Indian Medicinal Plants/Natural Order Polygonaceæ

Vern. : — Balanja, berwaja, tatuke (Trans-Indus); Phok, phog, phogalli (flowers) ; tirni (root) (Pb. and Sind).

Habitat: — Punjab, Sind and Rajputana.

An almost leafless shrub or small tree with terete pale flexuous branches and very slender branchlets. Leaves most minute, bristles at the distant nodes. Flowering branches about as thick as a crow-quill or less; internodes 1-1½in. long. Pedicels ⅛-1/6in., sepals 5, flat, about as long. Stamens 12-18. Ovary 4-angled. Fruit ½-lin diam., a nut, 4-angled, oblong, hard, densely clothed with many series of branching intricate, rigid, red-brown flexuous bristles ; seed about ¼in. ​ Use :— The roots are bruised, and, boiled in combination with Catechu (Kath), used as a gargle for sore-gums. (Murray.)

Vern. :— Indranee, bigbund, hunraj (Hind.) ; Kesrú, bandúke (Pb.); Miromati (Sans.) ; Machooti (Pb.) ; Drob (Kash.).

Habitat : — Western Himalaya, from Kashmir to Kumaon ; Rawal Pindee and the Deccan.

A glabrous herb. Root mostly annual. Branches procumbent or ascending, grooved, leafy. Leaves elliptic or elliptic-oblong or lanceolate, obtuse flat, nerveless ; stipules shorter than the internodes, hyaline, lacerate, many-nerved. Flowers axillary ; pedicel short, pointed at the tip. Perianth obovoid, cleft to near the base ; nut ovoid, obtusely 3-gonous, minutely rugosely striolate.

Uses : — In Chumba, the dried root is applied externally as an anodyne, and officinal in Kashmir. (Stewart.) The seeds are also said to be powerfully emetic and purgative. In Europe, the whole plant is considered vulnerary and astringent. In the Year Book of Pharmacy for 1874, an interesting account is given of the reputed value of the decoction of the herb in cases of: vesical calculus. A case is described in which a dose of two tumblerfuls of the decoction is said to have been followed by almost immediate relief.

" It was used by the ancients to arrest hemorrhage, the seeds were considered to be laxative and diuretic and to arrest defluxions. For burning pains in the stomach the leaves were applied topically, and were used in the form of a liniment for pains in the bladder and for erysipelas. The juice was administered in fevers, tertian and quartan more particularly, in doses of two cyathi, just before the paroxysms. Arabian physicians consider it to be cold and dry, and reproduce what the Greeks have said concerning its medicinal uses.

In India, the plant is still used by the Hakims in the diseases named by Dioscorides.

In our own times Polygonum root has been used as a febrifuge in Algeria, and has been reported upon as being an excellent remedy for chronic diarrhœa and stone in the bladder. Its value has apparently been much exaggerated. (J. R. Jackson, Amer. Journ. Pharm., 1873, p. 247.)

In the Lancet, (1885, p. 658) it is said to be used in Russia, under the name of Homeriana, as a popular remedy in lung affections. Dr. Rotschinin, who has experimented with the drug, found it really valuable in several cases of ​ bronchitis, two of which were capillary ; also in three cases of whooping cough. It was tried in phthisis, but no definitely satisfactory results were obtained. A tumblerful of the decoction was given three times a day." (Pharmacog. Ind., Vol. III. p. 149.)

Vern. : — Rânîphûl (Santal).

Common in central and S. India, also in the Bombay Presidency.

Branches uniformly spreading all round from the crown and leafy, internodes short. Leaves ¼-½ in. long, linear or obovate-oblong, flat, obtuse or apiculate ; stipules very short. Flowers crowded in the axils, pedicels shorter than the perianth or none. Sepals broad, 2 outer acute. Nutlets 1/14 in. (Duthie.)

Use : — The root is given for bowel complaints (Campbell).

Syn. :— P. bistorta, Linn.

Vern.:— Maslûn, bîlaurî, anjabar (Pb.).

