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AN 
 
 EXPERIMENTAL INQUIRY 
 
 INTO THE 
 
 BOTANICAL HISTORY, CHEMICAL PROPERTIES, 
 AND MEDICINAL VIRTUES, 
 
 or THE 
 OF 
 
 LINNiEUS- 
 
 SUBMITTED AS AN INAUGURAL ESSAY TO THE PUBLIC EXAMI" 
 
 NATION OF THE TRUSTEES AND PROFESSORS OF 
 
 THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS 
 
 IN THE STATE OF NEW-YORK. 
 
 SAMUEL BARD, M.D. President, 
 
 FOR THE 
 
 DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF MEDICINE, 
 
 ON THE 2d OF APRIL, 1821. 
 
 BY ELIJAH MEAD. 
 
 NEW-YORK: 
 
 PRINTED BY WILLIAM A. MKRCEIN- 
 
 JNo. 93, Gold-Strepf. 
 
 1821 
 
7, 
 
 H 
 
TO 
 
 ANSEL W. IVES, M.D. 
 
 Sir, 
 
 Having commenced and prosecu- 
 ted my medical education under your direc- 
 tion, permit me to dedicate to you this Essay 
 as a tribute of respect and gratitude for your 
 private friendship and professional instruc- 
 tion. 
 
 E. MEAD. 
 
TO 
 
 GIDEON BARSTOW, ESQ, 
 
 (SALEM, MASS.) 
 
 THIS 
 
 INAUGURAL DISSERTATION 
 
 IS 
 
 INSCRIBED 
 
 AS 
 
 A TESTIMONY OF RESPECT AND ESTEEM, 
 
 BY HIS 
 
 SINCERE FRIEND, 
 
 THE AUTHOR- 
 
imf&©& 
 
 The introduction of a new medicine into general use, is ne- 
 cessarily slow, as its reputation must be acquired and maintain 
 ed by the test of experience. Many remedies, which are now 
 universally regarded, as among the most estimable in the Materia 
 Medica, were doomed to serve in subordination, while the pro- 
 cess of practical experiment was demonstrating their efficacy, 
 and their claim to the character which they have obtained. 
 
 Many of our indigenous plants have of late received con- 
 siderable attention, and some have proved important acquisitions 
 to the resources of the physician ; others, which were no less 
 extolled for their virtues, have scarcely survived the eulogy of 
 their discoverers. In the present state of medical science, it is 
 to be expected, that whatever new may be offered on this sub- 
 ject, and however plausibly it may be urged, will be received 
 with little confidence, unless supported by authority that can- 
 not be questioned. But notwithstanding this professional scep- 
 ticism, the subject of this inquiry is one, which is confidently 
 believed will, ultimately, be regarded as a valuable auxiliary to 
 the astringents already in use. The plant possesses efficient 
 and valuable medicinal properties, and independent of the wri- 
 ter's feeble testimony, he is persuaded that it must sooner or later 
 excite general notice. It may be said, that our present cata. 
 logue of medicines is already sufficiently extensive, and that we 
 had better perfect our knowledge of those in present use, than 
 extend it to others, the virtues of which are yet to be investi- 
 gated. There are, benefits however, to be derived from having 
 several medicines, possessing very similar properties ; as a 
 slight modification of a disease requires a variation in prescrip- 
 tion : it is easy for instance, to determine when the condition of 
 the patient indicates the use of tonics; but discrimination is often 
 required to select the one, which shall be best adapted to the 
 nature of the disease. There is a great advantage in substitu- 
 ting articles of domestic origin, of equal utility, for those ob- 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 tained by importation ; I only need mention the evils which, in 
 the latter case, result from adulteration. From the richness of 
 our own country in the several departments of natural history* 
 and the zeal with which this science has of late years been pro- 
 secuted, we may indulge the hope, that we shall be, ere long, as 
 independent in our supplies in sickness, as we now are in health. 
 
 It will not be expected that my opportunities, during the 
 prosecution of my medical studies, could have been very exten- 
 sive in testing the efficacy of a new medicine in the cure of 
 diseases. In treating, therefore, of the medicinal powers of the 
 Spiraea Tomentosa, I shall give the experience and observations 
 of several gentlemen, who are among the most eminent in the 
 profession. Their kindness to me in this respect has been such, 
 that I wish thus publicly to return my most grateful acknow- 
 ledgments ; and I hope they will have the satisfaction not only 
 of conferring a favour upon an individual, but of rendering 
 through him, at the same time, an essential service to the pro- 
 fession. 
 
MS&BRVA'SniOE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 shpihr jb& is®mBSflf<$>®&< 
 
 '9 
 
 OF 
 
 LIJYJYjEUS. 
 
 BOTANICAL HISTORY. 
 
