CALAMUS (U. S. P.)—SWEET FLAG. History

Calamus grows in muddy places, in swamps and meadows, along streams and the borders of lakes, in nearly all parts of India and Central Asia (from whence it has spread to other parts of the globe), Southern Siberia, Japan, China, Europe, and North America. In Ceylon and Burmah it is cultivated to some extent. Persian and East Indian calamus is said to be of better quality than that of other parts of the world. In America it blooms from April to July. The rhizome should be gathered in early spring or in October and November, freed from dirt and its bitter rootlets, and dried quickly in a gently warmed room. The leaves also possess the aromatic properties of the rhizome, but to a lesser degree, and are not employed as a medicine. This drug and the calamus of Scripture are probably identical. Sweet flag has long been a popular remedy in India, where large quantities of it are yearly sold in the bazaars. According to Ainslie (1813), it is there considered so valuable in the bowel disorders of children that a penalty is incurred by any pharmacist who will not open his shop in the night to sell it when called upon to do so (Pharmacographia). The Hindus regard it as an emetic in large, and stimulant, tonic, and carminative in small doses, and employ it in stimulant doses in paralysis and other nervous disorders. The Mahometans use it internally in calculous troubles, and advise its use for teething children to bite upon. An infusion is considered in Ceylon as an efficient anthelmintic for children (Dr. Ondaatji, Col. Surg. of Ceylon). Evers found the decoction useful in diarrhœa and dysentery, and infantile bronchitis, and often used it personally for cold in the chest. Watts states that it is useful for distressing cough (Dymock, Mat. Med. Western India).