Habitat : —Alpine and Sub-alpine Himalaya, from Kashmir to Sikkim, etc.

A perennial, glandular herb. Stem solitary, 4-12in., slender simple, erect, from a woody root-stock as thick as the thumb or less. Root leaves long-petioled, linear or linear-oblong, acute, obtuse or cordate ; l-6in., coriaceous, sometimes pubescent, or even tomentose beneath. Cauline leaves sessile, erect. Spikes l-4in. long, solitary, erect, slender. Bracts ovate, acuminate. Perianth very variable in size. Flowers suberect, pink, the lower re-placed by bulbils. Stamens included or exserted. Styles filiform, slender, free and included or greatly lengthened and connate below. Nut very small, trigonous, or biconvex.

Uses : — The root is a useful astringent and said to be applied to abscesses ; a decoction may be used in gleet and leucorrhœa as an injection ; makes an excellent gargle in relaxed sore-throat and spongy gums, and an excellent lotion for ulcers. Mixed with Gentian, it is given in intermittent fevers ; also useful in passive hæmorrhage and diarrhœa (Dr. Stewart). ​

Vern. : — Sauri arak, jioti (Santal) ; Larborna, bih agui, bih langaui, patharua (Assam); Rakta rohida sheral (Bomb.); Atalaria (Tam.).

Habitat : — In ditches, etc., from Assam, Sylhet and Bengal Westward to the Indus and Sindh, and southward to Burma, ascending the Himalaya to 6,400ft. in Garhwal.

Glabrous herbs. Stem2-5ft., stout, slightly branched, somewhat swollen above nodes, shining purplish-red. Leaves usually large, 3-JOin., linear-lanceolate, much tapering at both ends, entire, glabrous or slightly rough with minute prickles, minutely glandular ; midrib prominent, broad, lateral veins numerous, pellucid. Petiole very short (⅛-½in ), stout ; stipules about lin., membranous, veined, truncate, not ciliate. Flowers bright-pink, numerous all the year round on short glabrous pedicels ; racemes l-3in., erect; bracts short, truncate, glabrous. Perianth ⅛-¼in., long, pink or white, not glandular ; segments broadly oval, acute. Stamens usually 8 (sometimes fewer), shorter than perianth. Styles 2 divergent, sometimes 3, united above the middle ; stigmas globose. Nuts black shining, ⅛in. in diam., usually rounded and flattened, 3-angled in the 3 styled flowers.

It is difficult to separate this from smooth forms of P. Persicaria, of which it is the tropical representative ; it is, however, much larger, less branched, with more attenuate leaves brown when dry, and normally ciliate bracts and stipules. (Hooker.)

Uses : —An infusion of the leaves is used by the country people of Bombay to relieve pain in colic (Dymock). In Chutia Nagpur, it is employed as a cure for " stitch in the side," and in Assam as a remedy for fever (Watt).

""Habitat"" :— Western Himalaya, Kashmir, etc.

Use :— It may be put to the same uses as the other species of this genus.

Annual, erect or ascending, leaves subsessile, elliptic-oblong or lanceolate eglandular, stipules usually hirsute and ciliate, ​ racemes oblong dense-fid., bracts ciliate, pedicels glabrous, perianth red eglandular nerves slender, stamens usually 6.

Chem. Comp.— It has the following percentage composition :— Moisture 10.07, ash 6.52, ethereal oil 0.053, wax 1.92, tannin 1.52, mucic and pectic substances 5.42, calcium oxalate 2.18, total nitrogen 3.97, ammonia 0.31, cellulose 27.61, volatile acids 0.0464, sugar 3.24. The ash contains Na, K, Mg, Ca, Fe, CI., So 3 , Si O₂ , P₂O₅ , and several quantities of Mn. It was dissolved by light petroleum, consists of an easily hydrolysable phytosterol oleate along with free phytosterol, and a solid acid melting at 55°C. The ethereal extract contains chlorophyll and a resin, and the alcoholic extract, sugar, tannin, gallic acid, quercetin and phlobaphen ; the latter is hydrolysed by dilute sulphuric acid forming a sugar which gives an osazone melting at 177° -178°C. Only traces of volatile aminic bases are present, but considerable quantities of ammonia, the bases precipitated by phosphotungstic acid are two or three in number and differ in their solubility in chloroform and amyl alcohol. The ethereal oil is noteworthy as consisting principally of volatile fatty acids, especially acetic and butyric acids ; the remainder is made up of a camphor-like solid with an agreeable odour (persicariol) and a liquid, not further investigated. (J. S. Ch. I. Jan, 15, 1902, p. 66.)