 The Genus Spircea has long attracted the attention of 
 botanists, for the number and beauty of its species. The 
 Genus is composed of woody and herbaceous plants, 
 consisting of many ornamental flowering shrubs, and florif- 
 erous herbaceous perennials, all of hardy temperament. 
 The several species are adorned with spear shaped, penna- 
 ted, tri-foliate, decompound leaves, and terminated by spikes 
 or clusters of pentapetalous flowers. — (Mawe's Univer. 
 Gard. and Bart,) 
 
 They are for the most part habitants of the colder re- 
 gions of the north of Europe, Ma, and America. Nut- 
 tall remarks, that this genus is almost equally divided be- 
 tween this country and Siberia. 
 
 The term Spirrea seems to have been borrowed from 
 Theophrastus, whose £*«p<wa is supposed to be one of the 
 species of this pretty genus. Most botanists, however, re* 
 
10 
 
 fer it to the Spiraton of Pliny, (from 2/t«^a, a rope,) these 
 
 hrubs being slender and flexible. Linnjeus described thir- 
 
 een species ; fourteen have since been added to the genus, 
 
 making twenty-seven, thirteen of which, as far as I have 
 
 been able to learn, are natives of America. 
 
 Moench proposed, some time since, to form seve- 
 ral of these species into a new genus, under the name of 
 Gallenia ; which genus has recently been adopted by Bar- 
 ton and Nuttall, who include two North American spe- 
 cies, viz. trifoliata and stipulacea. The propriety of this 
 arrangement, however, is questionable. 
 
 The species tomerUosa, which I have chosen as the sub- 
 ject of the following remarks, is a hardy perennial plant, pe- 
 culiar to this country. The beauty of its foliage and the ele- 
 gance of its flowers, attracted the notice of that distin- 
 guished Florist, P. Collinson, Esq. who, in 1736, intro- 
 duced it into England, where it is now cultivated in gar- 
 dens and pleasure grounds as an ornamental shrub.* 
 
 The Spiraea belongs to Class XII. Icosandria, and Order 
 IV. Pentagynia, of the sexual system of Linnjsus ; and to 
 the Natural Order Rosacea of Mon. Jussieu. The follow- 
 ing general character is given by Linnjeus. (Gen. p. 862.) 
 Cal. Perianthum monophyllum, semiquinquefidum, basi 
 
 planum ; laciniis acutis, persistens. 
 Cor. Petala quinque, — calyci inserta, oblonga, rotundata. 
 Stam. Filamenta viginti plura, filiformia, corolla breviora, 
 
 calyci inserta. Anthem subrotundse. 
 Pis. Germina quinque seu plura ; styli totidem filiformes, 
 
 longitudine staminum. Stigmata capitata. 
 Per. Capsular oblongas, acuminata?, compressag, bivalves. 
 Sem. Pauca, acuminata, parva. 
 
 The Spirasa tomentosa is found in abundance through- 
 out most parts of the United States^ Pursh speaks of this 
 species as growing in Canada, upon the Alleghany Moun- 
 tains, and from New-York to Carolina. The following is 
 
 * Likewise in the garden of the King of France, as marked in the Cata- 
 logue by Desfontaines. P. 206 
 
11 
 
 his amendment of Willdenow's specific description. — Fo- 
 His lanceolatis, in&qualiter serralis, suhtus tomentosis ; 
 racemo terminali, composito, confertifioro, fioribus b-gynis* 
 This plant is generally known through the country by some 
 one of the following names, viz. Steeple bush, Hardhack, 
 Downy Spiroza, or Scarlet Spircea. I have seen it in great 
 abundance in the low grounds of Massachusetts. It arises in 
 many thickly-set branches from the same root, and grows 
 to the height of from three to four feet. It flowers in 
 July and August, and often gives a scarlet hue to widely ex- 
 tended pastures. Dr. Bigelow speaks of it as very com- 
 mon in the environs of Boston, and known for having 
 the dried tops of the last year's fructification conspicuous 
 among its purple flowers ; the leaves nearly oval, thick and 
 tough, dark green above, whitish, downy underneath ; flow. 
 ers small, blue, inclining to purple, in long conical branches 
 on the ends of the stems. 
 
 Professor Ives, of Yale College, informs me that he has 
 often gathered it for medicinal use in the low grounds in 
 the vicinity of New-Haven. Dr. Torrey, of New- York, 
 tells me he has seen it at Weehawk, and found it more 
 abundantly in the low lands of New- Jersey. 
 
 The S. tomentosa is often found growing with the S. 
 salicifolia, to which it bears considerable resemblance. 
 The following distinction is given : the tomentosa differs 
 from the salicifolia, in having the leaves more deeply and 
 unequally serrate, tomenlose beneath ; the terminating 
 compound racemes closer and longer; the flowers of a 
 deeper red, and eight times smaller; the fruit villose. The 
 stalks are slender, and branch out near the ground ; they 
 have purple bark covered with a gray mealy down ; leaves 
 smaller than those of the salicifolia, downy and veined on 
 the under side, but of a dark green above. Branches ter- 
 minated by thick racemes of flowers, branched towards 
 ^he bottom into small spikes. — (Mart. Mill.) 
 
