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SECT. VII.—PLANTS USEFUL IN MEDICINE.
but, like all other human structures, it has its imperfections, andsome of which have been modified by judicious alterations. Yet theteachers of this science, as well as the students, have often to deprecatethe unuecesary change in names which has been made by many writers,though., in many cases, no more reason appears fur it than there ge-nerally would be to change the Christian and surnames of persons.
In the following section, I shall enumerate and describe those plantswhich are contained in the li.its of the three colleges; and afterwardsa separate list or' those which, although they have been expunged, aiestill sometimes in use by medical men.
1 snail also endeavour to give such descriptions as are concise, at thesame time sufficient for general knowledge, and for which reason 1 havetaken Lewis's Materia Medicafor my text, unless where improvementshave been made in certain subjects I have consulted more modern au-thorities. It should be observed, that writers on medical plants, withfew exceptions, have copied one from another: or with a little alterationas to words only.
And as sonic vegetables, from their affinity, may be confoundedwtih others, whereby th >se possessing medical qualities may be substi-tuted for others having none, or even by poisonous ones, I shall in someinstances enumerate a list of similar plants, which, with attention totheir botanical characters, it is hoped will prevent those dangerous errorswe have lately witnessed. As it is our business, in demonstrating plants,to guard the student against such confusion, it will be proper that spe-cimens of such as come under this bead be preserved, as a work for re-ference and contrast wherever doubts may arise.
158. ACON1TUM Napdlus. Common Blue Monkshood. The Leaves.L. E. —Every part of the fresh plant is strongly poisonous, but the rootis unquestionably the most powerful, and when chewed at first impartsa slight sensation of acrimony, and a pungent heat of the lips, gums,palate and fauces, which is succeeded by a general tremor and sensa-tion of chilliness.
This plant has been generally prepared as an extract or inspissatedjuice, after the manner directed in the Edinburgh and many of theforeign Pharmacopoeias, and, like all virulent medicines, it should befirst administered in small doses. Stoerck recommends two grains ofthe extract to be rubbed into a puvvder with twodramsof sugar, and asa dose to begin with ten grains of this powder two or three limes a-day.
Similar Plants. — Acomtum japonicum ; A. pyrenaicum j Delphi-nium elatum ; D. exaltalum.
Instead of the extract, a tincture has been made of the dried leavesmacerated in six times their weight of spirit of wine, and forty dropsgiven for a dose.— Wbodoill&s Med. Bat. 965.
The Dublin College has ordered the Aconitum Neomonta7iiim t whichis not common in this country *.
* In plants of so very poisonous a nature as the Aconite, it is the dutyof every one who describes them to be particular. Here seems to have
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