An interesting proof of the esteem in which it was held is afforded by some singular little vases or jars of which a few specimens are preserved in collections of Greek antiquities.[156] These vases were made to contain lycium, and in them it was probably sold; for an inscription on the vessel not only gives the name of the drug but also that of a person who, we may presume, was either the seller or the inventor of the composition. Thus we have the Lycium of Jason, of Musæus, and of Heracleus. The vases bearing the name of Jason were found at Tarentum, and there is reason to believe that that marked Heracleus was from the same locality. Whether it was so or not, we know that a certain Heraclides of Tarentum is mentioned by Celsus[157] on account of his method of treating certain diseases of the eye; and that Galen gives formulæ for ophthalmic medicines[158] on the authority of the same person.
Innumerable conjectures were put forth during at least three centuries as to the origin and nature of lycium, and especially of that highly esteemed kind that was brought from India.
In the year 1833, Royle[159] communicated to the Linnean Society of London a paper proving that the Indian Lycium of the ancients was identical with an extract prepared from the wood or root of several species of Berberis growing in Northern India, and that this extract, well known in the bazaars as Rusot or Rasot, was in common use among the natives in various forms of eye disease.[160] This substance attracted considerable notice in India, and though its efficacy per se[161] seemed questionable, it was administered with benefit as a tonic and febrifuge.[162] But the rusot of the natives being often badly prepared or adulterated, the bark of the root has of late been used in its place, and in consequence of its acknowledged efficacy has been admitted to the Pharmacopœia of India.
Description.—In B. asiatica (the only species we have examined) the roots which are thick and woody, and internally of a bright yellow, are covered with a thin, brittle bark. The bark has a light-brown corky layer, beneath which it appears of a darker and greenish yellow hue, and composed of coarse fibres running longitudinally. The inner surface has a glistening appearance by reason of fine longitudinal striæ. The bark is inodorous and very bitter.
Chemical Composition.—Solly[163] pointed out in 1843 that the root-bark of the Ceylon barberry [B. aristata] contains the same yellow colouring matter as the barberry of Europe. L. W. Stewart[164] extracted Berberine in abundance from the barberry of theNilgiri Hills and Northern India, and presented specimens of it to one of us in 1865.
The root-bark of Berberis vulgaris L. was found by Polex (1836) to contain another alkaloid named Oxyacanthine, which forms with acids colourless crystallizable salts of bitter taste.[165]
Uses.—The root-bark of the Indian barberries administered as a tincture has been found extremely useful in India in the treatment of fevers of all types. It has also been given with advantage in diarrhœa and dyspepsia, and as a tonic for general debility. In the collection of the Chinese customs at Paris, in 1878, the root-barks of Berberis Lycium and B. chinensis, from the province of Shensi, were likewise exhibited (No. 1,823) as a tonic.
RHIZOMA PODOPHYLLI.
Radix podophylli; Podophyllum Root.
Botanical Origin—Podophyllum peltatum L., a perennial herb growing in moist shady situations throughout the eastern side of the North American continent from Hudson’s Bay to New Orleans and Florida.