Syn. : — P. rivulare, Koen., Roxb. 335.

Vern. : — Narri (Pb ) ; Bekh-unjubaz (P.); Atalari (Tam.) ; Kondamalle, niru ganeru (Tel.) ; Velluta modela mukku (Malay) ; Dhâktâ slieral (Mar.) ; Mangarleta (Jaspur).

Habitat: — Throughout the hotter parts of India, from Assam to the Indus, and southwards to Malacca, Penang and Ceylon.

Stems erect, glabrous, 1½— 3ft. Leaves numerous, 5-6in., linear-lanceolate, nearly sessile, tapering to both ends, acute, finely hairy on both sides and at margins ; stipules 1½in., usually longer than internodes, strigose with long hair, ciliate, with strong coarse hair, as long as the tube. Flowers on short slender pedicels. Racemes 2-4in., erect, slender, rather lax. Bracts strongly pectinate. Perianth white, without glands. Styles 3. Stamens 5-8. Fruit a nut, triangular, black shining.

Uses : — The seeds are employed in Malabar and Canara to relieve the griping panis of colic (Dr. Stewart, also Dr. Ainslie). In Patna, the root is used as an astringent and cooling remedy (Irvine). In China, a decoction of the leaves and stalks is said to be used as a stimulating wash for ulcers (Watt). ​

Vern. : — Packur-mul (B.).

Habitat: — Plains and hills of India, in wet places, from Assam, Silhet, Chittagong and Bengal to N.-W. India, and Madras.

A glabrous, rather robust annual. Roots tufted or shortly creeping. Stems erect and branches ascending, rather stout leafy, 12-18in. high; always glabrous, often glandular; nodes often swollen. Leaves rarely more than 3in. long, sessile or petioled, lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, glabrous or with the midrib scabrid beneath. Stipules glabrous or sparsely strigose, very shortly ciliate. Pacemes flexuous, leafy at base, filiform, decurved, interrupted ; bracts glabrous, glandular or not. Perianth pinkish ; mouth naked or minute, ciliate. Nut usually trigonous, opaque, finely granulate, sometimes flat.

Uses :— In China, the juice is used for itch, and also as a diuretic, carminative and anthelmintic (P.J. 20-12-84).

The root is stimulating, bitter and tonic, and is used for these properties in Patna (Irvine.) O'Shaughnessy states that the whole plant is reputed to be a powerful diuretic, but to lose its activity on drying.

" This plant possesses very acrid qualities, and is hot and biting to a degree, so that no animal will eat it, even ; insects avoid it ; and it is said that when dried and laid amongst clothes no moth will touch them. Its bruised leaves are still used in villages instead of a mustard poultice, and they are put into the mouth to cure toothache. It is said to be a powerful diuretic, and a water distilled from it was formerly used in some nephritic complaints." (Sowerby's English Botany, Vol. VIII, pp. 71-72.)

Chem. comp.— Dr. C. J. Rademarker (Amer. Journ. Pharm., Nov. 1879) separated from P. Hydropiper a crystalline principle which he named Polygonic acid. II. Trimble and H. J. Schuchard (Am. Journ. Pharm., Jan. 1885) re-examined the plant with following results :— They found that the peculiar pungent principle, although present in a weak alcoholic tincture, disappeared on distillation, the pungent taste of the herb being absent from the distillate and the residue in the retort. ​ From these experiments they conclude that the active principle is decomposed on the slightest heating, and that the only proper preparation of the drug would be one made without the application of heat. They prepared the polygomic acid of Dr. Rademaker, and conclude from their experiments that it is only a mixture of impure tannic and gallic acids. (Pharmacog. Ind. Ill pp. 150-151.)

