Valeriana officinalis, Linne'.  The dried rhizome and roots, with not more than 5 p.c. foreign organic matter, yielding not more than 10 p.c. acid-insoluble ash.
    Habitat.  Europe, N. Asia, in moist as well as dry localities, banks of streams;  naturalized in New England and New York; cultivated.
    Syn.  Valer., Wild, Great Wild, English, German, Common, Cat's, Vermont or  American-English Valerian, Setwall, Vandal Root, All Heal, Radix Valerianae Minoris;  Br. Valerianae Rhizoma; Fr. Valeriane officinale, Racine de Valeriane; Ger. Radix  Valerianae, Baldrian, (Wild) Baldrianwurzel.
    Va-le-ri-a'-na.  L. see etymology, above, of Valerianacae.
    Of-fi-ci-na'-lis.  L. see etymology of (Smilax) officianlis.
    PLANT. -- Large perennial herb; stem .6-1.3 M. (2-4 degrees) high, branched at top, cylindrical, hollow, fluted and channeled, often hairy; leaves imparipinnate with long clasping petioles; leaflets 4-10 pairs, 2.5-6.5 Cm. (1-2 1/2') long, lanceolate, dentate; flowers small, white or rose color, agreeably odorous, terminal corymbs, corolla 5-lobed, stamens 3, sessile; fruit, capsule, 4 Mm. (1/6') long, plano-convex, compressed, 4-ribbed, pale brown, 1-seeded, oblong-ovate.  RHIZOME, upright, 2-4 Cm. (4/5-1 3/5') long, 1-2 Cm. (2/5-4/5') thick, usually cut longitudinally into 2-4 pieces, yellowish-brown, upper portion with stem-bases, frequently, with a short, horizontal branch or stolon, from outer surface numerous, slender, brittle roots; fracture short, horny; internally light brown with a thick bark and narrow, central cylinder; odor of valeric acid, stronger upon aging; taste sweetish, camphoraceous, somewhat bitter.  POWDER, grayish-brown--numerous starch grains, .003-.02 Mm. (1/8325-1/1250') broad, tracheal fragments, walls with pores or thickenings, narrow fibers with walls thin, porous, lignified, occasional fragments of epidermis with root hairs and fragments of cork.  Solvents: water; alcohol.  Dose, gr. 15-60 (1-4 Gm.).
    ADULTERATIONS. -- Rhizome and roots of V. Phu, V. dioi'ca, Cynan'chum Vincetox'icum, Veratrum album, Si'um latifo'lium, Scabio'sa succi'sa, and S. arven'sis, also several ranunculaceous roots.
    Commercial. -- Valerian flourishes equally well in damp woods, meadows, and dry places, affording a variability in characteristics that has suggested four varieties, all, however, being one and the same and yielding identical constituents; it is cultivated in England (best), Germany, Holland, United States (New Hampshire, Vermont, New York), very little of the wild grown, although stronger and smaller, being utilized.  Rhizome is collected in the spring before stem begins to shoot, or preferably in autumn, when leaves decay, from dry soil plants, and at first is without specific odor; tops are cut off in the spring to prevent seeding and thereby strengthen the rhizome, which must be dug carefully, washed, dried (entire or split) in kilns, packed tightly, and kept dry to prevent deterioration.
    CONSTITUENTS. -- Volatile oil .5-3 p.c., Valeric acid, formic, acetic, malic acids, chatinine, tannin, resin, starch, mucilage, sugar, ash 15-20 p.c. (largely manganese).
    Volatile Oil, (Oleum Valerianae), U.S.P. 1860-1890. -- This is obtained by distilling with water; it is a pale green liquid, pungent valerian odor, aromatic taste, sp. gr. 0.945, yellow and viscid on exposure, levorotatory; contains: 1, a terpene -- borneene, C₁₀H₁₆, boiling at 157 degrees C. (315 degrees F.); 2, an alcohol -- borneol (liquid, and solid crystalline compound), C₁₀H₁₈O, with the liquid portion chromic acid yields camphor along with formic, acetic, and valeric acids, these latter being likewise present in old rhizomes from slow oxidation of this C₁₀H₁₈O; 3, an ether -- burneol, or borneol oxide, (C₁₀H₁₇)2O, greenish syrupy oil, but colorless when rectified, along with formic, acetic, and veleric esters, which, by oxidation, form their respective acids.  Recent investigators claim these components to be pinene, camphene, borneol, and the formic, acetic, and isovaleric esters of borneol.  Dose, mj-5 (.06-.3 cc.).
    Valeric (Valerianic) Acid, Acidum Valer(ian)icum, C₅H₁₀O₂, U.S.P. 1860-1870. -- Not in fresh rhizome, but results from oxidation of the volatile oil on exposure -- a change believed dependent largely upon presence of manganese; however, this is obtained mostly by oxidizing amyl alcohol with sulphuric acid and potassium dichromate.  It is an oily liquid, volatile, with characteristic odor, salts sweet-tasted.
    PREPARATIONS. -- 1. Tinctura Valerianae.  Tincture of Valerian.  (Syn., Tr. Valer.; Fr. Teinture de Valeriane; Ger. Baldriantinktur.)
 Manufacture: 20 p.c.  Similar to Tinctura Veratri Viridis, page 104; menstruum: 75 p.c. alcohol.  Dose, 3ss-2 (2-8 cc.).
    2. Tinctura Valerianae Ammoniata.  Ammoniated Tincture of Valerian.  (Syn., Tr. Valer. Ammon., Tinctura Valerianae Composita; Fr. Teinture de Valeriane ammoniacale; Ger. Ammoniakalische Baldriantinktur.)
    Manufacture: 20 p.c.  Similar to Tinctura Veratri Viridis, page 104; menstruum aromatic spirit of ammonia.  Dose, 3ss-2 (2-8 cc.).
    3.  Fluidextractum Valerianae, N.F. (80 p.c. alcohol).  Dose, mxv-60 (1-4 cc.).
    Unoff. Preps.: Abstract, gr. 5-20 (.3-1.3 Gm.).  Extract, gr. 5-10 (.3-.6 Gm.).  Infusion, 3j-2 (20-60 cc.).  Syrup.  Water (Aqua).
    PROPERTIES. -- Similar to other drugs having a volatile oil.  Stimulant, anodyne, nervine, antispasmodic, vermifuge, no narcotic effect; increases heart action and temperature, causing exhilaration, stimulates circulation, secretion, and peristalsis of the stomach and intestines; it is eliminated by kidneys, bronchial and genito-urinary mucous membranes; if used continuously, may produce melancholia, hysteria.  Large, doses cause nausea, diarrhea, urination, delirium, lessen motility, sensibility, and reflex exitability; the oil paralyzes the brian, spine, slows pulse, lowers blood-pressure.
    USES. -- Hysteria, hypochondriasis, hemicrania, nervous coughs, whooping-cough, diabetes, delirium tremens, typhoid state, dysmenorrhea, vertigo, epilepsy, worm convulsions, flatulence, reflex neuralgia.
    Allied Plants:
    1. Valeriana Walli'chii, Valerianae Indicae Rhizoma (Br.); India; rhizome 5 Cm. (2') long, 10 Mm. (2/5') thick, brown, curved, many root-scars, few thick roots--equivalent to official.  V. Phu'; W. Asia, S. Europe; tall perennial; rhizome (Radix Valerianae Majoris) is 10-15 Cm. (4-6') long, 12 Mm. (1/2') thick, annulated, brown; V. mexica'na and V. tolucca'na, Mexico.  All three yield valeric acid; odor and taste weaker than official.
    2.  V. Cel'tica (Nardus Spica celtica). -- Alps, and Nardos'tachys Jataman'si, Nar'dus in'dica (Spica nardi) or true spikenard, India; the former has valerian odor, the latter that of serpentaria.
 

