botanical Description.--Plant 5-6° high, with nodose branches, forked. Leaves ovate, angled, somewhat downy. Flowers large, white, axillary, solitary. Calyx tubular, 5-toothed. Corolla funnel-shaped, the limb 5-angled and 5-folded. Stamens 5, same length as calyx. Anthers long, flattened. Stigma thick, oblong, divisible in 2 leaves. Seed vessel globose, thorny, 4-valved over the base of the calyx. Seeds numerous, flattened, kidney-shaped. (Resembles closely the common Jamestown Weed of America, though much taller with much larger flowers.) Habitat.--Common on the shores of the sea. The _D. fastuosa_ is differentiated by its violet flowers and double corolla. _Nicotiana Tabacum, L._ Nom. Vulg.--_Tabaco_, Sp.; _Tobacco_, Eng. Uses.--Tobacco is a powerful sedative and antispasmodic, but owing to the accidents it may give rise to, its use in therapeutics is very limited. Like all the active Solanaceæ it is effective against neuralgia and spasm of the muscular tissues and is therefore indicated in strangulated hernia and in intestinal obstruction. In these conditions the infusion of 1-5 grams of the dried leaf to 250 grams of water is given by enema. Trousseau advises non-smokers who suffer from chronic constipation to smoke a cigarette fasting, a practice which, according to him, stimulates defecation. For the same condition the people of southern India are accustomed to apply a poultice of the bruised leaves to the anal region. Tobacco has been used by enema to combat tetanus; Dr. Lesth, of the General Hospital for Europeans, Bombay, claims to have obtained excellent results by applying a poultice over the entire length of the spinal column. Dr. Dymock has confirmed this practice. A decoction of the leaves is used as a lotion to destroy "pediculi capitis and pubis," and to wash gangrenous ulcers. The daily increasing practice of smoking, like all other subjects, divides mankind into two camps, one for and one against the habit. Both parties exaggerate their arguments. The abuse of the plant without doubt sets up disturbances of the digestion, the heart and the nervous system. It is furthermore positive that persons of a certain disposition and with certain ailments are injured by even a moderate use of tobacco. The above facts serve as arms for the opponents of the habit; the robust who smoke and drink to excess and meet with an accidental death on a railroad or from an acute disease that overtakes them in the midst of perfect health, serve as arguments for the defenders, to prove the innocence of the custom. The antiseptic qualities of the smoke and of the entire plant also lend the smoker a defensive argument, as he may uphold the habit as hygienic and highly useful in preventing microbic infection. The antiseptic power of tobacco smoke is undoubted, but it is intolerable that a physician under the pretext of avoiding self infection should enter the house of his patient and continue smoking at the bedside. Chronic nicotine poisoning is the result of a gradual intoxication by the absorption of the active principle of tobacco, the alkaloid nicotine. Excessive smoking conduces to nicotism, more common in Europe than in the tropics, because the natives of Europe smoke the pipe and being confined in closed dwellings, breathe continuously an atmosphere of smoke; in the Philippines, on the contrary, the pipe is almost unknown and owing to the nature of the dwellings the smoking is carried on practically in the open air. An injurious practice of the Filipino smokers is that of "swallowing the smoke," and this is a fitting point to call attention to an error of Dujardin-Beaumetz, who states that "in those who habitually swallow the smoke the nicotine acts directly upon the stomach." The expression "swallow smoke" (tragar el humo) does not mean to force it into the stomach by an act of deglutition, and I am sure no one attempts to dispose of it in that way; but to inspire or breath it into the air passages. It is evident that this latter habit does not involve the stomach, but those who practice it expose themselves more to nicotism than those who keep the smoke in the mouth or expel it through the nose. The first cigar causes symptoms familiar to nearly everybody; dizziness, malaise, cold sweat, vomiting, diarrhoea, dilatation of the pupils and rapid heart action--an acute intoxication. Chronic intoxication or nicotism manifests itself by disturbances of digestion, vision and especially circulation. It has been assigned as one of the causes of early atheroma and of angina pectoris. It should therefore be proscribed in persons who present symptoms of gastro-intestinal or of heart disease, and in every patient who complains of slight precordial pains, commonly attributed to flatus, but in reality cardiac neuralgia, a fugitive symptom announcing the possibility of that grave accident, angina pectoris, capable of ending the life of the patient with one stroke. Nicotine (C_10_H_14_N_2_) is an oleaginous liquid heavier than water, colorless, changing to dark yellow on contact with the air. _Nicotianin_ or "camphor of tobacco" is another substance found in the leaves, crystalline, tasteless, with an odor resembling tobacco. Nicotinic acid is a product of the combustion of nicotine. Botanical Description.--The tobacco plant is so familiar to all Americans that its description here would be superfluous. It grows in all parts of the islands, the best qualities being cultivated in the northern provinces of Luzon, especially Cagayan and La Isabela. SCROPHULARIACEÆ. Figwort Family. _Limnophila menthastrum,_ Benth. (_Tala odorata_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Tala_, _Taramhampam_, Tag.; _Talatala_, Pam.; _Taratara_, Iloc. Uses.--An infusion of the leaves is given as a diuretic and digestive tonic. The plant is aromatic. It is seldom used, but is given for the same troubles and in the same doses as chamomile and _Eupatorium Ayapana_. Botanical Description.--A plant 1° high, with leaves opposite, lanceolate, ovate, serrate, hairy, many small pits on the lower face. Flowers rose color, solitary, sessile. Calyx, 5 sharp teeth. Corolla tubular, curved, compressed, downy within, limb cleft in 4 unequal lobes. Stamens didynamous. Ovary conical. Style shorter than the stamens. Stigma 3-lobuled. Seed vessel, 2 multiovulate chambers. Habitat.--Known universally. Blooms in June. BIGNONIACEÆ. Bignonia Family. _Oroxylum Indicum_, Vent. (_Bignonia Indica_, L.; _B. quadripinnata_, Blanco; _Colosanthes Indica_, Bl.) Nom. Vulg.--_Pinkapinkahan_, _Pinkapinka_, _Taghilaw_, _Abangabang_, Tag.; _Abangabang_, Vis. Uses.--The Hindoos consider the trunk bark an astringent and tonic and use it commonly in diarrhoea and dysentery. In Bombay it has a wide use in veterinary practice as an application for the sore backs of the domestic cattle. Sarangadhara recommends for diarrhoea and dysentery the infusion of the roasted bark mixed with infusion of _Bombax malabaricum_. Dr. Evers experimented with the powder and an infusion of the bark obtaining a strong diaphoretic action. He obtained the same effect with baths containing the bark and reported successful results in thus treating 24 cases of rheumatism. The dose of the powder was 0.30-1 gram a day in 3 doses; the infusion (30 grams bark to 300 boiling water), 90 grams a day in 3 doses. Combined with opium it had more pronounced diaphoretic effects than the compounds of opium and ipecac. The plant possesses no febrifuge properties. Botanical Description.--A tree, 5-6 meters high, trunk straight, hollow, the hollow space containing many thin partitions covered with small points; branches opposite. Leaves 4 times odd pinnate. Leaflets obliquely ovate, acute, entire, glabrous. Flowers in racemes with long, primary peduncles, large, fleshy, lurid, violet color, odor mawkish. Calyx inferior, cylindrical, monophyllous, entire. Corolla much longer than calyx, fleshy, bell-shaped, 5-lobed. Stamens 5, all fertile, fixed on the corolla, nearly equal in height. Style longer than stamens, flattened. Stigma cleft in 2 flat leaves. Silique or pod about 3° long and 2' wide, flattened, borders grooved and curved downward, containing a great number of seeds encircled by a broad, flat, imbricated wing. Habitat.--Common in many parts of Luzon, in Mindanao, Cebú and Paragua. PEDALIACEÆ. Pedalium Family. _Sesamum Indicum_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Ajonjoli_, Sp.; _Lingá_, Tag.; _Longá_, Vis.; _Langis_, Pam.; _Sesamé_, Indo-Eng. (_Benné Oil_, _Til Oil_, _Jinjili Oil_.) Uses.--The leaves are emollient and in the Philippines, India and the Southern States of North America they are commonly used to make poultices, as a substitute for linseed. The decoction is prescribed internally as an emmenagogue and demulcent and externally as a lotion. It has the reputation of stimulating the growth of the hair and is used for this purpose quite commonly by the women of India. The seeds are emollient, laxative, diuretic and emmenagogue; they contain an oil to which we shall refer presently. In some countries they form an article of diet; in the Philippines they are much used as a condiment. Waring reports good results in amenorrhoea, adding a handful of the bruised seeds to a hot sitz-bath. Two or 3 dessert-spoonfuls of the seeds eaten fasting and washed down with a glass of water, are very efficient in chronic constipation, both by their mechanical effect and the oil they contain; being non-irritant they are especially indicated in cases of constipation with hemorrhoids. The seeds contain up to 45% of oil known in the Philippines under the name of _lana_, an Ilocano word meaning "oil." It is bright yellow, viscid, does not easily become rancid and is used for illuminating purposes in some Philippine provinces. In Japan and among the poor of India it serves as a food; in the latter country it is also very commonly used as a cosmetic, perfumed with various essences and used to anoint the hair and the body after the bath. In America it is given in place of castor oil in doses of 30-60 grams. In pharmacy it may be properly substituted for olive oil, especially in Linimentum Calcis prepared for burns. Botanical Description.--A plant 2-4° high, stem straight, square, grooved. Leaves trifoliate. Leaflets lanceolate, serrate, slightly downy. Common petiole long; secondary petiole very short. Flowers pinkish white, in spikes, each flower bearing 2 small glands. Calyx with 2 bracts at the base, top-shaped, monophyllous, 5 lanceolate teeth. Corolla large, 5-lobed, bell-shaped, expanded in the middle where it is spattered with small spots. Stamens didynamous. Anthers long. Ovary downy, quadrangular. Style same length as stamens. Stigma bifid. Seed vessel quadrangular, elongated, 4 opposite grooves, 4 chambers each containing many small ovoid seeds. Habitat.--Universal. Blooms in October. ACANTHACEÆ. Acanthus Family. _Acanthus ilicifolius, L._ Nom. Vulg.--_Diliwariw_, _Dolo-ariw_, _Tinglog_, _Lagiwlagiw_, Tag.; _Titiw_, Vis.; _Dulawari_, Pam. Uses.--We are not familiar with the medicinal uses of this plant in the Philippines, but believe that its sole use is in the soap-making industry; the ash of the plant is rich in soda and potash salts and lye is prepared from it. In Goa the leaves, rich in mucilage, are used locally in fomentations for rheumatism and neuralgia. Rheede mentions as useful the application of the bruised sprouts to snake bites. Bontius attributes expectorant properties to the plant. The natives of Siam and Cochin China use it as a cordial and as a medicine for paralysis and asthma. In Concan the sweetened decoction of the plant with a little cumin seed is given for dyspepsia with pyrosis. Botanical Description.--A plant about 3° high, stem straight, beset with sharp eminences. Leaves opposite, membranaceous, lanceolate, pinnatifid, large teeth ending in prickles. Petioles very short, 2 thorns at the base. Flowers purplish white in spikes. Calyx double; the outer one of 2 parts, the inner 4. Corolla bell-shaped, lower lip broad, keeled, fleshy, notched above. Upper lip wanting, a notch in its place. Stamens 4, didynamous. Ovary superior, conical. Style of equal length with stamens. Stigma bifid. Seed vessels 2-celled, each cell with 2 heart-shaped, flattened, rough seeds. Habitat.--Very common in regions inundated by salt water. _Barleria Prionitis, L._ (_Barreliera Prionitis_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Kokongmanok_, _Kulanta_, Tag. Uses.--This plant is not used medicinally in the Philippines. The natives of Bombay are accustomed to use its juice to anoint the soles of their feet during the rainy season in order to toughen the skin and prevent fissures due to prolonged maceration. The leaf juice is bitter and acid; it is a favorite with the natives of India in the treatment of the catarrhal fevers common among their children, administered in doses of 2 tablespoonfuls a day mixed with sweetened water. In Concan the dry bark is given for whooping-cough and the juice of the fresh bark in doses of 2 "tolas" (7.60 grams) for anasarca. Dr. Bidie states that the action is diaphoretic and expectorant. Botanical Description.