 CHEMICAL PROPERTIES. 
 Before I speak of the medicinal virtues of the Spirasa 
 
n 
 
 tomentosa, I sliall make a brief inquiry into its chemical 
 properties. In the following analysis, the experiments are 
 designedly restricted to those only which illustrate the 
 most important proximate principles of the plant, the bes^ 
 means by which its virtues may be procured, and the most 
 eligible forms in which it may be exhibited as a medicine* 
 
 Experiment I. 
 
 Four drachms of the roots, stems and leaves of the 
 plant, properly prepared, were severally boiled in eight 
 ounces of distilled water; after boiling to half the quan- 
 tity, the respective decoctions were strained,and the evapo- 
 ration completed in a sand bath. The roots yielded seven 
 grains of extract, which possessed considerable tenacity ; 
 1 t was of a dark purple colour inclining to red ; its taste was 
 pleasantly astringent and slightly aromatic. The extract 
 from the stems weighed eight grains, and only differed from 
 the last in being a little more astringent and less aromatic. 
 From the decoction prepared from the leaves, forty-eight 
 grains of a very pure and elegant extract were obtained. 
 When warm, this extract was so cohesive, that it could be 
 drawn out to the length of several feet ; when spread 
 into thin laminas, it transmitted a beautiful deep red light. 
 In this state it was easily moulded into pills : but when 
 cold, it was nearly as brittle as Kino, and more dense than 
 this substance, exposing, when fractured, brilliant, even sur- 
 faces. It was actively astringent, and considerably, though 
 pleasantly, bitter to the taste. 
 
 Experiment II. 
 
 Equal quantities of the bruised roots, chipped stems and 
 dried leaves, were separately digested six days in al- 
 cohol. The alcohol upon the roots and stalks imbibed 
 their colouring matter; that upon the former being slight- 
 ly discoloured, while that upon the latter was changed to 
 a light green, resembling in colour the woody fibres in the 
 
13 
 
 recent state ; otherwise, neither indicated any of the sen- 
 sible properties of the plant. 
 
 The alcohol in which the leaves were digested, 
 soon assumed a dark green colour, and a slightly astrin- 
 gent taste. By evaporation, it yielded an inconsiderable 
 quantity of extract, less pure than that obtained in the last 
 experiment. It was of a dark green colour, and of an un- 
 pleasant styptic taste. These alcoholic tinctures were not 
 rendered turbid, or changed by the admixture of water. 
 
 Experiment III. 
 
 A strong filtrated decoction of the leaves, prepared with 
 distilled water, was submitted to the following re-agents. 
 
 a When a solution of Animal Gelatin was gradually 
 added to a portion of the fluid, there ensued a copious ash 
 coloured precipitate ; which, after standing a few hours, 
 became dense, leaving the supernatant fluid transparent, 
 and almost colourless. 
 
 b With the Muriate of Tin, there was a dense, yellow 
 precipitate. 
 
 c When a solution of the Acetate of Lead was added, 
 there was a copious gelatinous precipitate. 
 
 d The Nitrate of Silver gave a curdy brown precipi- 
 tate. 
 
 e The Sulphate of Alumine caused a flocculent pre- 
 cipitate. 
 
 / A solution of the Salts of Iron changed the fluid to a 
 dark colour ; and after standing some time, there was a co- 
 pious dark green precipitate. 
 
 g With the Nitrate of Lime, a light brown precipitate. 
 
 h A delicate fawn-coloured precipitate was exhibited 
 by the Sulpuric and Muriatic Acids. 
 
 i No immediate change ensued by the addition of the 
 Carbonate, or the Siliciate of Potass. 
 
 7c Alcohol and Ether induced no change. 
 
 I No change by the Vegetable blues. 
 
24 
 
 Experiment IV, 
 
 Three drachms of the leaves of the Spiraea were infused 
 in six ounces of distilled water; this infusion was clear? 
 resembling in colour Madeira wine, and exhibited to the 
 taste the peculiar bitter and astringent properties of the 
 plant. It was subjected to the same series of re-agents? 
 as was the decoction in the last experiment, and with the 
 same results, except that the several changes induced were 
 less conspicuous. Three drachms of the infused leaves 
 yielded, by evaporation, eighteen grains of extract, which 
 was more bitter and less astringent than that obtained by 
 boiling. 
 
 Experiment V. 
 
 One drachm of the flowers and fruit of the Spiraea was 
 infused in three ounces of boiling water. — This infusion 
 was pleasant to the taste, resembling very much a strong 
 infusion of Bohea Tea, but its sensible properties were not 
 so peculiar as to indicate the presence of any medicinal 
 virtue, which does not exist in greater abundance in the 
 other parts of the plant : it was not thought necessary, there- 
 fore, to subject it to a series of chemical tests. 
 