    Vanillinum.  Vanillin, C₈H₈O₃, U.S.P.
    Vanilla planifolia, Andrews.  Methylprotocatechuic aldehyde occurring naturally in vanilla (cured fruit), or prepared synthetically.
    Habitat.  E. Mexico, hot, damp woods, forests; cultivated in tropics.
    Syn.  Vanilla Aromatica, Vaniglia; Fr. Vanille, Vanilline; Ger. Fructus (Siliqua)  Vanillae, Vanillin.
    Va-nil'la.  L. fr. Sp. vainilla, formerly vaynilla, dim. of vaina (vayna), scabbard, sheath,  pod, lit. "little pod" -- i.e., pod resembling the sheath of a knife.
    Pla-ni-fo'li-a.  L. planus, flat, + folium, leaf, flat-leaved -- i.e., leaves plain or flat,  without prominent veins.
    PLANT. -- Succulent, dark green, epiphytic, terrestrial or parasitic, perennial climber; stem long, 1-2 Cm. (2/5-4/5') thick, smooth, much branched, nodes with aerial roots and rootlets, 12.5-15 Cm. (5-6') long, for clinging to trees, frame-work, etc., leaves 10-15 Cm. (4-6') long, oval, tough, fleshy, veinless, dark green, paler beneath; flowers 5 Cm. (2') broad, pale yellowish-green, loose axillary racemes of 8-10.  Fruit (pod).  Vanilla, Vanilla Bean, N.F. -- The cured full-grown, unripe fruit, preserved in a cool place where it will not become brittle, when it should not be used.  It is linear, flattened, tapering, 12-35 Cm. (5-14') long, 5-9 Mm. (1/5-1/3') broad, in clusters of 3-15, flat circular scar at summit, curved (hooked) at base.  (Tahiti variety--middle broad, tapering similarly towards either end), blackish-brown, longitudinally wrinkled, moist-glossy, occasionally with efflorescence of vanillin acicular crystals, and 3-divided near tip; frequently cork patches; flexible, tough, 1-celled, blackish-brown pulp and many triangular, reticulate seed, .25-.30 Mm. (1/100-1/75') broad; odor and taste characteristic, very agreeable.  Test: 1. Efflorescent crystal on slide, + 1 drop of phloroglucinol T.S. and hydrochloric acid -- carmine-red (dist. from benzoic acid); solvent: 75 p.c. alcohol.  Dose, gr. 5-30 (.3-2 Gm.).
    Commercial: Plant mostly cultivated, since 1850, from cuttings, sometimes seed, in Papantla, Misantla, Vera Cruz, Oaxaca provinces, where moisture is abundant and temperature never below 18 degrees C. (65 debrees F.); it climbs by rhizoids (non-absorbing roots), pollinates by insects, hand; bears fruit 3d year, continues 30-40; fruit (cured, full-grown, unripe) develops in 2-3 months, but a longer time is required for maturing, and when collected (late autumn before quite ripe, as green begins disappearing into yellow, to avoid splitting) is placed in heaps, sheltered from sun and rain, to undergo partial fermentation and shriveling, then followed by the process of "sweating" -- exposure to sun or stove heat (60 degrees C.)' 140 degrees F.) until a fine chestnut-brown color is acquired, and the odorous principle, vanillin, has been developed from the normal coniferin (secreted by the internal hair-like fibrillae), which is converted by hydrolization into glucose and coniferic alcohol, then this latter by an oxydase into vanillin -- the object being to drive moisture out upon the surface and finally drying the latter; the process may be aided by the sweating-box, steaming, wrapping in blankets, etc.; they now are dried by a 2-months' exposure to the sun, then coated with oil (that which exudes, also cocoa and cashew nut), tied in small bundles of 50-75, wrapped in foil, and marketed; by insufficient drying, to retain weight, the interior of beans and wherever tied sometimes become moldy.  There are several varieties: 1, Mexican (Vera Cruz) best, but beans vary much in value; 2, Bourbon, from Isle of Reunion, resembles Mexican, but beans blacker, tapering portion shorter, less firm and fleshy, surface smooth, waxy, soon becoming coated with acicular crystals (frost); odor more like Tonka bean; 3, Mauritius (Seychelles), often sold as inferior Bourbon; beans only 15 Cm. (6') long, 6 Mm. (1/4') broad, pale color, smooth, not waxy, faint odor; 4, South American (Guadeloupe), resembles Mexican, but broader, flatter, often 12 Mm. (1/2') broad, reddish-brown, odor of fermented molasses, pulpy, resinous, few crystals on surface, beans often open and seed on the surface; 5, Tahiti, transplanted Mexican; beans 15 Cm. (6')long, 12 Mm. (1/2') broad, reddish-brown, heliotrope odor; 6, Java, mostly consumed in Holland, beans 10-15 Cm. (4-6') long, fine flavor of Mexican but odor much more powerful; 7, Vanillons (Brazilian -- V. Pompo'na), larger, thicker than S. American, inferior vanilla odor (heliotrope), used by perfumers, tobacconists; contains vanillin .5 p.c.  Beans also are imported from Honduras, Madagascar, Martinique, etc., while some occur on the market deprived by a solvent of vanillin, and others to which benzoic acid, etc., have been added; all may be purchased as "splits" and "cuts."