--A plant 2-3° high, stem creeping, the ends rising; enlarged at the joints, glabrous. Leaves smooth, opposite, lanceolate, finely serrate, fringed, somewhat downy below, glabrous above. Petioles short, 4 axillary spines. Flowers straw-color, axillary, sessile, solitary. Calyx deeply cleft in 4 parts, ovate, ending in spines. Corolla funnel-shaped, tube short, throat nude, limb 5-lobed. Stamens 4, didynamous. Ovary 2-celled. Style same length as stamens. Seed-vessel ovate, flattened and sharp-pointed, 2-celled, each cell with a flat, heart-shaped seed. Habitat.--In Guadalupe, Mandaloyon and San Juan del Monte. Blooms in April. _Justicia Gendarussa_, L. (_Gandarussa vulgaris_, Nees.; _Dianthera subserrata_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Kapanitulot_, Tag.; _Bunlaw_, Vis. Uses.--In the Philippines this plant has the same applications as the _Lagundi_ or _Vitex_, soon to be described. In India they give a decoction of the leaves for chronic rheumatism, the action probably being diaphoretic. The juice is employed for the coughs of childhood and externally as a resolvent for enlarged cervical glands. The bark of the young branches has a purplish color; in Java it is considered a good emetic. Botanical Description.--A shrub 5-6° high, stem straight, branches smooth, obscurely 4-angled. Stems and leaves violet color, emitting a disagreeable odor (Blanco). Leaves opposite, lanceolate, acute, glabrous, obtusely serrate. Flowers terminal, white-green, in racemes of 3 sessile flowers with lanceolate bracts. Calyx, 5 long teeth. Corolla, short tube, 2-lipped, upper lip notched, lower lip broad with palate, ending in 3 lobules. Seed vessel with 4 seeds in its lower part. Habitat.--Luzon, Mindanao, Panay. _Adhatoda vasica_, Nees. (_Justicia Adhatoda_, L.) Nom. Vulg.--(?) Uses.--The Filipinos are but slightly familiar with this plant and it has no place in their therapeutical armamentarium. In India, however, it is very common and enjoys much reputation in the treatment of catarrhs, the grip, asthma and non-febrile, especially chronic, bronchial affections. The flowers, leaves and roots, but especially the flowers, possess antispasmodic properties and are prescribed in certain forms of asthma; they are bitter and slightly aromatic, and are given in infusion or electuary. Drs. Jackson and Dott have testified from their own experience to the usefulness of the drug in chronic bronchitis, asthma and afebrile catarrh. Dr. Watt states that the natives of Bengal find relief for asthma in smoking the leaves. In Bombay its expectorant action is commonly known and its juice is used, mixed with borax and honey. The dose of the aqueous extract made by evaporating the juice of the leaves, is .25-1 gram. The tincture is preferable, made by dissolving this extract in alcohol; dose 2-4 grams. Its efficiency is increased by the addition of pepper seeds (Waring). The Sanscrit writers recommend for cough, 3.80 grams of the leaf juice with honey. "It is very desirable that further trials be made to test the value of this remedy."--Pharmacopoeia of India. Botanical Description.--A shrub with straight, smooth, ashy-gray trunk. Branches of same color but smoother. Leaves opposite, lanceolate, acute, smooth on both faces, 12-15 cm. long by 3-4 broad, petioles short. Flowers irregular and hermaphrodite in axillary spikes with long peduncles, opposite, large, white, covered with rusty spots, the lower part of the 2 lips purple. Calyx gamosepalous, regular, five deep clefts. Corolla gamopetalous, irregular, short tube, limb 2-lipped, the lower lip ending in a spur. Ovary free, 2-celled, each cell containing 2 ovules. Style filiform, long, inserted in a sort of canal formed by the upper lip of the corolla. Stigma bilobulate. Seed vessel depressed, 4 flattened, lenticular seeds. Habitat.--Luzon and Panay. _Rhinacanthus communis_, Nees. (_Justicia nasuta_, L.) Nom. Vulg.--_Tagaktagak_, Tag.; _Nagamulli_, Indo-Eng. Uses.--The plant has much reputation in India in the treatment of skin diseases, and indeed its efficiency is great in the stubborn _Tinea circinata tropica_, known throughout the Orient as "dhobie-itch." In this disease it is applied for several days to the affected part in the form of a paste composed of the bruised leaves, the juice of the leaves and lemon juice. The fresh root also may be employed. The Hindoo physicians state that the root decoction in milk is aphrodisiac; the root is also regarded as an antidote for the bite of the "cobra da cabelho," but its virtue is purely imaginary. Of late years the plant has been used in Europe under the name of "tong-pang-chong," to treat chronic eczema. Liborius made an analysis of the root in the laboratory of Dorpat, separating 13.51% ash and 1.87% _rhinocanthin_, as well as other ingredients. Rhinocanthin (C_14_H_18_O_4_) is supposed to be the active principle of the root. It is analogous to quinon and resembles in many particulars chrysophanic and frangulic acids. It forms a resinous, amorphous mass, cherry red, odorless and tasteless, slightly soluble in water, forming a mildly alkaline solution in alcohol. It does not yield glucose when boiled with dilute hydrochloric acid. Liborius believes that it exists only in the intercellular spaces of the "root bark." Botanical Description.--A shrub, about 4° high, stem ash-colored, no spines. Leaves lanceolate, undulate, downy. Flowers white in spikes. Calyx gamosepalous, 5-toothed. Corolla long, filiform, limb 4-lobed, the 3 lower lobes ovate, the upper pointed. Stamens 2. Ovary free, 2 biovulate locules. Style simple. Stigma bifid. Seed vessel club-shaped, 4 seeds in the upper part. Habitat.--Common in the gardens of Manila. VERBENACEÆ. Vervain Family. _Lippia nodiflora_, Rich. (_Verbena nodiflora_, L.; _V. capitata_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Tsatsatsatsahan_, _Chachachachahan_, Tag. Uses.--The Filipinos drink an infusion of the leaves in place of tea, the long Tagalog name meaning "resembling tea." In India they drink the hot infusion to aid digestion. In some places the decoction of the leaves is given internally as an emollient and diuretic for gonorrhoea. Botanical Description.--A small plant with creeping stem taking root where it touches the ground, obscurely angular, covered with short down. Leaves opposite, smooth, clasping the stem, inversely ovate, serrate only above, slightly downy. Flowers white, slightly purplish, axillary on a common peduncle, in a rough conical head. Corolla somewhat bowed, funnel-form, gaping, throat narrow, limb 4-lobed, one lobe shorter than the rest. Stamens 4, 2 longer. Filament almost wanting. Anthers 4, fertile. Ovary superior, style very short. Stigma semi-globose. Fruit, 2 seeds covered by the pellicle of the ovary. Habitat.--Very common in the rice fields. _Tectona grandis_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Teca_, Sp.; _Tikla_, Tag.; _Dalondón_, _Yate_, _Kalayati_, Vis.; _Teak Tree_, Eng. Uses.--The powdered wood made into a paste with water is undoubtedly a useful application in acute dermatitis, especially that due to contact with the caustic oleo-resin of the cashew nut (_Anacardium_). A decoction of the powder gives good results as a gargle for aphthæ, gingivitis, and other inflammations within the buccal cavity. In India they give internally 6-12 grams as a vermifuge, and for dyspepsia with "heartburn." The flowers are diuretic according to Endlicher; the bark is astringent; the leaves and the seeds are purgative, the latter yielding an oil which they use in India to stimulate the growth of the hair. Gibson considers the seeds diuretic and quotes two cases where abundant diuresis immediately followed by the application of a poultice of the bruised seeds over the pubis. In Concan they make a sort of extract from the wood and apply it to the yoke sores of the cattle to prevent the growth of maggots. This disinfectant action marks the plant as worthy of further experiment. Rumphius is authority for the statement that the infusion of the leaves is used in cholera. The Chinese make vessels of the wood to preserve their drinking water at sea; the first and second waters are bitter and are thrown away, but after that the water has no disagreeable taste and is said to aid digestion. It has been said that the wood was poisonous because at one time several workmen died from the effects of wounds caused by splinters of the wood, but the statement has not been confirmed by later cases and the deaths were most probably due to a septic infection independent of the chemical composition of the splinters. R. Romanis has extracted a resin from the wood by alcohol; it is soft, and on distillation yields a crystalline body called by the author _tectoquinon_ (C_18_H_10_O_2_), on account of its resemblance to the quinons. It melts at 171° and volatilizes slightly at ordinary temperature. Botanical Description.--A tree with leaves almost round, oval, entire, 30-60 centimeters by 20-40, the under surface covered with hoary down. Petioles very short, flattened. Flowers in panicles. Primary peduncle square. Calyx inferior, bell-shaped, very large when ripe, 5-cleft. Corolla white, longer than calyx, covered with a mealy substance, bell-shaped, 5-lobed. Stamens 5 or 6, inserted in the corolla. Filaments flattened, somewhat longer than the corolla. Anthers semi-globose, a yellow zone below and a black circle above. Ovary free, rounded, 4 locules each with 1 seed. Style same length as stamens. Stigma bilobulate. Drupe globose, woolly, spongy, depressed, covered by the membranous inflated calyx; contains one nut, very hard, 4 apartments each containing one seed. Habitat.--The mountains of Morong and Tanay (of La Laguna Province) bear some specimens. Very common in the island of Negros and in Mindanao. It also grows in the Visayas, Mindora and Paragua. Blooms in September. _Vitex trifolia_, L. (_V. repens_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Lagundi_, Tag.; _Gapasgapas_, Vis.; _Dangla_, Iloc. _Vitex Negundo_, L. (_V. Leucoxylon_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Lagundi_, _Malawin_, Tag. Uses.--Both species are used medicinally in the Philippines and both enjoy high repute. A variety of the first that seems to possess the same virtues is the _V. repens_, Blanco, called _lagunding gapang_ by the Tagalos. _V. trifolia_ is regarded in India as the most powerful species and Bontius has extolled it highly, calling attention to the anodyne, diuretic and emmenagogue properties of the leaves. These are very effective applied in fomentation to rheumatic joints and their use is extensive both in India and the Malay Archipelago. A decoction of the leaves is used locally and as a vapor-bath in the treatment of beriberi. A large earthen pot is filled with leaves and water and brought to a boil; the pot is then placed under a chair in which the patient sits enveloped in a sheet or blanket. If necessary the pot may be removed 2 or 3 times, heated and replaced until abundant sweating is induced. An apparatus to conduct the steam under the chair would be much handier, but it is unsafe to place a small stove or lamp under the chair for fear of setting fire to the cloth. In India and the Philippines there is a peculiar inflammation localized in the soles of the feet and characterized by an intense burning rather than pain, not described in the textbooks, but called by the natives "burning of the feet" ("quemadura del pié" or "ignipedites"); in our own experience and according to the consensus of the physicians of India, the application of these leaves 3 or 4 times a day to the soles of the feet has afforded marked relief. The leaves are heated in an earthen pot without the addition of water, and when sufficiently hot are applied and held in place by a bandage. Dr. W. Ingledew states that the natives of Mysore (south of India) treat rheumatism and febrile catarrhs by steam baths of the decoction of vitex. A decoction of the leaves is in common use in the Philippines, Malay Islands and India as a bath for women in the puerperal state. The dry leaves are smoked for headache and catarrh. According to creditable authority the application of the heated leaves in orchitis produces good results. The root is tonic, febrifuge and expectorant and the fruit nervine and emmenagogue according to the Sanscrit writer. Botanical Description.--_V. trifolia_ is a small tree, 3-4 meters high. The fruit and leaves are said to emit the odor of rosemary. Leaves ternate. Leaflets oval, entire, hoary below, no secondary petioles. Flowers purplish in forked panicle. Corolla bell-shaped with palate. The lower lip 3-lobed, the middle lobe larger; upper lip smaller, 2-lobed. Stamens 4, free, didynamous. Ovary free. Style simple, with stigma-bearing lobules. Berry-like drupe, with 4-celled nut, one seed in each cell. Habitat.--Common on the seashore. Blooms in June. The _V. Negundo_ is a small tree like the preceding, but when it grows in the forest it develops to a tree of the first order, yielding a valuable building wood called _molave_ (Sp.) or more properly _molawin_. Leaves compound with 5 leaflets. Secondary petioles short. Flowers in dichotomous panicle. Fruit like that of the foregoing species. _Clerodendron infortunatum_, L. (_C. fortunatum_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Kasupangit_, _Gubat_, Tag.; _Saling-wak_, Vis. Uses.