 Experiment VI. 
 
 Three drachms of the leaves were boiled in six ounces 
 of pure water, until all the virtue was extracted, which is 
 yielded to that menstruum. The same leaves were then 
 infused in proof spirits, a little below the boiling tempera- 
 ture, for two hours : when filtrated the fluid showed the 
 presence of a small portion of colouring matter, but it indi- 
 cated no other sensible property of the plant. 
 
 Experiment VII. 
 
 The aqueous decoction of the last experiment was treated 
 with a solution of Animal Gelatin, until there ceased 
 
15 
 
 to be a precipitate ; after percolation, the fluid was nearly 
 colourless, and imparted but little astringency to the taste. 
 Half of this filtrated decoction was evaporated. It yielded 
 a dark-coloured extract, which only resembled that obtain- 
 ed in the first experiment, by being bitter to the taste. 
 
 The remaining portion of the fluid was subjected to the 
 following tests : 
 
 a The Muriate of Tin, which caused a yellowish pre- 
 cipitate. 
 
 b The Sulphate of Alumine gave a brown precipi- 
 tate. 
 
 c There was an immediate change to a dark colour, 
 by the Sulphate and the Muriate of Iron; and after stand, 
 ing some time, there was a copious dark precipitate. 
 
 d With a solution of the Acetate of Lead, no imme- 
 diate change was induced; but the fluid soon became thickly 
 interspersed with delicate yellow flakes. 
 
 e When the Nitrate of Silver was added, there en- 
 sued a flocculent fawn-coloured precipitate ; and after 
 standing, the supernatant liquor became darker than the 
 precipitate. 
 
 Inferences deduced from the foregoing Experiments, 
 
 I. From this experiment, we learn that every part of the 
 plant possesses medicinal properties, in a greater or less 
 degree, and that they are all readily yielded to water. 
 
 The roots afford a very pleasant extract, but in a smaller 
 proportion than either the stems or leaves ; the quantity 
 varying probably according to the season of the year in 
 which they are taken from the ground. 
 
 This extract seems to possess some advantage over that 
 from the other parts of the plant, inasmuch as it is a little 
 aromatic, and therefore better fitted for cases of great 
 irritability of the stomach; a symptom sometimes of no 
 small importance in the diseases of children in which as- 
 tringents are indicated. 
 
16 
 
 The extract from the stalks has no superiority over that 
 from the leaves, and as the quantity obtained from them 
 is comparatively small, this preparation is considered as un- 
 worthy of particular remark. 
 
 In the leaves were found, in great abundance, the most 
 active properties of the plant ; they yielded to a watery 
 decoction, a mild and pleasant bitter, and an active astrin- 
 gent. If the decoction be evaporated, these principles 
 are obtained in a solid extract, equal in weight to one-fifth 
 of the leaves in a dried state. 
 
 II. This experiment shows that the Spiraea yields its 
 virtues but sparingly to Alcohol. The admixture of water 
 with the several alcoholic tinctures, inducing no change, 
 proves the absence of any resinous principle. 
 
 III. The copious insoluble precipitate which took place, 
 in this experiment, on the addition of Animal Gelatin, (a) 
 demonstrates the presence of a large proportion of Tannin* 
 
 From the brown precipitate with the Nitrate of Silver, (d) 
 and the dark colour given by the Salts of Iron, (f) we in- 
 fer the presence of the Gallic Acid, which appears in a 
 combined state, as shown by the test /. 
 
 A considerable portion of the extractive principle re- 
 sides in the leaves, as indicated by the tests b and e. 
 
 This plant appears to afford no Gum or Mucilage ; other- 
 wise, they would have been pointed out by the tests i and k. 
 
 IV. It appears, from this experiment, that all the proxi- 
 mate principles of the Spiraea tomentosa are obtained by 
 simple watery infusion, as proved by the several re-agents ; 
 but though the comparative quantities of Tannin in the 
 infusion and decoction were not particularly noticed, the 
 probability is, that it is less in the former than in the 
 latter, for the extract from the infusion was obviously 
 more bitter and less astringent to the taste, than that pro- 
 cured from the decoction. 
 
 V. This experiment shows that the flowers and fruit are 
 only valuable in common with other parts of the plant. 
 
17 
 
 VI. All the virtues of the plant are yielded to water, 
 and therefore this is its proper menstruum. 
 
 VII. In this experiment we find, that after all the Tan- 
 nin is separated by animal gelatin, there remained a con- 
 siderable proportion of bitter extractive matter combined 
 with gallic acid. The former of these is indicated by the 
 tests a and b, and the latter clearly proved by c d and 
 e. It appears also from this experiment, that the astrin- 
 gent property of the plant resides principally in the Tan- 
 nin. 
 