    CONSTITUENTS. -- FRUIT: Vanillin (Mexican 1.7 p.c., Bourbon 2 p.c., Java 2.75 p.c., in the 2 last associated with odorous oil), fixed oil 11 p.c., balsam, resin, sugar, mucilage, tannin, oxalic acid ash 4-6 p.c.
    Vanilllinum.  Vanillin. -- This is obtained (1) by crushing the pods (fruit) with sand, extracting with ether in a Soxhlet tube, shaking out ethereal extract with sodium sulphite solution, liberating vanillin from this by treating with sulphuric acid, expelling sulphurous acid generated, extracting with ether; (2) by slowly adding a concentrated solution of coniferin, C₁₆H₂₂O₈, from cambium sap of pines, to a warm solution of potassium dichromate in water and sulphuric acid, finally heating to boiling for 3 hours -- coniferin, by hydrolysis from action of acid, is converted into dextrose and coniferyl alcohol, and this latter oxidizes into vanillin and aldehyde: C₁₆H₂₂O₈ + H₂O = C₆H₁₂O₆ + C₁₀H₁₂O₃; C₁₀H₁₂O₃ + O = C₈H₈O₃ + C₂H₄O -- passing steam through mixture, or adding successive portions of ether, filtering, reclaiming ether, when vanillin crystallizes; (3) by boiling eugenol, C₁₀H₁₂O₂, with acetic anhydride, forming acetyl-isoeugenol, C₁₀H₁₁(C₂H₃O)O₃, which is oxidized with potassium dichromate into acetyl-vanillin -- the latter upon treating with potassium hydroxide solution and concentrating being converted into vanillin, which may be removed by acidulating filtrate with sulphuric acid and shaking out with ether; this method, owing to economic reasons, is used chiefly.  It is in fine, white, slightly yellowish, needle-like crystals, odor and taste of vanilla, 400 times stronger than the pod, soluble in alcohol, chloroform, ether, glycerin (20), water (100), hot water (16), aqueous solutions of alkali hydroxides, from which it is precipitated by acids; melts at 81 degrees C. (178 degrees F.); incinerate -- ash .05 p.c.; aqueous solution acid, optically inactive.  Tests: 1. Aqueous solution with ferric chloride T.S. -- blue color, changed to brown on boiling, and on cooling -- white precipitate (dihydrodivanillin).  2. Shake ethereal solution with saturated aqueous solution of sodium bisulphite, add sulphuric acid -- vanillin precipitated.   3. Cold aqueous solution with lead acetate T.S. -- white precipitate (lead compound of vanillin), soluble in hot water.  4. Warm .1 Gm. with concentrated alcoholic solution of sodium hydroxide, + a drop of chloroform, warm -- no odor of phenylisocyanide (abs. of acetanilid).  Impurities: Acetanilid, benzoic acid, boric acid, terpin hydrate, coumarin, 50-90 p.c.  Should be kept dark, in well-closed containers.  Dose, gr. 1/6-1/2 (.01-.03 Gm.).
    PREPARATIONS. -- 1.  FRUIT: 1. Tinctura Vanillae, N.F., 10 p.c. + sucrose 20 (1st menstruum alcohol, 2d diluted alcohol): Preps.: 1. Elixir Ammonii Valeratis, N.F., 1.6 p.c.  2. Emulsum Olei Ricini, N.F., 2.5 p.c.  3. Syrupus Bromidorum, N.F., 3.2 p.c.  4. Syrupus Cacao, N.F., 1/5 p.c.  5. Tabellae Santonini, N.F., 1/4 m.  6. Tabellae Santonini Compositae, N.F., 1/4 m.  II.  VANILLIN: 1. Spiritus Vanillini Compositus, N.F., 20 p.c.: Prep.: 1. Elixir Vanillini Compositum, N.F.,  20 p.c.  2. Elixir Amygdalae Compositum, N.F., 1/10 p.c.  3. Liquor Ferri Peptonati, N.F., 1/500 p.c.  4. Liquor Ferri Peptonati et Mangani, N.F., 1/500 p.c.  5. Oleum Ricini Aromaticum, N.F., 1/10 p.c.
    PROPERTIES. -- Carminative, stimulant, aphrodisiac, antihysteric, irritant.  Those working in it have itching hands, face, neck (the skin being covered with pruriginous eruptions), dizziness, weariness, muscular pains; eruptions due to an acarus which does not enter the skin.
    USES. -- The Spanish conquerors found vanilla in use in Mexico for flavoring chocolate, etc., and while now recommended for hysteria, it is employed chiefly as a flavoring agent, being the most general of all substances; large quantities may produce poisonous symptoms.  Vanilla Pompo'na, Guadeloupe variety, V. Gardne'ri, Brazilian and Bahia, V. odora'ta, V. phaen'tha, Jamaica, Trinidad -- used similarly.
 
