396 Materia Medxca. — Myroxyli Balmmimi. part ii.

The Peruvian balsam tree is a native of the warmest pro-vinces of the continent of South America > ; growing in themountains of Panatalmas, in the forests of Puzuzu, Muna,Cuchero, Paxaten, and many other places near the river Ma-ranon, blossoming in August, September, and October. It isa very beautiful tree, with a smooth, thick, straight trunk,covered with a grey, coarse, compact, heavy bark, which isinteriorly of a straw colour, and very resinous, as is everypart of the tree. The branches extend almost horizontally.The leaves are alternate and abrubtly pinnate. The leaflets intwo pairs, nearly opposite, petiolate, ovato-lanceolate, withthe apex lengthened, and somewhat blunt and emarginate, en-tire, shining, veined, and very smooth. The midrib, whichruns through the whole length of the under surface of the leaf,is raised and pubescent; the common petiole is round and pu-bescent. The flowers are scattered, on axillary, erect racemes,longer than the leaves. The peduncles are roundish and pu-bescent; each supported by a small, erect, ovate, concavebracte, appearing to the naked eye like a tubercle. Pedicelserect. The calyx is bell-shaped, dark green, divided intofive small, nearby equal teeth, but with one of them so far se-parated as to be found under the germen. The corolla con-sists of Ave white petals; four narrow, equal, lanceolate, andlarger than the calyx; the fifth reflex, broad, and double thesize of the others. The stamens are ten, inclining and in-serted into the calyx; bearing elongated, sharp-pointed, sul-cated anthers. The germen is oblong, pedicillated, inclining;the style short, subulate and crooked, crowned with a simplestigma. The seed vessel is a straw-coloured, club-shaped,somewhat curved, pendulous legume, globular near the top,and terminated by the curved style. It contains in a cell inthe curved part, one seed only, which is crescent-shaped, andprojects from the cell. The substance of the leaves is full oftranslucent, linear points, like the leaf of the orange-tree.

This tree is called quinquino by the natives, who use thebark as a perfume. The balsam, which is procured from in-cisions made early in the spring, in a liquid state, is collectedin bottles, and is called white liquid balsam. What is found inthe shops is obtained by boiling the twigs in water. It is im-ported in jars, each containing from twenty to forty poundsweight. When the Indians collect the white balsam in cali-bashes, which is the case in Carthagena and in the mountainsof Tolu, it condenses and hardens, and forms dry, white bal-sam, or the balsam of Tolu. Ruiz says there is no differencein these three balsams, excepting in name, colour, and con-

1 Mutis discovered it, and sent a branch of the tree to the younger Linnaeusabout the year 1781,