 MEDICINAL VIRTUES. 
 
 The use of the Spirasa as a medicine, as far as I have 
 been able to extend my inquiries, is but little known, and 
 I believe no mention has been made of it as such by any 
 writer. It is surprising that a plant peculiar to our own 
 country, so abundant, and truly medicinal, should have 
 remained thus long unnoticed by most American practition- 
 ers. The particular history connected with its first intro- 
 duction into practice, I have not been able to learn ; its 
 use has been, I believe, principally confined to a small dis- 
 trict in Connecticut ; and for some years it has been pre- 
 scribed as a valuable medicine by the most respectable 
 physicians of New-Haven, Hartford, and Middletown. — 
 ProfessorlvES haslongconsidered itas one ofour most valua- 
 ble domestic remedies, and in many cases prefers it to others, 
 belonging to the same class. The high opinion which he 
 entertains of this article, is expressed in the following quo- 
 tation from his letter in answer to one in which I request- 
 ed a detail of cases ; " Singular as it may appear, I have no 
 cases, nor could my medical friends who are in the habit of 
 using this article, (the Spirasa tomentosa,) furnish me with 
 any. It would be as difficult for me to give cases of ^the 
 use of the Spiraea as of Catechu or Kino : — The general 
 indication of the article at this time only employs our at- 
 tention." 
 
 3 
 
18 
 
 On the subject of the early use of this plant, Dr. Tclly 
 of Middletown, remarks, " I have been in the habit of 
 using the Spiraea tomentosa more or less ever since I com- 
 menced the practice of Physic, which was in the year 1811. 
 I first learned its use from Drs. Cogswell and Strong, of 
 Hartford, who adopted it from its popular reputation. " 
 Every part of the S. tomentosa is medicinal, but the 
 leaves, as has been shown, are most worthy of notice. The 
 plant should be gathered about the third week in August, 
 during the vigour of its fructification. The leaves may be 
 preserved in a dried state, and used in decoction or infu- 
 sion, or an extract can be easily made by boiling any quan- 
 tity of them in water, and straining and evaporating the 
 liquor. The evaporation may be conducted by boiling 
 over a slow fire, or in a sand bath, till the liquor becomes a 
 little inspissated ; after which it is better to complete it in 
 the sun. 
 
 This extract undergoes no change from keeping, and is 
 generally the most eligible form for exhibition. The me- 
 dium doses of these preparations are from four to six grains 
 of the extract, repeated as the nature of the case may de- 
 mand; from one ounce to an ounce and an half of the strong 
 decoction, and of the infusion, which makes a pleasant tea, 
 the patient may drink ad libitum. 
 
 I have said that the S. tomentosa belongs to the class of 
 astringents, and from its sensible properties and its effects 
 upon the system, as well as from the foregoing analysis, it 
 has unquestionably high claims to that rank as a medicine. 
 Observation has not enabled me to define precisely the pe- 
 culiar virtues of this article, so that I shall not attempt to 
 point out every disease in which it may be advantageously 
 used ; but from the very respectable testimony which will be 
 introduced in addition to my own knowledge of its effects, 
 I have much confidence in commending it generally as an 
 active astringent, a mild tonic, and, in moderate doses, a me- 
 dicine that will seldom or never disagree with the stomach. — 
 
19 
 
 It will be perceived, therefore, that it maybe very properly 
 administered in some one of the following diseases, when 
 they are unconnected with symptoms of fever ; and that 
 it is particularly indicated in such forms of them, as are 
 accompanied with local or general debility. — The Spiraea 
 has been prescribed with much benefit in the secondary 
 stages of diarrhoea, and dysentery, in cholera infantum, 
 and other bowel complaints of children. The efficacy of 
 this remedy in some forms of these diseases, has been in- 
 creased by combining with it small portions of Ipecacuan- 
 ha. In diarrhoea originating in warm climates, the Spiraea 
 has been given with obvious and complete success. I can 
 speak of its efficacy in the case of a gentleman, who arri- 
 ved in our city during the last summer, after spending some 
 time in a southern climate. He was afflicted with a trouble- 
 some diarrhoea, notwithstanding the use of remedies or- 
 dinarily prescribed in such complaints. I directed him the 
 extract in doses of six grains ; under the operation of this 
 medicine, he was suddenly and permanently restored to 
 health. 
 " I have used," says Professor Ives, "with obvious benefit, 
 the extract of Spiraea in cases of diarrhoea originating in 
 hot climates, combined with opium, in doses of from two to 
 four grains. I have likewise used the entire plant in de- 
 coction, in cases of diarrhoea and dysentery. I have 
 more generally used the extract, it being a more conve- 
 nient form. To young children with cholera infantum, and 
 other bowel complaints, in which astringents are indica- 
 ted, I prefer the extract of Spiraea to other astringents, 
 giving it in solution in water. In slight cases of dysentery 
 without fever, this article has been used with success." 
 