 

    Veratrum viride,  Aiton.  The dried rhizome and roots, with not more than 5 p.c. stems or other foreign organic matter, yielding not more than 4 p.c. acid-insoluble ash.
    Habitat.  N. America, Canada to Georgia, in rich, wet woods, swamps.
    Syn.  Verat.  Vir., Green Hellebore, American Hellebore, American White Hellebore,  Swamp or False Veratrum (Hellebore), Devil's Bite, Duckretter, Bugbane, Bugwort,  Earth Gall, Indian Poke (their ordeal poison).  Tickle (Itch) Weed (to bare-legged boys);  Veratri Viridis Rhizoma; Fr. Veratre vert; Ger. Gruner Germer.
    Ve-ra'trum.  L. vere, truly, + ater, black, dark -- i.e., the color of the roots of some  species.
    Vir'i-de.  L. viridis, green -- i.e., flowers are greenish.
    PLANT. -- Large, luxuriant, perennial herb; stem annual .6-2 M. (2-7 degrees) high, stout, cylindrical, solid, nearly smooth, pale green, unbranched except in the inflorescence; leaves 12.5-20 Cm. (5-8') long, oblong, acuminate, sheathing the stem, plaited, nerved, pubescent; flowers May-July, many polygamous, nearly sessile, greenish-yellow, racemes with downy peduncles, sepals petaloid; fruit of 3 nearly distinct follicles 2.5 Cm. (1') long, pericarp dry, brown, ventral dehiscence; seed flat, about 12 in each carpel.  RHIZOME, upright, obconical, usually cut longitudinally into 2-4 pieces, 2-7 Cm. (4/5-3') long, 1.5-3 Cm. (3/5-1 1/5') thick, brownish, frequently numerous thin leaf-bases closely arranged at the summit, otherwise rough, wrinkled, somewhat annulate from scars of bud-scales; inodorous; taste bitter, acrid.  Roots numerous, nearly cylindrical, 3-8 Cm. (1 1/5-3') long, 1- 4 Mm. (1/25-1/6') thick, usually brittle, whitish, more or less starchy.  POWDER, grayish-brown -- strongly sternutatory, numerous starch grains .003-.02 Mm. (1/8325-1/1250') broad, raphides of calcium oxalate, tracheae scalariform or reticulate, often with lemon-yellow contents, lignified porous fibers; few reddish-brown cork fragments.  Solvent: alcohol.  Dose, gr. 1-4 (.06-.26 Gm.).
    ADULTERATIONS. -- Rhizome of allied plants, also those of Spathyema (Symplocarpus) foetida.
    Commercial. -- Rhizome is collected chiefly in autumn, sometimes just before flowering, washed, dried, entire or sliced, and, owing  to likely deterioration, should not be kept more than a year.  Fresh leaves in contact with the skin often produce itching, and when carelessly gathered and cooked, as spinach, in place of marsh marigold (cowslip--Cal'tha palus'tris), cause very serious results.
    CONSTITUENTS. -- Protoveratrine .03 p.c., Jervine .1 p.c., Rubijervine .005 p.c., Pseudojervine, Protoveratridine (decomposition product), Cevadine, veratramarin (bitter glucoside), jervic acid, fat, resin, gum, starch; veratroidine  no longer considered an alkaloid, but a mixture of amorphous bases.
    Protroveratrine, C₃₂H₅₁O₁₁N. -- Most important; white shining crystals, soluble in chloroform, hot alcohol; solution greenish with H₂SO₄, changing to blue, violet.
    Jervine, C₂₆H₃₇O₃N. -- Most abundant; white crystals, tasteless, non-sternutatory, slightly toxic, soluble in alcohol, acetone, chloroform.
    Rubijervine, C₂₆H₄₃O₂N.H₂O. -- White prisms, distinguished from jervine by the ready solubility of its nitrate and sulphate; almost inert.
    Pseudojervine, C₂₉H₄₃O₇N. -- White crystals, soluble in alcohol; almost inert.
    PREPARATIONS. -- 1. Tinctura Veratri Viridis.  Tincture of Veratrum Viride.  (Syn., Tr. Verat. Vir., Tincture of Green (American) Hellebore; Fr. Teinture de Veratre vert; Ger. Grun Nieswurzeltinktur.)
    Manufacture: 10 p.c.  Moisten 10 Gm. with sufficient alcohol, transfer to percolator without pressing, let stand, well-covered, for 6 hours, pack firmly, add alcohol to saturate and cover, macerate for 24 hours, pack firmly, add alcohol to saturate and cover, macerate for 24 hours, percolate with alcohol q.s. 100 cc.  Dose, mij-10 (.13-.6 cc.).
    Unoff. Preps.: Extract, dose, gr. 1/8-1/4 (.008-.016 Gm.)  Fluidextract, dose, mj-4 (.06-.24 cc.).  Dr. Norwood's Tincture, 50 p.c., saturated, being the same strength as the U.S.P. tincture of 1870, dose, mv-8 (.3-.5 cc.)
    PROPERTIES. -- Sedative, emetic, diaphoretic, irritant, sternutatory, errhine.  This resembles aconite very closely in action, being a cardiac depressant and spinal paralyzant.  It diminishes the frequency and force of cardiac contractions, by depressing heart muscle, and stimulating inhibition (vagus), lowers arterial and blood-pressure, depresses spinal cord, causing muscular relaxation, induces cutaneous relaxation, hence free sweating; large doses produce rapid but very feeble pulse, cold, clammy skin, vomiting, debility, giddiness, impaired vision, partial unconsciousness; it is eliminated by the bowels.  Protoveratrine, the most active heart content, slows the pulse by its powerful stimulating influence upon the vagus nerve, while jervine, constituting more than one-half of the total alkaloids, plays an important part in lowering arterial tension by depressing powerfully the heart and vasomotor center; the so-called veratroidine depresses the cord, paralyzes respiration, and causes emetocatharsis, thereby often preventing fatal results.
    USES. -- To reduce arterial excitement, spinal spasms, pneumonia, cardiac diseases, typhoid fever.  Always given in the commencing or inflammatory stages, heart disease, nervous palpitation, puerperal and epileptiform convulsions, tetanus, chorea, mania-a-potu, diphtheria.
    Poisoning, Incompatibles, Synergists: Same as for aconite.
    Allied Plants:
    Veratrum al'bum, White Hellebore  (Veratrum). -- The rhizome, U.S.P. 1820-1870; Europe -- Alps, Pyrenees, Balkans.  Plant nearly identical with the official, slight variations being due possibly to climate and soil; constituents same in character and name, except there is no cevadine; the veratralbine of former writer is no longer considered an alkaloid, but a mixture of amorphous bases.  Properties and uses precisely as the official.
 

