rART H.

Materia Medica.

165

The flowers are in racemes which are sent off from the root,and creep along the ground: and are furnished with oblong leaf-lets like capsules. The calyx is monophyllous, inferior, small,and divided into three obtuse teeth at the margin : the corolla ismonopetalous, tubular, and four-cleft ,• the three outer segmentsbeing long, narrow, and of a straw colour, and the central onelarge, broad, concave, and irregularly oval. The filament isbroad, slightly grooved, supporting a large, double, emarginate,crestless anther, having a deep fissure between its lobes, to re-ceive the style, which is slender, and bearing a funnel-shapedciliated stigma. The capsule is berried, and trilocular.

The ripe fruit is gathered in November; and the capsules,which are dried over a gentle and slow fire, as they dry changefrom green to a whitish straw colour, and become thinner inthe bark: whilst the permanent calyx and foot-stalk is detachedby rubbing them between the hands. 1

Three species of this genus are known; but that which isabove described yields the officinal cardamoms. They arebrought to this country in the Bengal ships in cases, eachcontaining about 120lbs. weight. For the purpose of preserv-ing them, they are kept in the capsules, which are small, trian-gular, striated, and of a pale, clear, straw colour.

Qualities. — Cardamom seeds have an agreeable aromaticodour, and warm spicy taste. They are easily separated from thecapsule ; and are of a brown colour, angular, corrugated, andpulverulent. Water, alcohol, and ether extract their virtues ;the two latter most completely. The watery infusion has a tur-bid appearance; and lets fall a flocculent precipitate, on the ad-dition of alcohol, the acids, solutions of sulphate of iron, mu-riate of mercury, and acetate of lead: but the sulphate of irondoes not alter its colour. The alchoholic tincture is renderedmilky by water. The ethereal has a yellowish green hue, and,when evaporated on the surface of water, leaves neither resinnor extractive, but a considerable portion of essential oil, whichhas the flavour and taste of the seeds in perfection. Cardamomstherefore seem to be entirely composed of fecula, mucus, and es-sential oil.

Medical properties and uses. —Cardamom seeds are carmina-tive and stomachic. They are less stimulating than pepper,and are, therefore, used, united with rhubarb and magnesia, inthe flatulent colic of children; and as a grateful addition tobitters in dyspepsia, and gouty affections of the stomach: but

» In gathering the fruit, the fruit panicles are plucked up by the roots; the pods thenstripped through the fingers, and sorted into three classes ■ 1. Valli Kai, or head fruit 52. Nadu Kai, middle fruit; 3. Poulo Kai, abortive fruit, kmn. Trans, x. p. 229.

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