--The fresh juice of the leaves is used in India as a vermifuge, according to K. L. Dey; it is also used as a bitter tonic in malarial fever, especially of children. As a tonic and antipyretic it is certainly worthy of recommendation. Dr. Bholanauth Bose calls attention to this plant as a good substitute for _Ophelia chirata_, DC. as a tonic and antipyretic. The infusion of the bruised leaves (10 grams to water 300 cc.) is given up to 200 cc. a day in 3 or 4 doses; the tincture (leaves 60 grams, alcohol 90 %, 500 cc.) is given up to 10 grams a day in 5 or 6 doses. Botanical Description.--A shrub with nearly round stem; leaves opposite, ovate, oblong; acute, entire, slightly downy. Flowers terminal in umbellate panicles, the umbellets opposite and each bearing 3 flowerets. Calyx bluish, long, tubular, somewhat expanded in the middle, divided in 5 parts. Corolla twice as long as the calyx, tube filiform, limb 5-lobed. Stamens didynamous, their lower parts grown to the tube of the corolla. Filaments longer than the corolla. Ovary conical. Style of same length as the stamens. Stigma bifid. Berry dry, quadrate, depressed, the shell hard, 4 grooves, 4 cells, each containing a seed. Habitat.--Very common in Manila and in the forests. LABIATÆ. Mint Family. _Ocimum basilicum_, L. (_O. Americanum_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Solasi_, Tag., Pam.; _Bonak_, Vis.; _Sweet Basil_, Eng. _Ocimum gratissimum_, L. (_O. virgatum_ Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Lokoloko_, Tag., Pam.; _Kolonkogon_, Vis. _Ocimum sanctum_, L. (_O. flexuosum_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Balanay_, Tag.; _Sacred Basil_, Eng. Uses.--All three species possess a characteristic camphoraceous odor and are commonly grouped under the one name, _albahacas_ (sweet basil). Some natives call them _solasi_ and others _balanay_, but many are able to distinguish the various species correctly. All three have analogous properties, but the most widely used is the _O. basilicum_. These properties are stimulant, diaphoretic, and expectorant, and the infusion is used commonly for flatulent colic and painful dyspepsia. The dry powdered leaves of the _O. sanctum_ are taken as snuff by the natives of India in the treatment of a curious endemic disease characterized by the presence of small maggots in the nasal secretion; this disease is called peenash, and possibly exists in the Philippines though I have never encountered it. Martins states that in Brazil they use a decoction of the mucilaginous leaves of the _O. gratissimum_ in the treatment of gonorrhoea and Dr. Waitz highly recommends a strong decoction of these leaves for the aphthæ of children, which he claims to have cured by this means after all European drugs had failed. This fact and the action of the snuff above mentioned, demonstrate the antiseptic properties of the plant, due doubtless to its abundant aromatic principles. _O. basilicum_ contains a green essential oil, very aromatic, becoming solid; it is a sort of camphor (C_20_H_16_6HO, Raybaud) and crystallizes in 4-faced prisms. All the plants are used to prepare aromatic baths for cases of atrophy and debility in children (Waitz) and for the treatment of rheumatism and paralysis. Botanical Description.--_O. gratissimum_ is a plant 2-3° high, stem straight, downy. Leaves medium lanceolate, finely serrate from the middle upwards, with short hairs and transparent dots. Flowers in long terminal racemes. Calyx, upper lip horizontal, round; lower lip 3 pointed parts, the middle one subdivided in two. Corolla yellowish, inverted, one lip cleft in 4 obtuse lobes; the other longer, narrow, serrate. Stamens didynamous, 2 shorter. Anthers semilunar. Stigma bifid. Seeds 4. The _O. Americanum_ has leaves lanceolate, ovate, acute, full of pores, somewhat downy. It is more fragrant than the other species and its flowers are bluish-white in racemes. The _O. sanctum_ is the most sacred plant of the Hindoos, dedicated to Vishnu; its branches are wavy or cauliflexuous, leaves obliquely ovate, obtuse, serrate, nearly glabrous. Habitat.--All species are very common and universally known. _Coleus aromaticus_, Benth. (_C. suganda_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Orégano_, Sp.-Fil.; _Suganda_, Tag.; _Marjoram_, Eng. (The Sp. and Eng. names are incorrect.) Uses.--The fleshy, aromatic leaves of this plant are bruised and applied locally for the bites of centipedes and scorpions. They are also applied to the temples and forehead for headache, held in place by a bandage. In Cochin China they are used in asthma, chronic bronchitis, epilepsy and other convulsive diseases. The juice of the leaves is a carminative and is given to children suffering with wind colic. Dr. Wight claims to have observed occasional intoxicating effects following its use, but Dymock states that he has never observed such effects. The plant contains a coloring matter, _colein_ (C_10_H_10_O_3_), red, insoluble in ether, soluble in alcohol, slightly soluble in water. On the addition of ammonia the solution changes to purple, then violet, indigo, green, and, finally, greenish-yellow. Another species, the _C. atropurpureus_, Benth. (_C. grandifolius_, Blanco), well known in the Philippines by its common name _mayana_, is used in the treatment of bruises, the bruised fleshy leaves being the part employed; these leaves are downy and dark violet in color. Botanical Description.--Leaves opposite, nearly sessile, cordate, obtuse, downy and very fleshy. Flowers in a quadrangular raceme, each group of these flowerets having a concave scale at the base. Calyx bell-shaped, 2-lipped; the upper lip longer and entire; the lower with 4 narrow teeth. Corolla a pale violet, 5 times longer than the calyx. Stamens didynamous, straight, longer than the corolla. Style bifid. Seeds 4. Habitat.--Universally abundant. _Rosmarinus officinalis_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Romero_, Sp.; _Rosemary_, Eng. Uses.--This is one of the plants most valued by the Filipinos. Its infusion is used as an eye-wash for slight catarrhal conjunctivitis, applied 3 or 4 times a day. It is one of the aromatic plants used so commonly to bathe women in the puerperal state, and in vapor baths for rheumatism, paralysis and incipient catarrhs. The entire plant is a stimulant and carminative but little used internally; in atonic dyspepsia it has given good results taken in the same form as the infusion of manzanilla. It contains a large per cent. of an essential oil which gives the plant its agreeable odor. This oil enters into the composition of "Cologne Water"; it is said to arrest falling of the hair and is a diffusible stimulant which may be given internally in doses of 3-5 drops. It is colorless and liquid when fresh, but in time becomes dark and viscid. It combines freely with alcohol and its density is 0.885. Botanical Description.--A plant from 2 to 3° high. Leaves sessile, linear, obtuse, margins revolute, white-hoary beneath. Calyx tubular, 2-lipped. Corolla rose-violet color, gaping; the upper lip concave, 2-lobed; the lower lip longer, 3-lobed. Stamens, 2 fertile and 2 sterile. Style, same length as the stamens. Stigma simple. Fruit, 4 seeds in the depths of the calyx. Habitat.--It is carefully cultivated throughout the Philippines. _Anisomeles ovata_, R. Br. (_Phlomis alba_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Taligharap_, Tag.; _Jerusalem Sage_, Eng. Uses.--The infusion of the leaves is bitter and aromatic and is used in catarrhal inflammations of the stomach and intestines and in intermittent fevers. Used as a vapor-bath it produces abundant diaphoresis, and the infusion given internally has a like effect. The leaves, when distilled, yield an oil which is used as an external application in rheumatism. Botanical Description.--A plant 6° or more high. Root fibrous, trunk and branches enlarged at the joints. Leaves opposite, ovate, obtusely serrate, soft and downy. Flowers pink, verticillate, in opposite clusters around the stem, with several linear and hairy involucres at the base of each cluster. Calyx, 5 sharp teeth. Corolla, 2-lipped; the lower much larger, downy within, 3-lobed, the middle lobe larger and broader, notched at the extremity, and its borders turned downward; the other 2 lateral lobes very small, narrow; the upper lip much shorter and smaller, entire, enveloping the stamens. Stamens didynamous. Style about the same length as the stamens. Stigma bifid. Fruit, 4 small seeds. Habitat.--Very common on the fields of Manila Province. _Leucas aspera_, Spreng. (_Phlomis Zeylanica_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Pansipansi_, _Solasolasian_, _Karukansoli_, Tag.; _Pansipansi_, _Paypaysi_, Vis. Uses.--The bruised leaves are applied to the bites of serpents or poisonous insects. In India they are similarly used. The juice of the leaves is very useful in the treatment of certain skin diseases, especially psoriasis. Botanical Description.--A plant about 2° high, very well known to the natives. Leaves sessile, lanceolate, finely serrate and covered with short hairs. Flowers terminal, white, verticillate, with the characteristics of the mint family. PLANTAGINACEÆ. Plantain Family. _Plantago erosa_, Wall. (_P. crenata_ and _media_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Llantén_, Sp.-Fil.; _Lantín_, Tag.; _Plantain_, Eng. Uses.--The leaves of this popular plant are the commonest remedy in the Philippines for abscess of the gums. They are bruised and applied with a little lard over the swollen cheek. It is emollient and, in decoction, is used as a substitute for flaxseed. Botanical Description.--This plant is so universally known that there is no fear of confusing it with others. It flourishes as a common weed in the U. S. as well as the Philippines. NYCTAGINACEÆ. Four-O'Clock Family. _Mirabilis Jalapa_, L. (_M. longiflora_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Maravillas_, _Suspiros_, Sp.-Fil.; _Gilalas_, Tag.; _Four O'Clock_, _Marvel of Peru_, Eng. Uses.--The root is purgative and possesses the same active principles, the same properties and is given in the same dose as jalap. According to the experience of Shoolbred, Hunter, W. O'Shaughnessy and Ainslie, its purgative action is weak and uncertain and therefore unworthy of use as a substitute for jalap. The bruised leaves are used as poultices to hasten suppuration, but according to Waring they are capable of causing dermatitis. Botanical Description.--The flowers open toward the end of the day and close again at sunrise. The root is blackish and spindle-shaped. The stem smooth, branches forked. Leaves opposite, lanceolate-cordate, acute, somewhat downy along the borders and the upper surface. Petioles short. Flowers fragrant, almost constantly blooming, of different colors even in the same plant, terminal, in umbels. Pedicels very short. Calyx persistent, 5-toothed. Corolla superior, very long, its tube downy, funnel-form, limb 5-lobed. Stamens 5, longer than the corolla. Style longer than the stamens. Stigma globose. Nut small, black, globose, many-ribbed, full of a mealy substance. Habitat.--Common in gardens. AMARANTHACEÆ. Amaranth Family. _Amaranthus spinosus_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Kilitis_, _Orayi_, Tag.; _Ayantoto_, Pam.; _Kalitis_, _Tilites_, _Bayang-bayang_, Vis.; _Kuanton_, Iloc.; _Thorny Amaranth_, Eng. Uses.--The entire plant is emollient and its principal use is as a poultice for inflammations, bruises, etc. The decoction of the root is diuretic and antiphlogistic and is used in Mauritius (30 grams root to 750 cc. water) as an internal remedy for gonorrhoea; indeed it is there regarded as a specific for that disease, checking the discharge and the "ardor urinæ." It should be continued till the cure is complete. The bruised leaves are used locally for eczema. Botanical Description.--A plant 2-3° high of a reddish color. Leaves alternate, lanceolate, broad, notched at the apex, wavy, glabrous. Petioles with a pair of spines in their axils. Flowers small, yellow-green, in round axillary clusters and in long terminal spikes. The pistillate flowers are sometimes separated from the staminate, sometimes mixed with them in the lower part of the spike. Staminate: No corolla, calyx 2-5 parts, stamens 4-5. Pistillate: Style and stigma 2 or 3, otherwise the same as the staminate. Seed vessel with 1 seed. Habitat.--Common in all parts. Blooms in October. _Achyranthes obtusifolia_, Lam. (_A. aspera_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Hangor_, _Hangot_, _Dokotdekot_, _Libay_, Tag.; _Angod_, Pam. Uses.--The plant has astringent and diuretic properties; the latter were observed by Dr. Cornish, who communicated the facts to Waring, calling special attention to the good service the drug had afforded him in dropsy. Other physicians in India have confirmed these observations of Cornish. The decoction is made of 60 grams of the entire plant to 750 cc. water, boiled till reduced one-half and strained under pressure. Dose, 60 cc. every 2 hours till diuresis is induced. The ashes of this plant, like those of the _Amaranthus spinosus_, L., contain a large quantity of potassa, and are used for washing clothes; on this account it has received its Sanscrit name _Apamarga_ (the washer). The ashes are also mixed in an infusion of ginger and given internally in dropsy. The flowers are bruised and applied to the bites of snakes and other poisonous animals. In India there is a superstition that carrying these flowers about the person will keep off scorpions. Botanical Description.