Verbascum

    Verbas'cum Thap'sus, Verbasci Folia, Mullein Leaves, Great Mullein, N.F. -- The dried leaves with not more than 2 p.c. of foreign organic matter, yielding not more than 4 p.c. of acid-insoluble ash; Europe, nat. in N. America -- growing in fields, waste places.  Stout woolly perennial, .3-1.3 M. (1-4 degrees) high; flowers, spike, yellow, 2.5-4 Cm. (1-1 3/5') broad, thick, tough (moist), brittle (dry), greenish-gray, densely long-tomentose, numerous non-glandular hairs; nearly odorless; taste mucilaginous, slightly bitter.  Powder, dark green -- numerous lignified hairs, glandular hairs, epidermal cells, stomata, chlorenchyma with fibro-vascular tissue; solvent: diluted alcohol; contains resin, tannin, volatile oil, mucilage, sugar, ash 14 p.c. Demulcent, pectoral, anodyne, nutritive; consumption, nasal catarrh, coughs -- smoked.  Dose, gr. 15-60 (1-4 Gm.); 1. Fluidexctractum Verbasci Foliorum (diluted alcohol), dose, mxv-60 (1-4 cc.); Infusion.
    V. phlomoi'des, or V. thapsifor'me, Clasping-leaved Mullein, Verbasci Flores, Mullein Flowers, N.F. -- The dried corollas with adhering stamens and not more than 2 p.c. of foreign organic matter -- flowers which have become brown should not be used.  Plants similar to preceding; stem .3-1.2 M. (1-4 degrees) high, usually simple; leaves oblong, crenate, woolly-tomentose; corolla light yellow, woolly, 14-30 Mm. (3/5-1 1/5') broad, rotate, 2-lipped, tube 1-2 Mm. (1/14-1/12') long and broad; stamens 5, didynamous, filaments thick, fleshy, pollen grains smooth; odor peculiar, agreeable; taste mucilaginous; with boiling water -- yellow, with dilute sulphuric acid -- green, becoming brown with alkali; solvents: water, diluted alcohol; contains volatile oil, resin, tannin, fixed oil, gum, glucoside, coloring, ash 6 p.c.  Diaphoretic, demulcent, diuretic, anodyne, resolvent, antispasmodic, emollient; bronchial affections.  Dose, 3j-2 (4-8 Gm.); 1. Species Pectorales, 10 p.c.   Fomentation, Infusion.
 