Syn. : — P. Nepalense, Meissu.

Vern. :— Sat balon (Pb.).

Habitat : — Throughout the Himalaya, from Sikkim to Kashmir. Khasia Mts., Nilghiri Mts., Canara ; and the Baba-budan Hills.

An annual herb. Stem l-2ft., long, rarely creeping for a short distance at the base, erect and sub-simple or branched from the base, erect, tall or low, glabrous or sparsely hairy. Branches 6-8in. high, slender or rather stout, flaccid or stiff. Leaves large or small (¾-1½in. long), ovate or deltoid, ovate-obtuse or acute or narrowed into a broadly winged, often amplexicaul, petiole, glandular or not. Stipules tubular, obliquely truncate. Peduncles glandular, hispid at tip. Involucre-leaf often longer than the head, sessile, ovate, cordate, obtuse or acute. Heads usually with an involucral leaf, ¼-¾in. Bracts ovate-lanceolate, glabrous, not ciliate. Perianth 1-5-fid, stamens 7-8, included, sepals white or pale-purple, membranous, sub-equal, very variable in size. St}de long, with one or two long arms and capitate stigmas. Nut varying in size, 1-in., the same head, closely invested and cohering with the thin perianth-tube and crowned with the lobes, bi-convex or tri-gonous, striate and punctate.

Use.:__In Kangra its leaves are applied to swellings (Stewart).

Habitat :— Central and Eastern Himalaya; Nepal, Sikkim, Mishmi Hills.

Shrubby, erect, 3-6ft. Stems angled, hairy, becoming tomentose in the upper parts. Leaves stalked or the upper nearly sessile, oblong-lanceolate, 4-9in. by 1½-3½in, long-pointed, upper ​ surface glabrous or thinly hairy , the lower softly and densely hairy, especially in the mid-rib and nerves. Stipules tubular, very long, hairy , strongly nerved, pointed. Flowers white or tinged with pink, in terminal, usually erect, panicles, 6-18in. long. Bracts flat. Perianth 5-parted, ¼in. diam. Stamens 8. Styles 3, free nearly to the base. Nut 3-angled, pale-brown.

Use : — It is used for the same purposes as P. Hydropiper and P. alatum. It is astringent.

Habitat: — Western Himalaya; in the drier ranges, from Kumaon westwards to Western Tibet.

A stemless herb. Root short or long, thicker than the thumb. Leaves all radical, 6-12in. diam., very leathery, with prominent radiating nerves and reticulated nervules beneath, red-brown in age, orbicular, broadly ovate or cordate, glabrous or stellately puberulous beneath. Petiole 3-6in., very stout, glabrous or puberulous. Racemes 1-3, glabrous, radical, 4-12in., strict, dense-fid. Peduncle and rachis stout, glabrous. Bracts minute, ovate, scarious. Flowers 1/10in. diam., on capillary pedicels. Fruit broadly ellipsoid or oblong, wings membranous, broader than the disk, ⅓-½in. long, 3-4-times as long as the oblong obtuse sepals; tip rounded or notched, wings membranous. Pedicel half as long as the fruit or less.

Habitat : --Western Himalaya ; Kumaon.

Stemless species of stout herbs, with woody large roots. Flowers in a spike like raceme. " This plant, " says J.D. Hooker, " differs from R. spiciforme in the very much larger pubescent peduncles and racemes which together are two feet long, and in the form of the fruit." Leaves all radical, thickly coriaceous, orbicular, glabrous or stellately puberulous beneath Racemes pubescent, fruit ovoid, wings narrow.

Vern.: — Revand-chini (H. and B.) ; Révande-hindi (Pers.) ; ​ Variyattu (Tam.) ; Natturéval-chinni (Tel.) ; Gamni-revan-chini (Guz.) ; Padam-chal (Nepal); Archu (Garhwal); Mulkâ-cha-reval-chini (Mar.) ; Nat-reva-chinni (Kan.).