--A plant about 3° high, the stem angular and downy. Leaves opposite, downy, clasping the stem, lanceolate, very obtuse and wavy. Flowers bent downward in a long spike bearing many flowerets. Calyx, 5 tough scales. Corolla wanting. Nectary much smaller than the calyx, monophyllous, 5-lobed. Stamens 5. Ovary top-shaped, upper part somewhat concave. Style same length as stamens. Stigma coarse, bifid. Fruit, a seed covered with 2 membranes, one enveloping it completely, the outer one adherent in only one part. Habitat.--Common in Luzon. Blooms in November. CHENOPODIACÆ. Goosefoot Family. _Chenopodium ambrosioides_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Alpasotes_, Sp.-Fil.; _Pasotis_, _Apasotis_, Tag.; _American Worm-seed_, _Mexican Tea_, Eng. Uses.--This plant is a native of Mexico. It has a peculiar, somewhat offensive odor and an acrid, aromatic taste due to an essential oil resembling peppermint (?). According to Padre Mercado, "When the seeds are taken with wine, sensation is so dulled that the drinker may be whipped without feeling the lashes, and even if put to the torment, does not feel it." These properties, if true, make this plant one of the most useful in the Philippines. The entire plant is stimulant. The infusion, given internally, causes sweating, excites the circulation, is diuretic, tonic, stomachic, and useful as well as an antispasmodic in nervous troubles. The leaves are employed in making the infusion, 8 grams to 200 of boiling water. It is widely used in bronchial catarrhs and in asthma on account of its sudorific and expectorant action. It seems also to possess emmenagogue properties. The seeds yield on distillation a yellow essential oil with a strong and disagreeable odor, density 0.908. Both seeds and flowers are vermifuge, and are used as such in Brazil in doses of 8 grams in infusion or with an equal dose of castor oil. The anthelmintic dose of the essential oil is 5-15 drops with powdered sugar. Rilliet and Barthez recommend the following potion for infantile chorea: Leaves of chenopodium 4 grams. Water 500 grams. Make an infusion and add syrup of orange flowers 50 grams. Dose, several tablespoonfuls a day. Botanical Description.--A plant 2° high; stem beset with hairs, many-angled. Leaves lanceolate, varying from entire to cut-pinnatifid. Flowers green, sessile, axillary, in small clusters. Calyx 5-parted. Corolla wanting. Stamens 5. Filaments flattened, inserted near the center of the flowers opposite the parts of the calyx. Anthers in 2 globose parts. Ovary superior, globose, depressed, unilocular, uniovulate. Style none. Stigmas, 2, 3 or 4, short, divergent. Fruit a lenticular seed covered by the membrane of the ovary. Habitat.--Common in gardens and fields. Blooms in May. ARISTOLOCHIACEÆ. Birthwort Family. _Aristolochia Indica_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Timbangan_, _Malaubi_, Tag.; _Indian Birthwort_, Eng. Uses.--The root has a wide use in medicine in the Philippines; it is bitter, of a nauseating odor and has the reputation of being a powerful antidote for the bites of poisonous serpents and insects. It has further use in the treatment of malarial fever, in dyspepsia, and in the flatulent colic of teething children. It is regarded as tonic and emmenagogue. In various forms of diarrhoea it appears to be effective and Dr. Gibson states that it is useful in intestinal disorders. In the Philippines it is not only given internally but also externally applied over the abdomen, mixed with hot cocoanut oil (10 grams of the powdered root to 100 oil). The first Portuguese settlers in India called the drug "Cobra Root," because the natives regarded it as an antidote for the bite of the terrible "Cobra da Capello." This reputation, however, seems not to have been deserved, judging from the fearful mortality in India and Ceylon due to the bite of the cobra. Dr. Imlach, a surgeon of Singapore, states that in one season in one collectorate, Shikapore, no less than 306 cases of snake bites were officially reported, the mortality being 63, or about 20.58 per cent. Other reports make it safe to conclude that in the entire province during the year no less than 300 deaths were due to this cause alone. Dr. Waring believes that if an antidote for snake bite exist in the vegetable kingdom it will most probably be found in the natural order Aristolochiaceæ. In North India this drug is used as emmenagogue and anti-arthritic, and in Banda for intermittent fevers and intestinal disorders. The juice of the leaves is emetic. The dose of the powdered root is 3-5 grams daily. Botanical Description.--A twining shrub, with leaves heart-shaped, ovate, acute, glabrous. Petioles short. Flowers dark reddish-gray, in panicles. Calyx wanting. Corolla globose below, the tube cylindrical, expanding at the top. Anthers 6, in pairs. Filaments, none. Styles 6, very coarse, a membrane at the base including all. Stigmas simple. Seed vessel inferior, 6-ribbed, 6 cells and many winged seeds. The seed vessel after casting the seeds resembles a pair of balance scales with its little plates or pans. Hence the Tagalo name _Timbangan_ meaning "balance." Habitat.--In Luzon and Panay. Blooms in November. PIPERACEÆ. Pepper Family. _Piper Betle_, L. (_Chavica Betle_ and _C. auriculata_, Miq.; _Piper Betel_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Hojas de buyo_, Sp.-Fil.; _Itmó_, Tag.; _Mamin_, Bic.; _Buyo_, _Mamón_, Vis.; _Samat_, Pam.; _Betel Pepper_, Eng. Uses.--A masticatory, used all over the extreme Orient, is composed of the leaves of this plant, a little slaked oyster-shell lime and a rounded slice of the bonga or areca nut; the Filipinos call this combination _bayo_, though the name is not of native origin; the Tagalos call it _hitsú_. The use of buyo by careless persons is decidedly repugnant, for the mixture of the lime and the pigment of the bonga imparts a blood-red or rather brick-red color to the saliva which they spit in mouthfuls into the streets and other public places with no thought of the feelings of others. Unless the mouth is carefully cleaned the teeth become encrusted with a sort of black enamel and the breath assumes a detestable odor. When used in small quantities and with proper toilet of the mouth, and this is the common practice among the Filipinos, buyo seems to be a very useful preservative of the teeth and a gingival and stomachic tonic. These properties are readily understood when we consider that the lime is antacid, the bonga astringent and tonic and the betel aromatic and stimulant. The buyo leaf plays a very important part in the therapeutics of the infant of the Philippines: in its indigestions, colics and diarrhoeas the heated leaves are applied to the abdomen previously anointed with hot cocoanut oil. In bronchitis and laryngitis the heated leaves are applied over the chest or neck after rubbing the parts with oil. It undoubtedly produces good effects and the physicians of India recommend it in the same cases and in the same form as in the Philippines. Applied to the breasts of parturient women it dries up the milk and in the same way tends to reduce any glandular enlargement. Dr. Kleinstück of Java recommends the essence of the leaves in all sorts of catarrhs and as an antiseptic in doses of one drop to 140 of the vehicle. This essence is obtained by distillation; it is dark in color, has an acrid taste and an odor resembling that of tea. Its density is 1.020. The dried leaves contain one-half per cent. of the essence and it is probable that the fresh ones contain a greater proportion. Botanical Description.--A plant with yellow flowers and scandent stem, climbing straight up trees or artificial supports. Leaves cleft at the base, acute, entire, glabrous, dark green. According to Blanco it is cultivated best in somewhat sandy soil. Pasay, near Manila, and Bauang, in Batangas, furnish a leaf most highly appreciated. _Piper nigrum_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Pimienta_, Sp.; _Paminta_, _Malisa_, Tag.; _Black Pepper_, Eng. Uses.--The berry-like fruit of the pepper is more extensively used as a condiment in cooking than in the treatment of disease. Used in moderation, however, it is of considerable value as a convenient stomachic and aid to digestion in tropical countries where the digestive functions readily become sluggish. Its abuse may lead to serious consequences, such as inflammation of the gastro-intestinal mucous membrane, of the portal system and the liver itself. Pepper is used as a febrifuge in the various forms of malarial fevers, in the form of granules of 8 or 10 berries in a cup of brandy and anise (Spanish); this is taken by the patient in one dose at the beginning of the cold stage and followed by large quantities of water to relieve the thirst caused by the pepper. This treatment causes the cold stage to rapidly subside and more rapidly induces and intensifies the sweating stage. It is said that no further attack of fever follows. Piperin (C_17_H_19_NO_3_) is febrifuge and is given in pill form internally in doses of 30-60 centigrams; the action of the crude drug is evidently due to this neutral principle. Botanical Description.--The plant is a perennial, climbing shrub. Leaves oval, tapering at both extremities, 7-nerved. Flowers yellow, in a spike. Stigmas 2, bifid. Fruit globose, with one seed. Habitat.--The dried fruit of the pepper is universally familiar. It was at one time cultivated in the Philippines, especially in Batangas, and Gen. Basco promulgated a series of orders to encourage its cultivation. Padre Gainza, afterward Bishop of Nueva Cáceres, wrote a report about its cultivation, but since then the subject has entirely disappeared from notice. CHLORANTHACEÆ. Chloranth Family. _Chloranthus officinalis_, Bl. (_C. Indicus_, Wight.; _C. inconspicuus_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--Unknown. Uses.--All parts of the plant are aromatic. The leaves and stems lose this property after drying, but the roots, if properly dried, preserve it for a long time. They have a camphoraceous odor and bitter, aromatic taste, reminding one of that of _Aristolochia Serpentaria_. The mountaineers of Java use an infusion of the powdered root and the bark of the _Cinnamomum Culilowan_ to treat puerperal eclampsia. Combined with carminatives like anise and onion, they use it with some success in virulent small-pox of children. The infusion seems to be efficacious in fevers accompanied by debility and suppression of the function of the skin. It has also been prescribed in the intermittent fevers of Java, mixed with an infusion of the leaves of the _Cedrela Toona_. Blume states that it is one of the most powerful stimulants known. Botanical Description.--A plant 3-4° high. Stem quadrangular. Leaves opposite, broad, lanceolate, serrate, with stiff-pointed teeth and somewhat scaly beneath. Petioles very short, clasping the stem at their base, with 2 intermediate stipules ending in two awl-shaped points. Flowers compound in axillary spikes, which bear the flowerets in 2 ranks, each flower with a keeled bract. The corolla (if it may be so called) a fleshy, 3-lobed lamina. Perianth wanting. Receptacle dome-shaped. Anthers 4, inserted on the surface of the lamina, 2-valved. Ovary 1-celled, with 1 ovule. Style short. Berry-like fruit, globose, with 1 seed covered by a somewhat brittle membrane. Habitat.--La Laguna and other provinces of Luzon. Blooms in September. LAURACEÆ. Laurel Family. _Cinnamomum pauciflorum_, Nees. (_Laurus culilaban_, Var., Blanco.) _C. tamala_, Nees. (_L. culilaban_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg. (of both).--_Kalingag_, _Makalingag_, Tag., Vis.; _Kandaroma_, Iloc; _Cassia Lignea_ or _Cassia_, Eng. Uses.--The bark of both species is known in pharmacy as Chinese cassia or Chinese cinnamon (cassia cinnamon). Indeed it is very like the cinnamon of Ceylon, comes in curled quills, has the same odor and taste though not so delicate; but it is darker in color, with a surface less clean and smooth. Its chemical composition is identical with that of the latter and nowadays it forms an important article of commerce. Cinnamon renders good service in therapeutics as a stimulant of the digestive tract and a heart tonic. In the atonic diarrhoeas so common in the Philippines a tincture of cinnamon in doses of 8-10 grams a day, or the powder in cases where alcohol was contraindicated, have given me unhoped-for results. In Spain and the Philippines it is very popular as a condiment in the kitchen of the confectionery and as a flavor for chocolate; in fact in those countries it takes the place of vanilla in France. It enters into the composition of several elixirs and compound tinctures, such as "Botot's Water" (dentifrice), "Elixir of Garus" (tonic stimulant), "Balsam of Fioraventi" (external stimulant), laudanum and the elixir of the Grande Chartreuse (diffusible stimulant). Lately it has been demonstrated that the essence is a powerful antiseptic, in the presence of which typhoid fever bacilli cannot develop. Botanical Description.--A tree, 15-20° high. Leaves opposite, lanceolate, 3-nerved, entire, glabrous. Flowers yellow, paniculate, umbellate. Common peduncles very long, those of the flowerets long. Calyx none. Corolla, 6 ovate, hairy petals. Stamens 9; 6 external to the rest and bearing the anthers, 4 on each filament, 2 below the others; the 3 inner stamens bear 2 anthers each. In the second species the flowers form loose, terminal panicles. Stamens 9; 6 filaments inserted on the receptacle, spatulate, each bearing 4 anthers on the inferior face; the other 3 filaments thick, each bearing 4 anthers. Between the last filaments are 8 nearly globose glandules. Habitat.