Verbena

    Verbe'na hasta'ta, Verbena, Blue Vervain. -- Verbenaceae.  The dried overground portion, collected when flowering;  N. America.  Perennial roughish, pubescent, 1-2.5 M. (3-7 degrees) high; in broken or cut pieces; stem stout, quadrangular, rough, pubescent; leaves opposite, 7-15 Cm. (3-6') long, lanceolate, acute, serrate, lobed, deep green, petiolate; flowers panicles, spikes; corolla salver-form, 5-lobed, bright blue, didynamous; fruit 4-seeded, 4 nutlets at maturity; odor heavy, taste bitter, astringent, disagreeable; contains bitter glucoside, tannin; solvent: water.  Diaphoretic, expectorant, nauseant, antiperiodic, similar to eupatorium.  Dose, gr. 15-30 (1-2 Gm.).  Fluidextract (dil. alc.); Infusion, 5 p.c.
 

Veronicastrum

    Veron'ica virgin'ica, Leptandra, Culver's Root, N.F. -- The dried rhizome and roots with not more than 5 p.c. of stem-bases or other foreign organic matter, yielding not more than 6 p.c. of acid-insoluble ash; N. America, low grounds.  Perennial herb, .6-2 M. (2-6 degrees) high, angular, smooth or downy; leaves lanceolate, serrate, 7.5-10 Cm. (3-4') long, whorls; flowers, spikes, whitish, tubular, stamens 2, exserted; fruit small, compressed capsule.  Rhizome, horizontal, nearly cylindrical, branched, 4-10 Cm. (1 3/5-4') long, 4-13 Mm. (1/6-1/2') thick, grayish-brown, annulate from circular scars of bud-scales, numerous stem-scars above, coarse roots on sides and beneath; fracture tough, woody, wood and bark thin, latter, resinous, pith large, more or less hollow; roots 1-10 Cm. (2/5-4') long, .5-2 Mm. (1/50-1/12') thick, with light brown central cylinder; odor characteristic; taste very bitter, acrid.  Powder, yellowish-brown -- numerous fragments with chloral hydrate T.S. -- pink or violet, starch grains, tracheae, wood-fibers, parenchyma with brownish resin often adherent to starch grains in the cells preventing separation of latter; solvents: 75 p.c. alcohol, water; contains (mostly in bark) leptandrin, resin 6 p.c., tannin, saponin, gum, volatile oil.  Emeto-cathartic, cholagogue, alterative, tonic; duodenal atony, chronic constipation with insufficiency of biliary and intestinal secretions; acts violently on some persons.  Dose, gr. 15-60 (1-4 Gm.); 1. Extractum Leptandrae (75 p.c. alcohol), dose, gr. 1-5 (.06-.3 Gm.); 2. Fluidextractum Leptandrae (75 p.c. alcohol), dose, mxv-60 (1-4 cc.).  Tincture, 3j-2 (4-8 cc.); leptandrin (similar to podophyllin), gr. 1-5 (.06-.3 Gm.).  V. officinal'is, Common Speedwell; Europe, N. America. -- Procumbent, pubescent, perennial, stem ascending, 7.5-25 Cm. (3-10') high; leaves obovate, petioled, 2-4 Cm. (4/5-1 3/5') long, serrate, grayish-green; flowers axillary racemes, wheel-shaped, 4-parted, pale blue corolla with dark blue stripes, 2 exserted stamens; contains bitter principle, tannin; plant used as alterative, diuretic (urinary, calculus disorders), diaphoretic, expectorant (skin diseases, scurvy); in infusion.  Dose, gr. 30-60 (2-4 Gm.).
 

Viburnum prunifolium

    Vibur'num prunifo'lium, Viburnum, Black Haw, N.F. -- The dried root-bark, with not more than 7 p.c. of wood or other foreign organic matter, yielding not more than 3 p.c. of acid-insoluble ash: United States, New York to Florida.  Handsome shrub, 3-6 M. (10-20 degrees) high; leaves 2.5-5 Cm. (1-2') long, 12-16 Mm. (1/2-2/3') broad, serrate' flowers white cymes; fruit oval, black drupe (berry), sweet, edible.  Bark, in irregular, transversely curved, quilled pieces, 1.5-6 Cm. (3/5-2 2/5') long, .5-1.5 Mm. (1/50-1/16') thick, grayish-brown, or, where outer cork has scaled off, brownish-red; wrinkled, inner surface reddish-brown, striate; fracture short, uneven; odor strong, sourish; taste distinctly bitter, somewhat astringent.  Powder, dark brown -- many stone cells, calcium oxalate rosette aggregates, prisms, lignified cork tissue, parenchyma cells, starch grains, few bast-fibers; solvent: 67 p.c. alcohol; contains viburnin, valeric acid, resin (brown, bitter) 2.5 p.c., tannin, sugar, salts, ash 8-9 p.c.  Diuretic, tonic, antispasmodic, nervine, astringent; in threatened abortion, nervous diseases of pregnancy, dysmenorrhea, menorrhagia, after-pains, asthma, hysteria.  Dose, 3ss-2 (2-8 Gm.); 1. Fluidextractum Viburni Prunifolii (67 p.c. alcohol): Prep.: 1. Elixir Viburni Prunifolii, 12.5 p.c., dose, 3j-2 (4-8 cc.).  Extract, gr. .3-10 (.2-.6 Gm.).  Decoction, 5 p.c., Infusion, 5 p.c., each, 3j-2 (30-60 cc.).
 