Habitat : —Sub-alpine and Alpine Himalaya ; Nepal, Sikkim and Simla.

Herbs. Stem very stout, tall, branched, leafy ; 5-6ft. high, streaked, green and brown. Root very stout. Radical leaves often 2ft. diam., papillose beneath, scabrous above ; petiole 12-18in., very stout, scaburlous, orbicular, or broadly ovate, obtuse ; base cordate, 5-7-nerved. Panicle leafy, papillosely puberulous, fastigiately branched, 2-3ft. Flowers dark-purple, ⅛in. diam. Fruit ½in. long, oblong, ovoid, purple, base cordate, apex notched, wings narrower than the disk.

Habitat : — Sikkim, Himalayas.

Probably only a small form, says J. D. Hooker, of R. Emodi, Wall., with acuminate leaves, but the flowers are considerably larger, and, though long under cultivation, it does not attain half the size of that plant or vary in its character. Stem leafy ; leaves long-petioled, triangular or orbicular, ovate, acuminate ; base cordate, 5-7-nerved, panicles papillosely puberulous, fastigiately branched and leafy ; flowers red ; fruit ovoid, oblong, base, cordate, tip entire or notched, wings narrower than the nucleus.

Habitat :— Central and Western Alpine Himalaya.

Very variable in size, from 1 to 6ft. high, stem branched, leafy. Leaves 4in. — 2ft. in diam. ; long-petioled, orbicular-cordate or reniform, 5-7-nerved papillose or glabrous, tip rounded or sub-acute Panicles axillary and terminal, leafy, quite glabrous. Flowers pale-yellowish, very much smaller than R. Emodi, the panicles less strict, the fruit broader, |in. diam., with broader wings. Fruit notched at both ends. ​ Uses : — The roots of the several species of Rheum, described above, inhabiting the elevated portions of Himalaya, constitute the principal portion of the Indian or Himalayan Rhubarb. There are two principal varieties, 1. The large (from R. Emodi ?) ; occurs in twisted or cylindrical pieces of various sizes and shapes, furrowed; cut obliquely at the extremities, about four inches long and an inch and a half in diameter; of a dark brown colour, feeble rhubarb odour, and bitter astringent taste ; texture radiated, rather spongy, not presenting on fracture the marbled texture characteristic of ordinary rhubarb ; pulverized with difficulty ; powder of a dull brownish yellow colour. 2. The small (from R. Webbianum) ; consists of short transverse segments of the root branches ; of a dark-brownish colour, odourless, or nearly so, with a very bitter astringent taste. Both kinds are liable to 'considerable variation in physical characters. The trials made with Himalayan rhubarb by Prof. Royle (Calcutta Med. Phys. Trans., vol. iii. p. 439), and Mr. Twining (Diseases of Bengal, vol. i. p. 220), were productive of satisfactory results ; the latter authority, indeed, regarded it as superior to imported rhubarb as a stomachic tonic. Subsequent experience has not confirmed this view. The general tenor of all the reports received from India in which this drug is noticed is to the effect that the indigenous rhubarb procured in the bazaars is generally worthless, and unfitted to replace the imported article. Dr. Hugh Cleghorn (Madras Quart. Med. Journ., 1862, vol. v., p. 464), who furnishes some interesting remarks on Himalayan Rhubarb, states that it is only an inferior variety that reaches the plains of Hindustan. He tested the action of the fresh root, and found it resemble that of Russian Rhubarb. Cultivated with due care, there is reason to believe that a good serviceable drug, equal to Chinese or Turkish Rhubarb, might be obtained from the Himalayan plants. (Ph. Ind.)

In the Second Rept. of Indig. Drugs Coram, (p. 71) Captn. W. M. Anderson, I.M.S., who used the powder, gives his opinion, as to the value of the drug, as follows : —

" Not satisfactory as a purgative ; requires to be given in 5 — 10 gr. doses ; is very liable to gripe and is irregular in its action. In some cases the bowels were only opened after repeated doses." ​

Vern. : — Amlu ; Chohahak (Pb.).

