pale-brown. The leaves, in Wight's figure, unsually large, says J. D. Hooker.
Uses :— The root is in esteem amongst the Hindus as a local and internal remedy in snake-bites (Ainslie). The root is also said to possess emetic and expectorant properties.
In the Concan, the dried and powdered leaf is used as an errhine (Dymock).
A curious circumstance connected with this plant was first noticed by Mr. Edgeworth ; namely, that if chewed, it destroys the power of the tongue to appreciate the state of sugar and all saccharine substances. In his own person he found that powdered sugar, taken immediately after masticating some of the leaves, appeared like so much sand in his mouth, and this effect lasted nearly twenty-four hours, when he recovered the power of distinguishing the taste of sugar (Pharm. Journ., vol. vii., p. 551).
Mr. Hooper repeated the above experiment and states that, after chewing one or two leaves, it was proved undoubtedly that sugar had no taste immediately afterwards. He also further discovered that the leaf had the valuable property of completely removing the bitter taste of sulphate of quinine after a good dose of the leaf, tasting like so much chalk.
Though of opinion that this property might prove of value in pharmacy for the purpose of destroying the taste of quinine, he writes, " I am not going to propose its use in the administration of nauseous drugs, until the properties of the gymnema have been more studied. Otherwise, the quantity of the vehicle taken may be proved to counteract the effect of the medicines."
The leaves contain no cyanogenetic glucoside. On igniting the air-dried leaves, 8.6 per cent of ash was obtained, which yielded the following results on analysis : CaO, 19.3 per cent. ; Fe2O3 and Al2O3 17.9 per cent. ; MgO, 2.7 per cent. ; the remainder consisted chiefly of alkali carbonates, with traces of manganese and silica.
On adding water to an alcoholic extract of the leaves, a soft, dark -green, resinous mass was obtained which contained formic and butyric acids and hentriacontane, melting at 68° and present in the leaves to the extent of about 0.05 per cent. When sulphuric acid was added to the filtrate from this