Viburnum opulus

    Viburnum Op'ulus, var. America'num, High Bush, Cranberry Bark, Cramp Bark, N.F.--The dried bark of the stem with not more than 5 p.c. of adhering wood or other foreign organic matter; United States, low grounds, north and west.  Handsome perennial shrub, 1.3-3.5 M. (4-12 degrees) high; stem smooth, branched; leaves 3-lobed, dentate; flowers cymes, large, greenish-white; fruit 12 Mm. (1/2') long, ovoid, red (substitute for cranberries).  Bark, in strips, 20-30 Cm. (8-12;) long, 12-18 Mm. (1/2-3/4') broad, .5-3 Mm. (1/50-1/8') thick, quills, chip-like fragments, light gray, brownish stripes and lenticels, fissured or thinly scaly, inner surface yellowish-brown, short oblique striae; fracture in 2 layers, short weak, whitish to brownish; odor slight, characteristic; taste mildly astringent, bitter.  Powder, light grayish-brown--cork cells, calcium oxalate rosettes, starch grains, parenchyma with amorphous substance, occasional tracheal fragments with wood-fibers, bast-fibers and stone cells; solvent: 67 p.c. alcohol; contains viburnin, valeric acid, resin 8 p.c., tannin, salts, ash 8-9 p.c.  Diuretic, tonic, antispasmodic, nervine, astringent, weaker than V. prunifolium; nervous conditions of pregnancy, abortive preventive, dysmenorrhea, menorrhagia, ovarian irritation, asthma, hysteria.  Dose, 3ss-2 (2-8 Gm.); 1. ,Fluidextractum Viburni Opuli dose, 3ss-2 (2-8 cc.): Preps.: 1. Elixir Viburni Opuli Compositum, 7.5 p.c., + fldext. of trillium 15, fldext. of aletris 7.5, dose, 3j-2 (4-8 cc.); 2. Elixir Aletridis Compositum, 3.275 p.c.; 3. Elixir Heloniadis Compositum, 3.2 p.c.  2. Tinctura Viburni Opuli Composita, 3.5 p.c., + dioscorea 3.5, scutellaria 1, clove 5, cinnamon 6.5; menstruum:  glycerin 7.5 cc., alcohol 75, water 17.5, finishing with 75 p.c. alcohol q.s. 100, dose, 3j-2 (4-8 cc.) -- substitute for Hayden's Viburnum Compound.  Decoction, Infusion, each, 5 p.c., 3j-2 (30-60 cc.).  V. obova'tum, Small Viburnum, Black Haw; S. United States; shrub 2.4 M. (8 degrees) high, fruit black, leaves broadly obovate, leathery, bitter, also used as antiperiodic.
 

Viola

    Vio'la tri'color, Pansy. -- Violaceae.  The flowering herb, U.S.P. 1880; Europe, N. America, cultivated.  Plant 10-30 Cm. (4-12') high, angular; leaves roundish, cordate; flowers variegated (yellow, whitish, blue, purplish); taste bitter; contains salicylic acid .1 p.c., bitter principle, resin.  Alterative, expectorant; large doses emetic, cathartic; skin diseases, scrofula, syphilis, bronchitis, nephritis.  Dose, gr. 15-60 (1-4 Gm.); in decoction, infusion, extract.  V. peda'ta, Bird's-foot or Blue Violet.  The herb and rhizome, U.S.P. 1820-1870; Europe, N. America.  Plant acaulescent; leaves 3-5-divided; flowers bluish; rhizome 25 Mm. (1') long, 18 Mm. (3/4') thick, bitter, acrid.  Used as the preceding.
 

Vitis

    Vi'tis vinif'era, Grape Vine. -- Vitaceae.  The fermented juice (white wine, red wine) of fresh fruit, U.S.P. 1820-1900; W. Asia, cultivated universally.  Climbing perennial shrub; stem woody, brownish, long, tortuous; leaves 5-10 Cm. (2-4') long, 5-lobed, roundish, cordate; flowers greenish; fruit ovoid berry, 12-25 Mm. (1/2-1') broad, pericarp thin, green, yellow, purple, red; pulp juicy, greenish, sweet, acidulous; seed few, pyriform; grapes contain sugar 12-30 p.c., potassium bitartrate, calcium tartrate, calcium phosphate, potassium sulphate, sodium chloride, tannic acid, malic acid, albumin, pectin, etc.; argol -- potassium bitartrate, tartaric acid.  1. Vinum Album, White Wine.  Obtained by fermenting for several weeks the juice of fresh grapes freed from seeds, stems, skins; contains 7-12 (8.5-15 vol.) p.c. of alcohol, and includes Sherry, Lisbon, Teneriffe, Madeira, Rhenish, Hock, Moselle, French, California, etc.  2. Vinum Rubrum, Red Wine.  Obtained by fermenting juice of fresh grapes in the presence of their skins; contains 7-12 (8.5-15 vol.) p.c. of alcohol, and includes Claret, Port, Burgundy, etc.  Stimulant, depressant, astringent, tonic, diaphoretic; fevers, general debility, irritable stomach, ulceration, gangrene, tetanus, old age.
 

