THE SASSAFRAS TREE.

799

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°fl c vvlUl as many sterile stamens as tlie male, or fewer; the innerPtdu Cf . >n ^ ue wt. Fruit succulent, placed on the thick fleshy apex of thein the torn unchanged calyx .—Flowers yellow,q 0 ' , * le leaves. Leaves deciduous (Lindley).an a ) v I f? srri0N -—Neither the wood nor the bark of sassafras has beenV 7 • ® odl contain volatile oil.

"'oiid d,! e 9*1 ( Oleum, Volatile Sassafras, E.; Oleum Sassafras, D.)—Obtained from thec ')rii(, s y , S |witting it, with water, to distillation. Is colourless, but, by keeping, be-Se p9ratp . ov '[ or red. Its smell is that of sassafras; its taste hot. Sp. gr. I'094. Water• s 11 into two

0 ranp e ^ r CI 7 s ‘ aIs (stearoptene), which are readily soluble. Oil of sassafras is rendered,Ur l>emb!r ,»> y nitric ac,d - Tt is said to be adulterated with oil of lavender or oil ofHot a , )h , lle (honastre, Journ. de Pharm. vol. xiv.); but the statement, I suspect, doesp “ y to the oil found in English commerce.

s Uclor'f SIOLOGICAL Effects.—T he wood and the bark are stimulant andand , lc .‘ Taken in the form of infusion, and assisted by warm clothingI'hev* 1 ^ ddrd;s > they excite the vascular system and prove sudorific,pertjg e their activity to the volatile oil, which possesses acrid pro-

> te 0 n? 8 T SaS8afia8 * s em P ] °y ed as a sudor *tic and alterative in cuta-Prorip’ . leu matic, and venereal diseases. On account of its stimulantSyst Ues d is inadmissible in febrile or inflammatory conditions of theWith ^ * s rarely or never used alone, but generally in combinationAn\ arSa l' ar ^ a and g ua i acum -

U ‘ VlSTllATI0N -—Sassafras is administered in the form of oil or in-fl^voi ’ The dose of the oil is from two to ten drops. Sassafras tea,L° nc i re< with milk and sugar, is sold at day-break in the streets ofKo t Under the name of saloop. Sassafras is a constituent of the(p* 670 *^* ^ arzee Composition; but the volatile oil is dissipated by boiling

Lafrus nob'ilis, Linn. L. D.— The Sweet Bay,

Sex. Syst. Enneandria, Monogynia.jj (Baccse. Folia. L.D.)

tr a -OH,—The bay-tree is mentioned, though erroneously, in ourtr ansl *° n °f the Bible (Psalms, xxxvi. 35, 36); the Hebrew word,c rate s iyi hay ’ meaning native (Carpenter’s Script. Nat. Hist.) Ilippo-^ e rri es fy' 0 '’ P' ^67, 623, 621, &c. ed - E* s -) used both the leaves andMalfji /i, dlc hay-tree (ca<pvri) in medicine. Bay-leaf is analogous to theh ( JTA LTUTI1 (d dle ancients (Royle, Hindoo Med. pp. 32 & 85.)

Cr ated Gen. Char .— Flowers dioecious or hermaphrodite, involu-t'Velvg • ^ a y x four-parted; segments equal, deciduous. Fertile stamensla three rows; the outer alternate with the segments of thetvv °-ce]i a l two glands in the middle or above it. Anthers oblong,bat e( j et ’ ad looking inwards. Female flowers, with two to four cas-^ated • a e , s ’ surrounding the ovary. Stigma capitate. Fruit succulent,^ ea f-buJ - 6 ^regular base of the calyx.— Umbels axillary, stalked.Sp r, S ' V1 th valvate papery scales. Leaves evergreen (Lindley).

A busf AR — onl - v s P ec i es -

^an Ceo j a 0r small tree. Bark aromatic, rather bitter. Leaves alternate,So *bowb ? 01 ohlong-lanceolate, acute or acuminate, wavy at the edge,0 t ic- See( i a , coriaceous. Flowers yellowish. Fruit (called by Nees ae d fleshy berry, by Decandolle a drupe) bluish-black, oval, size

Its smell is that of sassafras; its taste hot. Sp. gr.oils, one lighter, the other heavier than water. By keeping