Turpeth.
Botanical name:
Turpethum
A plant of the bind-weed kind, native of the East Indies. It grows to twelve feet in length, but the stalk is slender and weak, and cannot support itself upright. The leaves are oblong, broad, and obtusely pointed. The flowers are white, and large; they very much resemble those of the common great bind-weed, and the seed-vessel is large and full of little seeds; the root is very long and slender.
The bark of the root is sent us dry. It is properly indeed the whole root, with the hard woody part taken out of its centre. It is kept by our druggists; it is a brisk purge given in a proper dose, but it is very rarely used at this time.