    Vouacapoua Araroba, (Aquiar) Druce.  A mixture of neutral principles obtained from Goa Powder, a substance deposited in the wood of this plant.
    Habitat.  Brazil, Bahia; in damp forests.
    Syn.  Araroba or Arariba Tree, Po(h)de Bahia, Crude Chrysarobin; Chrysarob.; Fr.  Poudre de Goa, Chrysarobine; Ger. Goa Pulvre, Chrysarobin.
    Vou-a-ca-pou'a.  L. fr. Native C. American name (nomen caribaeum), voicapou.
    Ar-a-ro'ba.  L. fr. E. India name, ar(ar)oba, as applied to the bark.
    Chrys-ar-o-bi'num.  L. for Chry-sar' o-bin, fr. Gr...., gold, + ar(ar)oba.
    Go'a.  After Portuguese colony of Goa, on the Malabar coast of India, to which it was  imported from Bahia, in Brazil, 1852.
    PLANT. -- Large tree 24-30 M. (80-100 degrees) high; trunk smooth, spheroidal, head not very bushy; leaves paripinnate, with long petioles; flowers purple, paniculate racemes; wood yellow, with numerous longitudinal canals and many irregular transverse interspaces or lacunae in which the Goa Powder is found -- a result of decay or chemical changes in the cell-walls of the trunk-wood (medullary rays), being possibly an antiseptic preservative of the plant; yields much chrysophanic acid by oxidation.
    Commercial. -- Tree resembles the copaiba, and is called natively Angelim Amargoso; the oldest yield most powder, which is obtained by felling, splitting the tree, and then scraping the powder from the clefts, those doing this often suffering with irritated eyes and face; occurs as a light yellow powder when fresh, but brownish on exposure, slightly crystalline, rough, mixed with wood fibers, inodorous, bitter; 7 p.c. soluble in water, 80 p.c., in benzene, 50 p.c. in hot chloroform.
    CONSTITUENTS. -- GOA POWDER: Chrysarobin 65-85 p.c., gum 7 p.c., resin 2 p.c., bitter extractive 7 p.c, woody fiber 5 p.c., ash .3-3 p.c.
    Chrysarobinum.  Chrysarobin. -- Obtained by treating Goa Powder with hot benzene (hot chloroform), evaporating to dryness, powdering.  It is a brownish, orange-yellow, microcrystalline powder, tasteless, odorless, irritating mucous membrane, soluble in alcohol (385), chloroform (13), ether (160), benzene (30), carbon disulphide (180), solutions of fixed alkali hydroxides (red), slightly in water and boiling water--neutral; contains methyl chrysarobin in varying percentage, and is a reduced quinone.  Tests: 1. Dissolve in sulphuric acid -- deep red solution, which poured into water deposits chrysarobin unchanged.  2.  Incinerate -- ash .25 p.c.; shake 1 Gm. with potassium hydroxide T.S. (10) -- yellow, yellowish-red, deep red, due to absorbing oxygen from the air, producing chrysophanic acid -- C₃₀H₂₆O₇+ O₄  = 2C₁₅H₁₀O₄ + 3H₂O, or inversely -- 2C₁₅H₁₀O₄ + H₈ = C₃₀H₂₆O₇ + H₂O.  3. Mix .002 Gm. with 2 drops of fuming nitric acid -- red mixture, turning violet-red with a few drops of ammonia T.S. (dif. from chrysophanic acid -- yellow liquid).  Should be kept dark, in well-closed containers.  Dose, gr. 1/8 (.008 Gm.).
    PREPARATION. -- 1. Unguentum Chrysarobini.  Chrysarobin Ointment.  (Syn., Ung. Chrysarob.; Fr. Pommade de Chrysarobine; Ger. Chrysarobinsalbe.)
    Manufacture: 6 p.c.  Triturate chrysarobin 6 G. with hydrous wool fat 94 Gm. previously melted, heat on water-bath for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, strain (thereby removing about 1 p.c.), stir until congealed.
    PROPERTIES. -- Irritant, in doses of gr. 20 (1.3 Gm.) gastro-intestinal irritant, causing large watery, bilious stools, vomiting, nausea.  Externally--produces diffuse dermatitis, followed by follicular and furuncular inflammation; stains skin dark brown, removed by chlorinated lime.
    USES. -- Parasitic skin diseases of vegetable origin, ringworm, acne, favus, psoriasis, chronic eczema, hemorrhoids -- ointment; solution in water, vinegar, or chloroform -- allowed to dry then cover with collodion; suppositories, 1 gr. (.06 Gm.) -- hemorrhoids.
    Allied Compounds:
    1. Anthrarobin (Desoxyalizarin), C₁₄H₁₀O₃. -- Obtained from the coal-tar product alizarin by action of nascent hydrogen; it is a strong deoxidizing agent, miscible with fats, weaker, less irritating and toxic than chrysarobin, soluble in alcohol, glycerin.
    2. Hydroxylamine Hydrochloride, NH₂OHHCl. -- This does not stain the skin, hence is preferred often to the other reducing agents (chrysarobin, pyrogallol, anthrarobin, etc.) in skin diseases, but being a poison, care should be exercised not to allow too much to be absorbed by the system.