--Both species are common in the forests of Luzon. The first species blooms in May, the second in January. _Cassytha filiformis_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Malabohok._ Uses.--This plant has no therapeutical uses in the Philippines. In Senegal it is employed, according to Dujardin-Beaumetz, mixed with lard to treat urethritis; its action is to decrease the ardor urinæ. It is not stated whether this mixture is used internally or externally. In Cochin China the same writer states that it is used as an antisyphilitic. In India it is used for the piles and as an alterative for bilious disorders. It possibly acts as a circulatory stimulant. Botanical Description.--A slender, thread-like, cylindrical vine, without leaves, that covers the trees like a mantle, so luxuriant is its growth. Flowers yellow, in axillary spikes. Calyx small, 3 sepals. Corolla, 3 fleshy concave petals. Stamens 12 in 4 verticils, 9 fertile and 3 inner sterile. Ovary 1-celled, 1-ovuled. Style cylindrical. Drupe globose, 1-2'' in diameter, covered by a fleshy envelope, formed by the receptacle. Seeds without albumen. Habitat.--Luzon, Mindanao, Cebú, on the seashore. EUPHORBIACEÆ. Spurge Family. _Euphorbia pilulifera_, L. (_E. capitata_, Lam.; _E. hirta_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Golondrina_, Sp.-Fil.; _Gatasgatas_, _Batobatonis_, _Sayikan_, Tag.; _Buyayawa_, _Tawawa_, _Bowi_, Vis.; _Malismalis_, _Sisiwhan_, _Bolobotones_, _Magatas_, Pam. Uses.--This plant has a reputation in the Philippines as a hæmostatic of great efficiency, for which purpose the whole plant is crushed and applied as a poultice over the wound. Like all members of this family it abounds in milky juice. We have had no occasion to employ it as a hæmostatic, but do not doubt its action in view of the effect that it exercises on the circulation and the heart when given internally. In toxic doses experiment has demonstrated that it kills animals by suspension of the respiratory movements and those of the heart, which at first beats faster but gradually more slowly. It has no effect upon any other organ and is eliminated by the liver. Matheson recommends it as an antispasmodic and has employed it also in dyspnoea of cardiac origin. I have used it in both these conditions in Manila with highly satisfactory results. I have found the most convenient form of administration to be the tincture in doses of 15-40 drops a day given in an infusion of althæa every 3 or 4 hours; the vehicle should be used liberally as it diminishes the irritant action of the euphorbia on the stomach. A decoction of 15 grams of the plant to 2 liters of water may be given in doses of from 6 to 12 tablespoonfuls daily. A proper dose of the alcoholic extract is 10 centigrams in 24 hours. Dr. Daruty, of Mauritius, gives the following formula: _Euphorbia pilulifera_ dried in the shade 30 grams. Water 1 1/2 liters. Boil till reduced to 1 liter, cool and add: Rum or cognac 30 grams. Dose.--1 wineglassful 3 times a day. This decoction relieves the most obstinate asthma, as well as cough and bronchial irritation. It is necessary to use the entire plant. The decoction is usually given in the morning, fasting, in the middle of the afternoon and at bedtime. In very stubborn cases another dose may be given in the middle of the night. Frequently the relief is immediate and in some cases a liter of the decoction is enough to effect a cure. If the symptoms return, it is easy to abort them; they are less distressing and, according to the statements of patients, the medicine "gives them air." Dr. Hicks Bunting found, in an analysis of the drug, 60 per cent. of insoluble residue, wax, "caucho," resin, tannin, sugar, albuminoids, oxalate of calcium and other salts. Dr. Marsset states that the active principle is soluble in water, in dilute alcohol; insoluble in ether, chloroform, bisulphide of carbon, and turpentine, but does not give the reaction. The toxic dose is 1 gram of dried plant for each kilogram of weight of the animal. Botanical Description.--A small creeping plant with milky juice. Stem 1-2° high, cylindrical, hairy and reddish in color. Leaves opposite, obliquely ovate, rhomboid, serrate, hairy. Petioles very short. Two pointed stipules at the base. Flowers yellowish in hemispherical umbels of 5 divisions, each subdivided in 2. Involucre universal. Calyx bell-shaped, laciniate, in 5 parts. Corolla, 5 petals, inserted on the divisions of the calyx, fleshy, orbicular, with an orbicular appendix at the base, concave and differing from the corolla in color. Stamens 8, inserted on the base of the calyx; filaments unequal in length, each bearing 2 anthers. Four filaments lacking anthers. Ovary with stalk longer than the flower, curved downward. Styles 3, bifid. Stigmas simple. Seed vessels 3, united, hairy, 3-angled, each bearing 1 red globose seed with a wrinkled surface. Habitat.--Common in all parts of the islands and well known to the natives. The name by which it is best known in Manila is "golondrina." _Euphorbia neriifolia_, L. (_E. ligularia_, Roxb.; _E. pentagona_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Sorosoro_, _Sorog-sorog_, _Bait_, Tag., Pam.; _Karambauaya_, Iloc.; _Lengua de perro_, Sp.-Fil. Uses.--The principal medicinal use of this plant in the Philippines is the introduction of the hot juice of its fleshy leaves into the external auditory canal in cases of otorrhoea or of simple earache, whatever its cause. The root is regarded in India as an antidote for snake bite and, indeed, the plant is sacred to Munsa, the snake divinity. During the months of July and August in some parts of India the natives make offerings of rice, milk and sugar to this sacred tree every Tuesday and Thursday, praying for protection from the bites of serpents. The leaves contain an abundance of milky juice, acrid and very active, used in the treatment of several skin diseases. Like the species _E. pilulifera_ it possesses antiasthmatic properties; Dr. S. C. Amcobury reports 6 cases treated with satisfactory results. Owing to the acrid quality of the juice great care should be maintained both in its internal and external use. The Sanscrit authors regard it as purgative and usually administer it with other drugs of the same action to increase its effect. Ainslie states that the native herb-doctors of India give the juice in intestinal obstruction and in the oedema of malarial cachexia. The dose is 1.25 grams in 24 hours given in 300 cc. of sweetened water in divided doses. This dose is, in my opinion, dangerous; 40-60 centigrams a day is more prudent. Botanical Description.--A small tree, from 5 to 6° high. Trunk erect, jointed, 5-sided, at the angles 2 rows of thorns. Leaves spatulate, fleshy. Flowers yellowish. Calyx bell-shaped, 5-lobed. Corolla, numerous imbricated, spatulate petals with ravelled or fringed ends. Stamens in groups. Styles 3. Stigma coarse. Seed vessel, 3 carpels on a stalk. Habitat.--In all parts of Luzon. _Euphorbia Tirucalli_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Consuelda_, Sp.-Fil.; _Katwit_, _Suelda_, Tag. Uses.--The milky juice of this species is very caustic. It is used chiefly in India mixed with oil as an embrocation for rheumatism; given internally it is regarded as an antisyphilitic. Dr. J. Shortt states that it is an excellent alterant in syphilis in dose of 30 centigrams, morning and evening. It is further employed in malarial hypertrophy of the spleen, in asthma and as a purgative; in a word the same virtues are attributed to it as to the foregoing species. Botanical Description.--Small trees, 9-12° high. Trunk erect. Branches cylindrical, stumpy (not tapering), several very small leaves at the ends. Flowers yellowish, in umbels. Calyx, 5 rounded, fleshy sepals. Corolla, 5 groups of woolly hairs on the divisions of the calyx. Stamens 5, inserted on the sepals, with double or irregular anthers. Seed vessel, 3 carpels each with one seed. Habitat.--Very common, especially in the suburbs of Manila where they serve as hedges. _Phyllanthus reticulatus_, Müll. (_Cica decandra_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Tinatinaan_, _Tintatintahan_, _Malinta_, Tag.; _Sungot-olang_, Vis. Uses.--The natives eat the little berries of this species, which are dark purple before and black after maturity, and use their juice for ink. The leaves are diuretic and refreshing; the bark alterant. In the bazaars of India the bark is sold commonly in pieces 1° long and as thick as the wrist; its taste is slightly sweet, color dark and the alterative dose of its decoction is 120-150 grams a day. In Concan they make a compound pill of the leaf-juice, powdered cubebs and camphor, to be dissolved in the mouth for ulcerated, bleeding or scorbutic gums. The juice is also given internally for urticaria. Botanical Description.--Small trees, 12° or more high, with leaves pinnate, oval, entire, alternate, glabrous, downy when young. Common petiole, 2 stipules at the base. Flowers monoecious. Staminate: calyx, 5 colored sepals; no corolla; filaments 4, coarse, somewhat shorter than the calyx, the middle one thicker and 2-parted; anthers 10, 4 on the middle filament and two on each of the others. Pistillate: calyx and corolla same as staminate; nectary, 5 glandules on the base of the ovary. Fruit, a black berry seated within the calyx, crowned with 2 erect styles, 6 or 8 compartments each with a single seed. Habitat.--Grows everywhere and is well known. _Phyllanthus Niruri_, L. _P. urinaria_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Hierba de San Pablo, de San Pedro_, Sp. Uses.--This species is not used medicinally in the Philippines, but in India is given for its diuretic effect and has great repute in the treatment of genito-urinary diseases, dropsy and gonorrhoea. The infusion of the leaves of _P. Niruri_ with Fenugreek seeds is a highly prized remedy for chronic dysentery, mentioned by Ainslie. The leaves are bitter and tonic and in Bombay they are in common use in gonorrhoea to correct the acidity of the urine. Bruised and mixed with salt they make a sort of jelly frequently used as an application for itch; without salt the same is used for contusions. The dose of the leaf juice of both species, for internal use, is 15 grams a day in divided doses. A decoction of the entire plant well dried and powdered, is given for jaundice in doses of 5 grams a day. The milky juice of the stem is useful in the local treatment of ulcers. The bruised root is employed in Concan for neuralgia. Botanical Description.--_P. Niruri_ is an herb with straight stem. Leaves alternate, pinnate with stylet in place of the odd leaflet. Leaflets nearly oval, glabrous, 2 stipules at the base. Flowers monoecious, greenish, axillary; the staminate growing along the common petiole above the pistillate. Staminate: Calyx, 5 lanceolate, entire sepals; no corolla; 1 filament with 1 anther. Pistillate: Calyx and corolla as above; ovary free, 3 biovulate cells; style with 2 stigma-bearing branches. Fruit capsular, globose. _P. urinaria_ may be distinguished by its sessile flowers and reddish stem. Habitat.--Very common in Manila and all over Luzon. _Jatropha Curcas_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Tuba_, Tag.; _Kasla_, Vis.; _Tawatawa_, Iloc. (Seeds called "English Physic Nuts" in India.) Uses.--The milky juice of the trunk and branches is a drastic purgative, too active for safety as a physic. Mixed with water it is used as a wash for atonic ulcers. The seeds yield 25-30 per cent. of a yellowish oil, more active than castor oil as a purgative but less certain. Ten or twelve of the former equal in effect 30 to 40 drops of the latter. Its density is 0.919, and it differs from castor oil in being only slightly soluble in absolute alcohol. In some parts of the Philippines it is used for purposes of illumination, and it is exported to Europe to adulterate soaps and candles. It contains a little stearin which begins to be deposited at 9° and is entirely solidified at 0°. The fruit is strongly purgative, and this action is not due to the oil but to a peculiar resin so active that 3 fruits produce drastic effects. Whatever purgative action the oil possesses is due to the resin which it contains in solution. It seems, therefore, preferable to treat the seeds with alcohol, thus dissolving the resin, and use the tincture thus obtained in place of the oil. The natives use the plant to intoxicate the fish in ponds and sluggish streams. The seeds of the species _J. multifida_, L., also called _tuba_ in Tag., and _mana_, are likewise purgative in their action. Dr. Waring saw a case of poisoning with the fruit; the patient, a young man, suffered violent vomiting, intense pain in the stomach and head, and marked prostration. He recovered under the use of lime juice and stimulants. Botanical Description.