 On the medicinal powers of the Spiraea, I have the follow- 
 ing from Dr. Tully. 
 
 " The cases in which I have found the greatest 
 benefit from Spiraea, are the chronic diarrhoea of seamen, 
 
20 
 
 which is contracted in tropical climates, or is the sequel of 
 some acute disease ; the secondary stages of diarrhoea and 
 dysentery of our own climate ; the secondary stages of 
 cholera infantum in children that have arrived at such an 
 age, as to be able to take a bulky medicine ; and likewise 
 in apthae and ulcuscula-oris. I have likewise used it with 
 occasional success in several diseases of the urinary or- 
 gans, such as Gravel and Hematuria. In bowel com- 
 plaints, as a general rule, I prefer the extract to the decoc- 
 tion. In these cases I have frequently given to an adult 
 two common sized pills every two hours, which I consider 
 a suitable quantity. The decoction I make as strong as 
 can be conveniently taken, and give from an ounce to two 
 ounces, with the same frequency ; but circumstances vary 
 the doses. As a general rule, it produces no operative 
 effects that prevent free use, or require great nicety of 
 weight or measure in its preparation or administration. 
 But after all I have more commonly used it as an adjuvant 
 to other means, than as a principal remedy. I am deci- 
 dedly of the opinion that its efficacy is greater in compari- 
 son with other articles of the same class, then the intensity 
 of its astringency would lead us to suppose. I have re- 
 marked this both in bowel complaints and in thrush, &c. 
 
 I have formerly been in the habit of using extract of 
 Spiraea to give consistency to pills of Acetate of Lead and 
 Opium, for Haemorrhages, under the idea that it increased 
 the efficacy of the compound." 
 
 As a local application, Dr. Ives of this city has used the 
 extract in solution in cases of gleet, fluor albus, fungous ul- 
 cers, &c. with decided benefit. In the former of these 
 diseases, I had a very fair opportunity to test its virtue as 
 an astringent in the case of a young man, who contracted 
 gonorrhoea for the first time. Previous to his calling upon 
 me, he had used the more common and popular remedies 
 for this disorder, without permanent benefit. There 
 
21 
 
 was considerable inflammation at the time I first saw him, 
 accompanied with chordee ; after these symptoms were in a 
 measure relieved, there still remained a very trouble- 
 some gleet. I then prescribed the aqueous solution of ex- 
 tract of Spiraea by injection; this was used four or five 
 times in twenty -four hours, gradually increasing its strength. 
 After the first day, the discharge was evidently diminished ; 
 in four days he was relieved from every unpleasant symp- 
 tom ; and in ten days he left the city, since which I have 
 not heard from him. 
 
 I gave some of the extract to a medical friend, who used 
 it successfully in two similar cases. In cases of obstinate and 
 debilitating discharges in puerperal women ; and in cases of 
 retained placentae, giving rise to alarming typhoid symp- 
 toms ; attended withj'colliquative diarrhoea ; and when 
 the stomach has become too irritable to retain other me- 
 dicines, the Spiraea has had the most happy effect, in com- 
 posing the stomach, in restraining preternatural evacua- 
 tions, and in giving healthy vigour to the lax state of the 
 bowels. In these cases its operation is certainly more 
 than astringent. — The two following] cases are interesting 
 illustrations of its efficacy. For the first I am indebted to 
 Dr. Ives of New-Haven, and to Dr. Wood of this city for 
 the second. 
 
 " I was called in consultation in a case of a female about 
 two months after parturition. The disease was not att end- 
 ed with much fever, but loss of tone of the stomach and 
 bowels. The evacuations were frequent. The common 
 astringents, (astringents were evidently indicated,) such as 
 Catechu, Kino, and other vegetable astringents, were used, 
 but all of them excited vomiting after a few doses had 
 been given. I recommended the extract of Spiraea in 
 doses of four grains, to be repeated four times in the day. 
 The diarrhoea was speedily checked, and the patient fast 
 recovering. The attending physician omitted the Spiraea, 
 and commenced the use of other astringents with no better 
 
2:2 
 
 success than at first. The extract of Spiraa was given 
 again, and others omitted. Under the use of this article 
 the patient was soon restored to health. From the botani- 
 cal affinities of the S. tomentosa, from its operation in 
 this and other cases, I was led to the conclusion, that in 
 addition to its astringent properties, it possesses the power 
 of a diaphoretic." 
 