Habitat :— Alpine Himalaya, from Sikkim to Kashmir.

An erect, fleshy-glabrous herb. Rootstock tufted, with many erect succulent stems, 4-18in. high. Leaves radical, many, long-petioled, l-4in. diam., rarely 3-lobed or sub-hastate, cauline 1-2 ; petiole sometimes 8in. Racemes slender, panicled. Flowers 2-sexual ; pedicels pointed in the middle ; tip thickened. Outer two sepals, spreading or reflexed ; inner two spathulate, 3-5-nerved. Stamens 6. Ovary compressed, Styles 2, short , stigmas fimbriate. Fruit a nut, 2-winged, biconvex, 1/6-¼in. diam., orbicular-cordate, wing membranous, veined, top notched.

A most agreeable salad, raw and cooked. Except in often attaining a very large size (18in. high), the Himalayan plant does not differ from the European. (Hooker.)

Use : — In Chumba it is eaten raw and in chatni, and is considered cooling, and in Kanáwár it is known as a medicine (Stewart).

Syn. : — R. acutus, Roxb. 309.

Vern. :-- Jangli-pâlak, jûl-palam (H.) ; Bun-palung (B.) ; Hûlâ obûl ; Zagû-kei ; Khattikan ; Bij-band (Pb.).

Habitat: —Marshes in Assam, Silhet, Cachar and Bengal.

An annual herb, rather shrubby. Stem l-4ft., angled and deeply grooved. Leaves 3-10in., lanceolate, narrowed into the petiole. Whorls of flowers lax or dense, many-or few-fid. Panicles leafy to the top. Flowers 2-sexual. Fruiting perianths all unarmed, or on the same plant, some armed and some unarmed, yellow-brown when ripe, tubercle smooth, with a narrow, sometimes reticulate, margin ; spine sometimes 4 times as long as the valve ; tip straight or slightly hooked. Stamens 6. Ovary 3-gonous; styles 3, terminal. Stigmas fimbricate. Nut included in the usually enlarged inner sepals (valves), angles acute.

Uses :— -The plant has cooling properties, the leaves are applied to burns and the seeds are sold as bij-band of the ​ bázárs, and used as an aphrodisiac (Atkinson).

N. B.— According to Murray (Plants and Drugs of Sind), the fruit of Polygommi aviculare is known as Bijband or Endrani in Sind. It is probable that seed of several species of Polygonum and Rumex are collected and sold as Bijband.

Habitat : — Plains of India, from Assam and Sylhet to the Indus, ascending the Himalaya to 1,000 ft., Sind and Concan.

An erect annual, l-2ft. high. Stems grooved, glabrous, usually tinged with red. Leaves 3-4in. long, oblong, obtuse, glabrous, base rounded or cordate, petioles of radical leaves up to 2½in. long. Flowers shortly pedicelled, 2-sexual, arranged in distinct leafy or leafless whorls. Perianth ⅛-1/5in. long ; inner segments broadly ovate, reticulate-veined, much enlarged in fruit and with an ovoid-oblong smooth tubercle on its back, margins irregularly toothed or pectinate ; the teeth numerous, short, straight, not hooked. Nutlets 1/10in. long, acutely 3-gonous or almost winged. (Duthie.)

Use : — The root yields a dye, and is used as an astringent application in cutaneous disorders (Watt).

Habitat : — Temperate Himalaya, from Bhotan to Kashmir ; Khasia Mts., Western Peninsula ; on the Ghats.

Tall herbs. Roots with tuberous fibres. Stem 2-4ft, stout, erect. Branches stiff, spreading. Radical leaves often 6-14 by 3-5in., undulate or not, large oblong, ovate-oblong or triangular-ovate, acute or obtuse, base widely or narrowly cordate, upper sessile or petioled, similar or with narrowed bases, or lanceolate. Flowers 2-sexual, in whorls forming long, nearly leafless, racemes. Fruiting sepals broadly ovate, fringed one thickend and forming an oblong tubercle.