--The _J. Curcas_ is a small tree growing as high as 9°. Leaves alternate, cordate, glabrous, 3-5 cut-lobed. Flowers yellowish-green, monoecious, in terminal umbels, staminate and pistillate flowers mingled without order. Staminate: Calyx, 5 unequal sepals; corolla bell-shaped, 5 petals, woolly within, a small notch at the end, bent downward; stamens 10, in 2 whorls of 5. Pistillate: Calyx and corolla as above; several tongue-like staminodes replace the stamens; ovary free, oblong, 3-celled, 1 ovule in each cell; style 3-branched. Seed vessel fleshy, of 3 capsules, each bearing 1 oval, coriaceous seed. Habitat.--Luzon and Visayas. _Aleurites Moluccana_, Willd. (_A. triloba_, Forst. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Lumbán_, _Kapili_, Tag.; _Belgaum_ or _Indian Walnut_, Indo-Eng. Uses.--The kernels are rich in oil which is used for illumination and the manufacture of soap. For industrial purposes it is superior to linseed oil, according to the report of the Madras Drug Committee. Dr. O'Rocke states that in doses of 1-2 ounces it acts as a gentle and sure purgative, producing copious bilious evacuations after 3-6 hours, without causing nausea, colic or other similar effects. The municipal physician of Sampaloc, Señor Xerez, states that he has frequently used this oil in Manila, as a purgative, and he agrees perfectly with Dr. O'Rocke as to its effect. D. Anacleto del Rosario, the distinguished Filipino chemist, tells me that he once witnessed a case of poisoning by the fruit of the _lumbán_, the patient being a native boy. Doubtless the milky juice, so active in all the Euphorbiaceæ, was the cause of the symptoms. It is true that the kernel causes colic and copious alvine discharges. Nellino's chemical analysis of the seeds is as follows: Water 5.25 Fatty matter 62.97 Cellulose 28.99 Mineral matter 2.79 The ashes contain the following matters: Lime 28.69% Magnesia 6.01% Potash 11.23% Phosphoric acid 20.30% The oil is yellow, syrupy, transparent, odorless, insipid. Botanical Description.--A tree with leaves bunched or clustered, 3-5 lobulate with as many nerves. Petioles about as long as the leaves. Flowers white, terminal in panicles, the pistillate mixed with the more numerous staminate flowers. Staminate: Calyx monophyllous, cylindrical, 2-toothed; corolla, 5 linear petals twice as long as the calyx; stamens 20 or more, joined in a column at their bases. Pistillate: Calyx and corolla as above; ovary of 2 or 3 uniovulate locules, encircled by a disk; style 2-or 3-branched. Seed vessel large, ovate, compressed, fleshy, 2 sutures at right angles, 2 compartments, in each a hard nut. Habitat.--Grows all over Luzon and is well known to the natives. _Croton Tiglium_, L. (_C. glandulosum_, _C. muricatum_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Tuba kamaisa_, Tag.; _The Purging Croton_, Eng. Uses.--The fruit is used by the Filipinos to intoxicate the fish in ponds and sluggish streams. The seeds contain an oil that is official in all Pharmacopoeias as one of the most powerful hydragogue cathartics. As it is intensely irritating it should never be administered alone but combined with other substances, such as castor oil, or in pill form. The internal dose is 1 to 2 drops. It is considered a specific for lead colic and is indicated when not only purgation but active irritation of the digestive canal is desired. Applied to the skin it is a strong irritant causing rapid and painful vesication. Great care should be exercised not to raise the hands to the eyes after touching the oil, as serious inflammation might result. Botanical Description.--A small tree, 8-9° high, with rough trunk. Leaves alternate, ovate, acute, minutely serrate, both surfaces beset with sharp hairs. Flowers yellowish-white, monoecious. Staminate: Fewer than the pistillate, growing above them; calyx 5-toothed; corolla, 5 woolly petals; stamens 16, joined in the center. Pistillate: Calyx 5-toothed; corolla much less developed than in the staminate; ovary free, 3 uniovulate locules; styles 3, bifid. Seed vessel dry, with thin envelope bristling with stiff hairs; 3 carpels each containing a seed. Habitat.--Common in Luzon. _Acalypha Indica_, L. (_A. Caroliniana_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--Not known. Uses.--This plant is not used medicinally in the Philippines, but is very common in India. Dr. G. Bidie, of Madras, states that the expressed juice of the leaves is in great repute, wherever the plant grows, as an emetic for children and is safe, certain and speedy in its action. Like ipecacuanha it seems to have little tendency to act on the bowels or depress the vital powers, and it decidedly increases the secretion of the pulmonary organs. Probably an infusion of the dried leaves or an extract prepared from the green plant would retain all its active properties. The dose of the expressed juice for an infant is a teaspoonful. Dr. A. E. Ross speaks highly of its use as an expectorant, ranking it in this respect with senega; he found it especially useful in the bronchitis of children. He also makes favorable report of a cataplasm of the leaves as a local application to syphilitic ulcers and as a means of relieving the pain attendant on the bites of venomous insects. The alleged purgative action of the root noticed by Ainslie is confirmed by Dr. H. E. Busteed, who reports having used the expressed juice of the root and leaves as a laxative for children. Langley, a military surgeon, states that in Canara the natives employ the leaf juice in congestive headache, soaking pledgets of cotton with it and introducing them into the nasal fossæ; the resultant nose bleed relieves the headache. The powder of the dry leaves is dusted on ulcers and putrid sores. In asthma and bronchitis, both of children and adults, Langley has used this plant with good results, and he recommends 1.25-3.50 grams of the tincture (100 grams of the fresh plant to 500 of alcohol, 90°) repeated several times a day; the effect is expectorant, nauseant and, in large doses, emetic. It must be noted that only the young, growing plants are active. The flowers of another species, _A. hispida_, Burm., called _bugos_ in Tag. and Vis., is used in India for the dysentery. Botanical Description.--A little plant, about 3° high. Leaves alternate, broad, lanceolate, 5-nerved, serrate from middle to apex. Petioles much longer than the leaves, 2 stipules at their bases. Flowers greenish, monoecious in axillary spikes, pedunculate, as long as the leaves, crowned by a prolongation of the axis in the form of a cross. Staminate: Numerous, in upper part of spike; calyx 4 parts; no corolla; stamens 8-16, small, free. Pistillate: Less in number, at the base of the spike; perianth of 3 imbricated leaflets; ovary, 3 uniovulate locules; style, 3 branches which also subdivide. Capsule 3-celled, each cell containing a globose seed with cicatrix. Habitat.--Luzon, Panay and Mindanao. Blooms in October. _Echinus Philippensis_, H. Baillon. (_Croton Philippense_, Lamk.; _Rottlera tinctoria_, Roxb.; _Mallotus Philippensis_, Müll.) Nom. Vulg.--_Banato_, Tag.; _Buas_, _Vuas_, Iloc.; _Monkey-face Tree_, _Kamala_ or _Kamala Dye_, Indo-Eng. Uses.--The capsular fruit of this plant is thickly beset with reddish glands and hairs, which, when brushed off and gathered in powder form, constitute the _kamala dye_ of the Hindoos. It was mentioned by the Arabian physicians of the tenth century under the names of _Kanbil_ and _Wars_. In India the powder is highly valued as a yellow dye-stuff for silk. Medicinally it is used as an anthelmintic, the English physician Mackinnon, of the Bengal Hospital, having been the first to scientifically prove this property; he reported that it was successful in expelling the tape-worm. It is now official in the Pharmacopoeia of India and also in the U. S. P. as an anthelmintic and purgative; in Switzerland it is commonly given to expel the bothriocephalus which abounds there, the lake fish acting as hosts. The dose recommended by the Pharmacopoeia of India is 8-12 grams, divided in 3 or 4 doses. This amount sometimes causes nausea and colic; in the third or fourth stool the tænia is commonly expelled in a lifeless condition. Dujardin-Beaumetz advises a dose of 30 grams of castor oil in case the tænia has not been expelled 2 hours after the last dose of kamala. The powder is efficacious but the tincture seems to be surer; the dose is 6 grams for children and 20 for adults, given in divided doses in aromatic water every hour for 6 hours. This tincture is prepared by macerating 200 grams of kamala in 500 cc. alcohol for 7 days; then filtering with expression and adding enough alcohol to complete the 500 cc. The powder is also used in India as a local application in herpes circinata. It is insoluble in water; in ether and alcohol it yields 80% of a red resin. Anderson noted that a concentrated ethereal solution of kamala after a few days formed a solid crystalline mass, yellow, very soluble in ether; this substance he named _rottlerin_, C_11_H_10_O_3_. Botanical Description.--A tree, 6-8 meters high, covered with stellate groups of short yellow hairs. Leaves alternate, petiolate, rhomboid-oval or lanceolate, acuminate, 3-nerved, entire or slightly dentate, upper surface glabrous, lower surface covered with woolly hairs and powdery red glands. Flowers yellowish-green, small, dioecious, apetalous, in spikes. Staminate: By 3's in the axil of each bract; perianth, 3 or 5 deeply cut, lanceolate lobules; stamens 15-25, free, inserted in the center of the flower. Pistillate: In the axil of each bract; ovary, 3 locules each with 1 ovule, covered like the leaves with hairs and yellow, granular glands. Seed vessel globose, 3-celled, like ovary covered with hairs and glands. Habitat.--Mountains of Morong, San Mateo, Tarlak, Bosoboso, Ilocos Norte, Albay and Batangas. _Ricinus communis_, L. (Variety _microcarpus_, Müll.) Nom. Vulg.--_Tangantangan_, _Lingasina_, Tag.; _Tangantangan_, _Tawatawasinga_, Iloc.; _Castor Oil Plant_, Eng. Uses.--A purgative oil is expressed from the seeds, called "Aceite de Ricino" (castor oil). It operates mechanically in the intestinal tract and its action is rapid and is indicated whenever it is desired simply to empty the intestines without producing any irritating effect; it is, therefore, a purgative indicated in diseases of children, in pregnancy, and in hemorrhoidal congestions where a non-irritating evacuation of the rectum is desired. It is an anthelmintic, though not ordinarily given alone, but in combination with other drugs of a purely anthelmintic action, the object being to expel the worms which have been attacked by the specific. Oil extracted simply by expression is less purgative than that obtained by treating the seeds with bisulphide of carbon and absolute alcohol; also less purgative than the seeds themselves, because it contains only a very small proportion of a drastic principle existing exclusively in the seeds; this principle is completely dissolved in the oil extracted by chemical process. It is pale yellow in color, very viscid, with a characteristic mouldy odor. The purgative dose is 10-30 grams. A small dose may purge as actively as a larger one provided that the patient drink abundantly after the administration of the drug. The best method of disguising its taste is by giving it in half a cup of very strong, hot coffee. Just before the dose, take a swallow of coffee to disguise the taste even more effectually. Castor oil enters into the composition of elastic collodion (simple collodion, 30 grams, castor oil, 2 grams). The leaves pounded and boiled are applied as a poultice to foul ulcers. Botanical Description.--There are two forms of this variety in the Philippines, possessing the same properties and known by the same common name: _R. viridis_, Müll. (_R. communis_, Blanco) and _R. subpurpurascens_, Müll.; the former is the more common and has a glabrous, fistular stem. Leaves peltate, palmately cleft in 7 or 9 lobules, lanceolate, serrate. Petioles long. Flowers greenish, monoecious, the staminate ones in large panicled clusters below the pistillate. Filaments numerous, subdivided into several anther-bearing branches. Pistillate flowers, 3 sepals, 3 styles. Seed vessel, 3 prickly capsules, containing solitary seeds. The _R. subpurpurascens_ is distinguished from the former by bearing 2 glandules at the base of the leaves, the mulberry color of which latter suggests its common name, _Tangantangan na morado_, Tag., Vis. Habitat.--Very common in Luzon, Mindanao and other islands. URTICACEÆ. Nettle Family. _Artocarpus integrifolia_, Willd. Nom. Vulg.--_Nangka_, Tag.; _Jack Fruit Tree_, Eng. Uses.--The huge fruit of this tree is well known to the Filipinos and well liked by them as an article of food, eaten fresh or in sweet preserves. The arils and pulpy envelopes of the seeds are the parts eaten, also the seeds themselves, boiled or roasted. According to Padre Mercado the roasted seeds have an aphrodisiac action. The heated and powdered leaves are applied to wounds and given internally for congestions. The resin of the trunk is a useful application to ulcers and in India they give it internally to cure la melena, the dose, one "tola" mixed with the same amount of _manga_ resin and a little lime water. The same resin if heated makes an excellent cement for broken china. Botanical Description.