 " I used," says Dr. Wood, " the extract of Spiraea in a case 
 of miscarriage, which took place about the thi rd month of preg- 
 nancy. The foetus was expelled without much pain,and the se- 
 cundines were retained from four to five weeks after. Fre- 
 quent hemorrhages took place during this time,which togeth- 
 er with the putrefaction of the placenta, so much exhausted 
 the patient as to bring on a diarrhoea, with other symptoms 
 of hectic. In order to restrain the discharge from the bowels, 
 different astringents were made use of. — The patients 
 stomach having become irritable, so as at times to reject 
 almost every thing. The exhibition of the Spiraea was 
 suggested by Dr. G. Smith, the physician in consultation. 
 The extract appeared evidently to check the discharges 
 from the bowels, and no unpleasant effects were produced 
 by the medicine. The distressing effects which opium 
 produced on this patient, precluded very much the use of 
 it. This circumstance rendered it more particularly desi- 
 rable to select some remedy, which might produce the de- 
 sired effect without deranging the stomach ; this was hap- 
 pily accomplished by the Spiraea in the form of pills." 
 
 This remedy will be found particularly valuable in cases 
 of diarrhoea supervening Typhus fever, and may be pre- 
 scribed in such graduated doses, as shall prevent the dis- 
 charge from exhausting the patient too much, without the 
 danger of improperly checking critical evacuations. It has 
 likewise removed this very unpleasant and debilitating 
 symptom in a case of Phthisis Pulmonalis, and thereby 
 
 evidently prolonged the lives of patients labouring under 
 this disease. I am indebted to the politeness of Dr. 
 
23 
 
 Stearns, one of the Trustees of this College, for the 
 following case, which is much in point upon this subject. 
 " The extractof S. tomentosa, with which you sup- 
 plied me, I used in a case of Diarrhoea from Phthisis 
 Pulmonalis; although I was not prepared to expect any 
 permanent benefit from any medicine in that case, I was 
 however perfectly satisfied with its efFects. It was a 
 case of extreme debility in the vascular system, unac- 
 companied by any symptoms of inflammation or fe- 
 brile action, with an universal torpor of the Liver and a 
 suppressed state of its secretions. By the previous use of 
 calomel and other medicines, the Liver had been excited 
 and the secretion of bile restored in such profusion, as to 
 stimulate the intestines into preternatural action. An ob- 
 stinate diarrhoea ensued, which ordinary remedies proved 
 insufficient to restrain. I then submitted the Spiraea. 
 Two pills of the extract were given every four hours. — In 
 four days the frequency of the discharges was considerably 
 diminished, and in a week they became regular and natu- 
 ral. The violent tendency to diarrhoea from this time was 
 evidently subdued, for though it not unfrequently recurred, 
 it was always immediately restrained. Although this did not 
 prevent the fatal termination of the Phthisis, the primary 
 disease, there is much reason to believe that it contributed 
 much to retard that event, and conduced to the comfort of 
 the patient,by removing a very troublesome and debilitating 
 symptom.'' 
 
 1 know not that the Spiraea has been much prescribed in 
 uterine haemorrhage, but from its analogy to other efficient 
 remedies in that complaint, and also from the testimony in 
 the following extract of a letter favoured me by Dr. Eaton 
 of Brookfield, Massachusetts, I am led to believe that it 
 will prove a valuable astringent in such troublesome and 
 often dangerous cases. 
 
 " 1 have used" says the Doctor, " the extract of Spiraea 
 with which you favoured me, in several cases, and arn 
 
24 
 
 pleased with its operation. I have prescribed it one case 
 of uterine haemorrhage successfully, after other remedies 
 had failed." 
 
 In further testimony of the medicinal virtues of this 
 article, I subjoin the following communication from Dr. 
 A. W. Ives, of New-York. 
 
 " I began to use the Spiraea tomentosa about two years 
 ago, since which I have had frequent occasion to prescribe 
 it as an astringent. From its sensible properties, I was led 
 to believe that the Spiraea possessed more virtues as a 
 tonic, than most vegetable astringents ; and this opinion was 
 soon strengthened by the exhibition of it to my own child, 
 in the early stage of Cholera, when there existed consider- 
 able febrile action. The symptoms of fever wereincreased T 
 and I imputed it to the operation of the Spiraea. Since 
 that I have prescribed it only in those forms of disease in 
 which tonics as well as astringents were indicated. Under 
 such circumstances, I have found it an efficient and valu- 
 able medicine, — indeed I know not that it has failed under 
 my direction in any instance of producing a salutary effect. 
 In a few instances, it appeared to be efficacious, when 
 the ordinary means had failed. These were cases of 
 chronic diarrhoea with general and local debility. A lady 
 who for years had been subject to frequent attacks of that 
 disease, was directed five grains of the extract of Spiraea 
 three times a day. She had previously taken, with but 
 little or no benefit, acids, alkalies, and astringents in various 
 forms, besides resorting frequently, for temporary relief, to 
 laudanum and other astringent injections. I was surprised 
 to learn that the disease was suspended by a few doses 
 of the extract ; and the lady informed me but a few days 
 since, that although it occasionally returned during the last 
 winter (which she spent in Georgia,) it was subject to an 
 immediate and complete controul by the Spiraea. 
 