Uses : — The tuberous roots are said to be sold in the bazars of Bengal under the name of Rewund Chíní as a substitute for rhubarb. They are given in constipation, in doses of 10 gr. to 120 gr. (Irvine).

Oswald Hesse has isolated from the root three new substances, one of which, rumicin, is isomeric with, and closely resembles, chrysophanic acid, but is not identical with it. ​ Rumicin, C₁₅H₁₀O₄, crystallises from light petroleum in golden-yellow leaflets with metallic lustre, and melts at 186-188° ; the solution in caustic potash is purple-red, becoming colourless on exposure to carbonic anhydride, which precipitates rumicin. When heated with hydriodic acid, it yields chrysophano-hydro-anthrone, which is obtained from chrysophanic acid under the influence of the same agent.

Nepalin, C₁₇H₁₄O₄ , crystallises from glacial acetic acid in microscopic, orange needles, and melts at 136°; it is insoluble in alkali carbonates, but dissolves in caustic potash, forming a purple solution, which becomes colourless under the influence of carbonic anhydride. The solution in concentrated sulphuric acid is blood-red. The diacetyl derivative crystallises from glacial acetic acid in lustrous, brownish-yellow rhombohedra, which darken at 170°, and melt at 181°.

Nepodin, C₁₈H₁₆O₄, crystallises from a mixture of benzene light petroleum in long, greenish-yellow prisms, and melts at 158°. It dissolves readily in alkali carbonates, forming a yellowish-brown solution ; the solution in concentrated sulphuric acid is an intense, yellowish-red colour. The diacetyl derivative crystallises in pale-yellow rhombohedra, darkens at 180° and melts and decomposes at 168°.

These three constituents of Rumes nepalemis, of which nepalin greatly preponderates, are separated from one another by extracting the root with ether, removing nepodin by means of aqueous potassium carbonate, evaporating the ether, and extracting the rumicin from the residue with boiling acetone ; the nepalin remaining undissolved. (J. Ch. S. 1896 A. I. 573.)

Rumicin is chrysophanic acid, uncontaminated with methyl, chrysophanic acid, whilst nepalin is identical with nepodin, C l8 H 16 4 . (J. Ch. S. 1900 A. I. 41).

Sans. : — Chukra ; Shutavedhee.

Vern. : — Chuká Chukápálang (H. and B.) ; Shakkan-kirai (Tam.) ; Shukk-kura-ku (Tel.) ; Sukhasag (Assam) ; Ambut chuká (C. P.) ; Triwakka, khatbíri, khattítan, khatta mitha, saluní (Pb.); Chuká (Sind) ; Ambari, chukká (Deccan) ; Chuká (Bomb.).

Habitat : — Western Punjab ; on the Salt Range and Trans-Indus hills ; cultivated, and an escape in other parts of India.

A pale-green annual, monœicous, glabrous, 6-12in. high, dichotomously branched from the root, rather fleshy. Leaves petioled, elliptic, ovate or oblong, 3-5-nerved, base cuneate, rarely cordate or hastate, l-3in. acute or obtuse. Petiole as long as the blade. Racemes short, terminal, leaf-opposed, leafless, 1-1½in.; ​pedicels slender, jointed about the middle or unjointed. Flowers sometimes 2-nate and connate, valves large, orbicular, 2-lobed at each end, very membranous and reticulate without a marginal nerve. Fruit ½in. diam., white or pink ; valves hyaline.

Uses :— It has obtained the name of Sorrel in India, and is considered by the natives as cooling and aperient, and, to a certain extent, diuretic (Ainslie). The juice is said to allay the pain of toothache, and by its astringent properties to check nausea, promote the appetite and allay morbid craving for unwholesome substances. It is also considered very cooling and of use in heat of stomach, and externally as an epithem to allay pain, especially that caused by the bites or stings of reptiles and insects. The seeds are said to have, similar properties, and are prescribed roasted in dysentery, and as an antidote to scorpion stings. The root is also medicinal (Dymock).

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