Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume V.djvu/704

 700 DATE PLUM DATURA melanoxylon and D. ebenaster, from which the East Indian ebony is obtained ; and D. ebenum, from which comes the Ceylon ebony. The ebony is only the core of the tree ; the outer wood is soft and light-colored. D. qucesita also has a very hard and beautiful ornamental wood, much used for cabinet purposes in Cey- Chinese Date Plum (Diospyros kaki). Ion, where the tree is found. The principal species of which the fruit is used are the D. Tcaki or Chinese date plum, whose fruit is about the size of a small apple, with a soft, plum-like pulp ; and the familiar D. Virgini- ana, so well known in America as the persim- mon. The fruit of the latter is small, yellow, and pulpy ; it has an exceedingly acrid flavor, Persimmon (Diospyros Virginians). and is only eatable when entirely ripe, or touched by frost. In the southern states per- simmons are used for a variety of purposes, and a kind of liquor is made from them. An in- fusion of the bark has been used as a febrifuge, and is said to be efficacious in cases of diar- rhoea. DATURA, a genus of rank, poisonous, narco- tic plants, of the order solanacece, having showy flowers, some of which possess fragrance as well as beauty. The word datura is said to be derived from the Arabic tatorah, which in- dicates the oriental origin of the herb. Two varieties of D. stramonium (known as thorn- apple, and also in some parts of this country as Jamestown weed) grow in the United States, one having a green stem and white flowers, the other a dark red stem and purple flowers. The latter is sometimes considered a distinct species (D. tatula). The leaves and seeds are officinal under the name stramonium. Their activity depends upon a crystallizable alkaloid called daturia, which closely resembles atropia and hyoscyamia chemically and physiologically. Stramonium gives rise to symptoms closely re- sembling those produced by belladonna and henbane, such as dryness of the throat, active delirium, usually of a whimsical and fantastic Datura stramonium. character, dilatation of the pupils, and a rapid pulse. Death may occur, with coma and convul- sions. Accidental poisoning, especially in chil- dren, is not very rare, the plant with its seeds being abundant about dwelling houses and waste places. The leaves and bruised roots, smoked like tobacco, are often efficient in relieving the paroxysms of spasmodic asthma. This practice was introduced into England from the East In- dies, where the D.ferox is used for this purpose. Ten to 30 grains of the leaves are sufficient for once smoking. They should be smoked with caution, and the practice discontinued if it pro- duces vertigo or dryness of the throat. Stra- monium is also used for the relief of spas- modic cough, neuralgia, and dysmenorrhoea ; and oculists employ it locally to produce dila- tation of the pupil. It is given in the form of the powdered leaves of the plant, of extract, and of tincture. The dose of the leaves is from 1 to 3 grs. ; of the extract, to gr. ; of the tincture, from 10 to 30 drops. The active