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122

Materia Medica.

Part II.

tageously applied to scorbutic ulcers of the mouth, tongue, orfauces, and deserves to be carefully tried in cancerous sores.

SiTLrHAS cupki, v. s. Cuprum vitriolatum; vitrioleum cce-ruleum. Ed.

Vitrioleum coeruleum. Dub.Sulphas cupri. Loud.Blue vitriol.

Sulphas cupri, v.Cupri sulphas, s.Sulphate of copper.

This metallic salt is rarely formed by combining directlyits component parts; but it is obtained, either by evaporatingmineral waters which contain it, or by acidifying native sul-phuretted copper, by exposing it to the action of air and mois-ture, or by burning its sulphur.

When pure it has a deep blue colour, and is crystallizedgenerally in long rhomboids. It effloresces slightly in theair, is soluble in four parts of water at 60°, and in two at 212°,and is insoluble in alcohol. By heat it. loses, first its waterof crystallization, and afterwards all its acid. It is decompo-sed by the alkalies and earths, and some of the metals, the al-kaline carbonates, borates, and phosphates, and some metal-lic salts.

It is composed of,Copper, 24 ^

Oxygen, 8 V 42 hydro-oxide of copper.Water, 10)

33 sulphuric acid.

25 water of crystallization.

100Medical use. —The sulphate of copper has a strong, styptic,metallic taste, and is chiefly used externally as an escharoticfor destroying warts, callous edges, and fungous excrescences,as a stimulant application to ill-conditioned ulcers, and as astyptic to bleeding surfaces. Taken internally, it operates, invery small doses, as a very powerful emetic. It has, however,been exhibited in incipient phthisis pulmonalis, intermittentfever, and epilepsy; but its use is not free from danger.

Cynara scolymus. Ed.

Willd. g. 1436, sp. 2. Syngenesia Polygamia ccqualis. —Nat. ord. Comppsita capitata.Artichoke.

Officinal. —Folium. The leaves.

The artichoke is a perennial plant, indigenous in the southof Europe, but very frequently cultivated in our gardens, forculinary purposes.