 I have used this remedy uncombined with other medi- 
 cines sufficiently to convince me of its astringent and tonic 
 
powers, though in a few cases I have united it with ipecac- 
 uanha. As in diarrhoea, a dryness of the surface is gene- 
 rally an important feature of the disease, I am of opinion 
 that the foregoing combination, after suitable evacuations } 
 will be found one of the most eligible prescription in that 
 complaint. 
 
 I have never prescribed any preparations of the Spiraea 
 internally, but the solid extract. I have given from one to 
 five grains of it at a dose, according to the age of the pa- 
 tient. As a lotion, I have often used the extract in solu- 
 tion, and I think it one of the most convenient and efficient 
 which can be prepared from the vegetable kingdom. As an 
 application to ulcers with weak granulations of luxuriant 
 growth, and as an injection in Fluor Albus and gleet de- 
 pending on great relaxation, 1 have found it highly useful." 
 The medicines already in general use possessing proper- 
 ties the most analogous to that of the Spiraea, are Kino and 
 Catechu ; but the Spiraea must be regarded in many re- 
 spects, equal, if not superior, to either of them. It can be 
 procured at less expense ; an equal quantity of the extract 
 possesses more virtue as an astringent ; all its properties 
 are soluble in water. It is equally pleasant to the taste ; it 
 never disagrees with the stomach, and what is of still great- 
 er importance, it may always be obtained free from adulte- 
 ration. Whereas of the Catechu, it was justly remarked by 
 Dr. Cullen, " We never get it pure, and this should lead us 
 to endeavour to find for it a substitute of our own growth.'' 
 
 After the foregoing had been sent to the press, I was favoured with 
 an interesting communication from Dr. Mason F. Cogswell of Hart- 
 ford, Connecticut. It contains facts so important in connexion with 
 the subject of this Essay, and more particularly the circumstances in 
 relationto its first introduction,that I shall take the liberty of subjoining 
 it at length. 
 
 " I most cheerfully comply with your request respecting a medi- 
 cine, which I consider a valuable addition to the Materia Medica. 
 About 12 years since, I was called into a neighbouring town to con- 
 sult with one of my brethren, in a case of a lad 10 or 12 years of 
 age, who was sinking under an obstinate diarrhoea, the consequence of 
 a malignant dysentery. After examining the patient, we walked into 
 
26 
 
 the lots, the father accompanying us ; while conversing on the subject, 
 he plucked a branch of the Spiraa, which was then in blossom, and 
 inquired if we knew what it was ? He of course received a negative 
 answer, as neither of us had noticed it before ; on tasting it, its sensi- 
 ble qualities were such, as to induce me to propose the exhibition of it 
 to our patient ; my proposition was readily assented to, and he re- 
 covered without the aid of any other medicine. Pleased with its 
 effects in this case, I determined to give it a fair trial in other cases, as 
 soon as opportunities offered ; accordingly, I gathered a considerable 
 quantity, and very soon had an opportunity of testing its efficacy. In 
 the succeeding fall we had more of cholera infantum than usual. Dr. 
 Strong and myself used it freely, and on the whole, were better satis- 
 fied with its effect than with those of any other remedy we had ever 
 used. Dr. Strong made an extract from the leaves, which.by the way* 
 they yield abundantly, and to which he is partial, having used it much 
 more than I have. I have used it sufficiently, however, to be satisfied 
 with its efficacy. I gave a small quantity of it to Professor Ives, who 
 was much pleased with its use ; of this, however, he has probably in- 
 formed you himself. It was some time before I found what the plant 
 was ; and if Dr. Tully first learned its virtues from me, I was indebted 
 to him for its Botanical history. 
 
 The account which I received from Mr. Butler, the parent of the 
 patient, in whose case I first used it, was, that he had traced it to a 
 Mohegan Indian ; a source from whence most of our new medicines 
 are traditionally derived : you will, of course, attach to it as much 
 credit as it deserves. We have generally given it to children in the 
 form of a decoction, by boiling it in milk and water, and sweetening 
 it ; in this way it forms a fine balsamic astringent, which is very effi- 
 cacious* In chronic dirrahcea, especially in adults, the extract is sin- 
 gularly beneficial ; in short, I consider the plant in the various forms 
 in which it may be administered, as a very importantjaddition to our 
 class of indigenous astringent medicines." 
 
 EXPLANATION OF THE PLATE, 
 
 Figure I. 
 The plant reduced to one-fourth its natural size. 
 
 Figure II. 
 A single flower of the natural size. 
 
 Figure III. 
 The same magnified about 16 times. 
 
 Figure IV. 
 Germen and Styles magnified to the same size* 
 
 Figure V. 
 The five united capsules, do. do. 
 
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 
 
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