--A tree, 20° or more in height, with abundant milky sap. Leaves alternate, oval, acute at both ends, slightly wavy and revolute borders, tough, glabrous and dark green upper surface; light green, slightly rough under surface. Petioles short. Flowers greenish, monoecious, growing on root, trunk and branches. Calyx very small, monophyllous, of about 7 deciduous lobules. Staminate: On a club-shaped receptacle, 3' or 4' long, bristling with the stamens; filaments very short, anthers 2-celled. Pistillate: On a common, oblong receptacle which ripens to the great fruit; style 1, short; rarely 2 divergent styles; stigmas acute. Fruit about size and shape of a small watermelon, beset with many sharp eminences, containing many seeds enveloped in thick arils. Habitat.--It grows in all parts of the Archipelago and is commonly known. _Laportea gaudichaudiana_, Wedd. (_Urtica umbellata_, _U. ferox_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Lingaton_, _Lipa_, _Apariagua_ (?), Tag., Vis.; _Lipangdoton_, Pam. Uses.--The Padre Mercado writes as follows concerning the properties of this plant: "The leaves, applied with salt in the form of a plaster, purify dog bites, foul, putrid, malignant and cankerous ulcers; they cure boils, contusions and all abscesses; mixed with wax they may be applied for obstruction of the spleen; mashed with the juice and inserted in the nose they arrest nose-bleed; cooked with snails they soften the stomach, excite the secretion of urine and dissipate flatus; the juice given as a gargle aborts inflammation of the epiglottis. The seeds mixed with wine are a sexual excitant and "clear out" the womb; taken with syrup they relieve dyspnoea, pain in the side and inflammation of the lungs and force up the humors from the chest; it may be mixed with medicines that corrupt the flesh (sic). The grated root drunk with wine relieves painful flatulence. I myself (continues the Padre Mercado) have experimented with a woman who suffered with painful flatulence and this remedy relieved her." We repeat that all the foregoing is copied from the writings of Padre Mercado and we offer it as a therapeutic curiosity. P. Blanco states that merely to touch the leaves causes an intolerable itching. Botanical Description.--A small tree, 12-15° high, trunk richly branched. Leaves opposite, bunched at the ends of the branches, notched at the base, long, ovate, serrate, hairy on both surfaces. Flowers yellowish-white, dioecious. Staminate: In compound racemes; calyx 4 parts; corolla none; stamens 4, inserted on the base of the calyx. Pistillate: Flowers in 2-forked umbel, flat, very large; calyx, none; stamens none; stigma 1; seed heart-shaped. Habitat.--Very common in all the fields and in the mountains. Blooms in June. CASUARINEÆ. Beefwood Family. _Casuarina Sumatrana_, Jung. (_C. equisetifolia_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Agoho_, Tag.; _Malabohok_, _Agoho_, Vis.; _Aro_, _Karo_, _Agoó_, Iloc. Uses.--The bark is astringent by virtue of the large quantity of tannin it contains. Its principal use is in decoction in the treatment of diarrhoea, dysentery and hæmoptysis; it is also given in amenorrhoea, though it is apt to increase the pain. Externally it is used as a wash for contusions and ulcers. Another species, _C. equisetifolia_, Forst., confounded with the former species by the natives, has the same therapeutic applications. Botanical Description.--A tree with stellately arranged straight branches. Leaves stellate, long, narrow, linear, 4-grooved. They have been compared to the tail of a horse and the tail of a certain bird--the casobar. Staminate and pistillate flowers greenish, on different parts of the same stalk. Staminate, in small aments. Pistillate on small globose aments; calyx proper of the floweret, a coarse scale; corolla none; ovary conical; styles 2, flattened, divergent; stigmas acute. Fruit: Each floweret produces a woody seed-vessel, bivalved, ovate, glabrous, with a small seed ending in an oval wing; all these seed vessels joined form a small cone about 1' long. Habitat.--Very common in Ilocos, Tarlak, Binangonang of Lampong and N. Ecija. MONOCOTYLEDONS. MUSACEÆ. Banana Family. _Musa paradisiaca_, L. _M. sapientum_, L. Nom. Vulg. _Plátano_, Sp.; _Saging_, Tag., etc.; _Banana_, Eng. Uses.--The fruit produced by the various varieties of the banana plant constitutes one of the most wholesome and delicious of foods, appreciated by natives and Europeans alike. According to Boussingaul its nutritive value is greater than that of the potato and it may be used constantly without ill effects. Bananas contain a large percentage of sugar and mucilage. In India they dry them in the sun, as figs and grapes are treated in other countries and thus preserve them for long voyages by sea or land; eaten in conjunction with animal food they are a strong preventive of scurvy. If eaten when thoroughly ripe they have a laxative effect. The young and tender leaves are used in the Philippines as a protective dressing for ulcers, dermatitis, burns and cantharidal or other artificial blisters. Before applying to the affected surface the leaf is heated to make it more flexible and coated with a thin layer of cocoanut oil or other fatty substance. In the dispensaries of India they also use the leaves in this way, thus protecting and at the same time maintaining the moisture of the part. Dr. Waring recommends the practice and Dr. Van Someren follows it in the application of water dressings, having substituted banana leaves for gutta-percha. In Mauritius the fruit is used for dysentery, and the flowers, together with an equal quantity of those of _Spilanthes Acmella_, are made into a decoction and prescribed for dropsy. Botanical Description.--The banana plant with its huge waving leaves and succulent stem is universally familiar. The flower stalk rises through the center developing a drooping spike, the flowers in short rows in the axils of its large purplish bracts. According to Blanco there are 57 varieties of this plant in the Philippines, the following being the most common edible varieties: _bungulang_, _lakatan_, _letondang_, _obispo_, _higo_, _morado_, _butuan_, _bentikohol_, _sabá_, _tampuhing_. Habitat.--Common everywhere in the islands. ZINGIBERACEÆ. Ginger Family. _Zingiber officinale_, L. (_Amomum zingiber_, L. and Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Ajengibre_, _Jengibre_, Sp.; _Luya_, Tag.; _Laya_, Bic.; _Ginger_, Eng. Uses.--The rhizome is used principally as a condiment in the Philippines. Its flavor is extremely agreeable, much appreciated in Europe by the English who are the greatest consumers of the condiment. In the Philippines a decoction is made of ginger and brown sugar, called _tahu_ by the Chinese who drink it regularly as we do coffee in the early hours of the morning. It is an excellent drink, aromatic, tonic, stomachic and stimulant, and would probably be highly useful as well as economical as a part of the ration of European and native troops in the field. Hot _tahú_ or _tahu_ is an active diuretic; and during the last epidemic of cholera in Manila some physicians used it with very satisfactory results. Ginger is a good carminative and is official in the pharmacopoeias of Europe, America and India. It is used with good effect in flatulent colic, atonic diseases of the intestines so common in the Philippines and in chronic rheumatism. The tincture is given in doses of 2-4 grams. The official infusion 30-60 grams. The rhizome contains a volatile oil [10] (25 per cent.), a pale yellow liquid, specific gravity 0.878, the odor like that of the rhizome but lacking its strong and piquant taste. Its reaction is not acid; it dissolves slowly in alcohol. The burning taste is due to a resin that produces protocatechuic acid when melted with potassa. Botanical Description.--The only part employed is the rhizome, well known all over the islands and found in all their pharmacies and shops. Several stems rise 2-3° directly from the peculiar, branched rhizome; long-lanceolate, acuminate, entire, glabrous, alternate leaves diverge stiffly from the sides of the stem; petiole proper very short, its broader extension ensheathing the stem; general appearance of a single stem is much like that of the Solomon's seal so familiar in the U. S. _Curcuma longa_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Dilaw_, Tag.; _Dulaw_, _Kalawaga_, _Kinamboy_, Vis.; _Angay_, Pam.; _Turmeric Plant_, Eng. Uses.--The yellow rhizome called by some _azafrán_ (saffron), is used as a condiment; its odor is remotely suggestive of vanilla. The Philippine herb-doctors give it internally for hæmoptysis, externally as a plaster or in infusion for acute dermatitis. The juice is prescribed in doses of 30-60 grams in bronchial catarrh. In India they inhale the fumes of burning turmeric paper for coryza, and with good effect according to the testimony of Dr. Waring. The drug is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India. It is carminative, stimulant and probably antiseptic. Its decoction is used as an eye-wash in catarrhal and purulent conjunctivitis. The Mohammedans of Deccan use it for jaundice upon the theory that the yellow color of the skin in that disease is an indication for a remedy of the same color. The juice is also used in many parts of India to stain the face, nails and other parts of the body. The tincture is prepared by macerating 30 grams of bruised rhizome in 200 cc. alcohol for seven days, then filtering. Turmeric paper is prepared by impregnating unsized paper with this tincture, and then drying. Both tincture and paper are used to test for alkalies. The rhizomes contain a pigment called curcumin, an essential oil and fæcula. Curcumin (C_14_H_14_O_4_) is crystalline, yellow by direct light and blue by reflected light; it was studied by Jackson and Menke. In the Philippines it is used extensively as a diaphoretic and emmenagogue and in icterus, intestinal colic and dysmenorrhoea; externally for skin diseases, contusions and atonic ulcers. Gubler regards it as a diffusible stimulant. Its use is more extensive in England than in France and Spain; in India it forms an ingredient of _curry_, called _carí_ in Manila. Curcumin is eliminated by the urine, which it colors yellow, and if at the same time an alkali be taken by the patient, especially a salt of calcium, the urine becomes red and may communicate this stain to the clothes. This fact should be borne in mind to avoid embarrassing mistakes in diagnosis or prognosis. Dose of powder, 2-5 grams. Botanical Description.--Leaves 2-4° long, rising in bush-like bunches directly from the rhizome, broad-lanceolate, acuminate, gradually tapering down the long petioles; numerous prominent nerves give a ribbed appearance to the blade. Rhizome cylindrical, irregular, bright yellow within. _Elettaria Cardamomum_, White. Nom. Vulg.--_Langkuas_, _Langkawas_, Vis.; _Cardamon_, Eng. Uses.--This plant, though official in several pharmacopoeias, is not used as a medicine in the Philippines, probably on account of its scarcity here. The seeds are used as a condiment; they are stimulant and carminative and yield good results in atonic dyspepsia, nervous depression and spasmodic or flatulent affections of the intestine. The dose of the powdered seeds is from 0.60-1.50 grams in pill form; the tincture is, however, more convenient and is given in doses of from 4 to 8 grams. Botanical Description.--A plant with a scaly rhizome and adventitious roots from which spring the stems, some of which bear leaves and others flowers. The leaves are alternate, in pairs; extended, lanceolate blade, with a short petiole. Branches bearing flowers, short, flexible and scaly. The flowers spring from the sheaths of the leaves. Calyx tubular, 3-toothed; second calyx with limb divided into 3 unequal lobules. Stamens 3. Ovary inferior, 3 many-ovuled compartments. Style simple. Stigma rounded. Fruit an oblong, ovoid capsule, 3-celled, trivalvate. Seeds blackish, albuminous. Habitat.--Visayan Islands. AMARYLLIDACEÆ. Amaryllis Family. _Crinum Asiaticum, L._ (_C. giganteum_, Blanco.) Nom. Vulg.--_Bakong_, Tag. Uses.--The decoction of the leaves is used in the Philippines as an expectorant. The plant is official in the Pharmacopoeia of India as an emetic and in small doses is nauseant and diaphoretic. As an emetic the dose of the fresh juice of the root is 8-16 grams every 10 minutes till vomiting occurs. Dr. W. O'Shaughnessy, writing from Bengal, states that this is the only indigenous and abundant emetic plant of which he has experience, which acts without producing griping, purging, or other unpleasant symptoms. In a communication to Dr. Waring he remarks that it is a good emetic and diaphoretic whenever ipecacuanha is not at hand but that it should be regarded not so much as a substitute for that article as a resource in case of need. The leaf juice is used in India to drop into the ears for disease of these organs. One of the infinite remedies used by the Filipinos under the name of "contrapoisons," without specifying or knowing what poison, is the powdered root of _Crinum_, given internally with a little water. They also use the leaves locally for the itch, bruising them and rubbing the affected parts energetically with them. I may note here in passing, what I have written before: that the Filipinos have from time immemorial been familiar with the sarcopt of scabies (Kahaw) which they pick out with a needle or spine of some fish or vegetable. Botanical Description.--A plant with globose, scaly root. Leaves keeled or ridged. Flowers white, on a flattened stalk, on a spathe of 2 leaflets and several dry threads enclosing 4 flowerets. Corolla funnel-form, tube long and triangular; limb cut in 6 horizontal lanceolate lobes. Stamens 6, shorter than corolla. Anthers long. Stigma with 3 points. Seed vessel inferior, 3-celled, each cell containing a seed. _Habitat._--Very common on the seashore and in groves of mangrove trees. Blooms in July. LILIACEÆ. Lily Family. _Aloes Barbadensis_, Mill. (_A. humilis_, Blanco; _A. vera_, L.; _A. vulgaris_, Banck.; _A. Indica_, Royl.) Nom. Vulg.--_Sabila_, Tag.; _Dilang boaya_, Vis.; _Aloes_, Eng. Uses.--This species is one of those which produce the substance known in pharmacy as _aloes_, which is the juice of the leaf evaporated to the consistency of an extract. It is official in all pharmacopoeias and its properties are known to the Filipino herb-doctors. They use the fresh juice of the leaves as a stimulant of the scalp in baldness and locally in contusions. Aloes is a slow purgative and its irritating action on the lower portion of the large intestine extends to the genito-urinary organs. It is, therefore, an emmenagogue and its prolonged use causes hemorrhoids, especially in man. It is contraindicated where there is disease of the genito-urinary organs or rectum. As it increases the secretion of bile it is useful in certain hepatic diseases. It is used in small doses as a tonic in dyspepsia. The tonic dose is 1/2-20 centigrams; purgative, 15-50 of the extract, preferably in pill form. It is customary to associate it with other purgatives. Botanical Description.--A stemless plant, the leaves springing immediately from the root as in the pineapple, joined at the base, straight, ligulate, very fleshy and becoming thinner toward the end, with stiff thorns along the edges. Flowers between yellow and red outside and straw-colored inside, in racemes on a cylindrical scape 3° or more high, sometimes ramose, peduncles very short. Corolla cylindrical, somewhat incurved, cleft to the middle in 6 parts, 3 external, acute and superposed on the others, obtuse at the apex and of different color. Stamens 6, inserted at the nectiferous base of the ovary and of the same length as the corolla. Anthers erect. Ovary cylindrical with 6 furrows. Stigma obtuse, with raveled edges. The seed vessel ovoid, 3-valved, 3-celled, with 2 seeds in each, furnished with 3 spongy wings. Habitat.--Common in gardens. _Allium sativum_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Ajo_, Sp.; _Bawang_, Tag.; _Garlic_, Eng. _Allium Cepa_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Cebolla_, Sp.; _Lasuna_, _Sibuyas_, Tag.; _Onion_, Eng. Uses.--The garlic and the onion are used to excess as condiments in Philippine as well as Spanish cooking. Both are difficult of digestion and communicate a very disagreeable odor to the breath, intolerable to those who are unaccustomed to it. Garlic possesses the singular property, familiar to many students and soldiers, of inducing a transient fever if introduced within the anus. When bruised and applied to the skin it has a counter-irritant action which makes it useful in the treatment of rheumatism, but the odor is so disagreeable that it is not worth while to use it for that purpose when we have so many other medicines which produce the same effect without being objectionable. It is also used locally for the bites of venomous animals. The onion is used cooked as a poultice over the bladder and internally for various catarrhs. It is better to abstain from the therapeutic and culinary use of products so indigestible and so malodorous. Botanical Description.--These plants are so well known in all parts of the world that a description of them would be superfluous. PALMÆ. Palm Family. _Areca Catechu_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Bonga_, Tag.; _Betel-nut Palm_, _Areca_, Eng. Uses.--The seeds form part of a masticatory very common throughout the extreme Orient, known as _Buyo_ and composed of a betel leaf, a little slaked lime, and a slice of the fruit of the bonga, known as _Siri_ in Indo-China and among the Malays. It is so common that it is hard to find a man or woman who does not use it. The saliva of those who use it is red and of a strong odor, and its careless use in time blackens the teeth and makes the breath extremely disagreeable. Habitual chewers consider it a tonic of the mouth and stomach and a general stimulant as well. It probably does possess these properties but they are reversed in the case of persons who use it immoderately for they lose appetite, become salivated, and the whole organism degenerates. The carbonized and powdered fruit is used as a dentifrice but its virtues are doubtless identical with those of any vegetable charcoal, _i. e._, absorbent and antiseptic. One unaccustomed to the use of bonga and chewing it for the first time, usually experiences a most disagreeable combination of symptoms; constriction of the oesophagus, a sensation of heat in the head and face, the latter becoming red and congested; at the same time dizziness and precordial distress are experienced. The same phenomena occur in certain persons after eating palmito salad or the tender central portion of the bonga and of other palms. The flowers are eaten in salad like the above-mentioned _palmito_. The seed is astringent and tænifuge; for the latter purpose it is given internally as a powder in a dose of from 16 to 24 grams. Its action is uncertain. The catechu which is obtained in India from the Bonga differs from that obtained from the _Acacia Catechu_ and is a tonic analogous to rhatany and cinchona. The seeds contain about 14% of a fatty crystalline material which melts at 39°, and after saponification yields a crystalline, fatty acid that may be regarded as a mixture of lauric and muriatic acids. They also contain about 14% of a red, amorphous tonic material which, after drying, is but slightly soluble in cold or hot water. The lower part of the petiole of the leaves is thin and broad, ensheathing the trunk, is as tough as pasteboard when dry and is used in the Philippines as wrapping paper; Dr. Bholanauth Bose and other physicians of India use it as a material for splints in fractures, a practice which might well be imitated in Manila and especially in the country. Botanical Description.--A well-known palm with slender stem, surrounded by many circles; it grows to about the same height as the coco-nut palm or less. The flowers spring in bunches of long, thread-like spikes from the trunk a little below the crown of leaves at the base of the long, smooth, green, sheath-like petioles which clasp the trunk; each spike bears many staminate and a few pistillate flowers. The fruit is about the size and shape of a hen's egg, the husk tow-like or filamentose, the kernel pinkish or light red. Habitat.--Grows throughout the islands. _Cocos nucifera_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Coco_, Sp.-Fil.; _Niog_, Tag.; _Coco-nut Palm_, Eng. Uses.--This plant is, perhaps, the most useful in the Philippines. Without it and the bamboo plant the people of the Archipelago would not know how to live. It produces vinegar, an alcoholic drink called _tuba_ or _coco-wine_, an oil, an edible nut, and its leaves are used instead of nipa to roof the huts. Tuba is an opaline, slightly sweet liquid, with an agreeable taste, which rapidly becomes acid under the influence of the heat. A flowering or fruit-bearing stalk, which has not been incised before, is chosen and encircled with several rings of rope or rattan. The stalk is then cut and a bamboo vessel called a _bombón_ is hung to receive the sap which escapes during the night. This liquid is valuable as a drink for those who are debilitated, suffering from pulmonary catarrh, and even for consumptives, who are accustomed to drink it every morning, sometimes with marvelous results, according to reports. The heat of the day rapidly ferments the tuba, converting it into a mild vinegar, which is widely used for domestic purposes in the Philippines. When fermented and distilled it produces a weak alcohol of disagreeable taste called coco-wine. The ripe fruit contains a rather soft and savory meat which is generally eaten mixed with the clear, sweet coco-nut milk. Later the meat becomes firmer and is used as a food and an oil much used in the islands is extracted from it. To extract the oil the meat is grated and pressed until all the juice is extracted. This is called the milk and when boiled is converted almost completely into oil. Cocoanut milk has an agreeable taste and may in some cases take the place of cow's milk. It is apt to produce diarrhoea, however, which action may be bad for some but on the other hand good for others, such as the habitually constipated. Both the meat and the milk are widely used by the natives in making sweets. In the greater part of the islands it is the only oil used for illumination. As a medicine it is employed internally as a purgative and externally in the treatment of scores of troubles in which the good results obtained are due, not to the oil but to the massage used in rubbing it in. It has the reputation of stimulating the growth of the hair and all the natives and some Europeans use it lavishly as a hair ointment. When fresh its odor is agreeable, but it easily becomes rancid and assumes a most disagreeable odor. In the Visayan Islands they make an oil of a nauseous odor which they call in Manila _Caracoa_. It is used only for illumination and by the poor. At a temperature of 20° or more the oil remains liquid; it is colorless when fresh and properly extracted. It solidifies at 18° and two kinds of soap are made of it; one soft and exceedingly cheap called "Quiapo"; the other hard, white, of a high quality, but as a rule containing an excess of lime which in time is deposited in a fluorescent film on its surface. In India the root is employed in the treatment of dysentery. Botanical Description.--A tree most familiar to every one. Habitat.--Common in all parts of the Archipelago. _Nipa fruticans_, Wurmb. Nom. Vulg.--_Nipa_, Sp.-Fil.; _Sasa_, Tag. Uses.--The dry leaves of this palm are generally used in the villages of Manila Province, Pampanga, Bulacan and other provinces in the construction of roofs and walls of houses, which are therefore called "nipa houses." The decoction of the fresh leaves is used as a lotion for indolent ulcers, and a popular preserve is made from the fruit. Like the coco and following the same process the nipa yields a liquid also called tuba and possessing properties identical with those of the former plant. The weak alcohol distilled from it has some repute in the treatment of conjunctivitis, for which purpose a few drops are mixed with a small quantity of water and the eyes are washed with it several times a day. This alcohol, improperly called wine of nipa, has a characteristically unpleasant odor which makes it impracticable for medicinal or industrial use. Several chemists have attempted to remove the characteristic odor from nipa alcohol, but their results had always been negative because the odorous principle was distilled over at the same temperature as the alcohol. Finally a distinguished Filipino chemist, D. Anacleto del Rosario, perfected a process of producing from the nipa tuba an absolute alcohol perfectly free from the characteristic odor; an alcohol, in fact, possessing all the qualities of chemically pure alcohol, and of such a high grade that it was awarded the first prize at the last World's Fair in Paris. Botanical Description.--A palm about 6° high with long, pinnate leaves with leaflets which separate, at maturity, like those of the coco palm. Flowers monoecious, in a spathe. Fruit, many pyramidal drupes joined together, but easily separable. The outer covering of each drupe is hard, the inner part tow-like; seed enveloped in a sort of fleshy white meat. Habitat.--Salt water marshes, especially in Pampanga and the Visayan Islands. CYPERACEÆ. Sedge Family. _Cyperus rotundus_, L. Nom. Vulg.--_Mutha_, Tag.; _Botobotones_, Vis.; _Mota_, _Malaapolid_, _Sursur_, _Onoran_, _Kusung_, _Omadiung_, _Galonalpas_, Pam.; _Nutgrass_ or _Coco-grass_, Eng. Uses.--The root possesses stimulant, diaphoretic, diuretic and emmenagogue properties. In the Philippines it is used internally for dysentery, and in India for the same purpose and as a vermifuge. It is given as a tonic in gastro-intestinal diseases, and General Hardwick has reported good results with it in cholera; as he reported only two cases, his testimony is not of much value. The Chinese use the dry or roasted root, especially in inflammation of the viscera and uterine diseases. They also attribute to it diuretic, emmenagogue and anthelmintic properties. In Java and India they use it for gonorrhoea, and in Mauritius as a diaphoretic and astringent. In the Philippines the bruised root is applied to the face for toothache. Botanical Description.--The root is ovoid, ranging in size from that of a hazel-nut to that of a walnut, composed of a white, spongy substance. Leaves sword-shaped, ensheathing the stem. Flowers in a compound umbel on the end of the stalk which is naked, long and triangular. The umbellets are alternate, awl-shaped, with distinct flowers. Calyx universal, with 2 sword-shaped leaflets. Calyx proper, a very small, ridged scale. Corolla none. Stamens 3. Filaments long, inserted on the base of the ovary. Anthers long and straight. Style