BARK, Peruvian. A bark obtained from several trees belonging to the genus Cinchona, which grow spontaneously in many parts of South America, but more particularly of Peru. The trees somewhat resemble a cherry-tree in appearance, and have white or pink flcnvers. This valuable medicine was formerly called Jesuit's Bark, from having been introduced mto Europe by the members of that Order settled in South America. They were.instructed in its use by the natives of Peru, and it con tinued for many years a source of profit to the Order. Its botanical name was derived from that of the Countess del Chinchon, the lady of a Spanish viceroy, who had been cured by it The tree from which it is obtained grows abundantly in the forests of Quito and Peru, and the bark is cut by the natives in the months of September, October and November, during which alone the weather is free from rain. The bark is of three kinds— red, yellow and pale, of which the yellow and pale barks are the stronger in their febrifuge properties. The
crown-bark, as the highest-priced is termed, is of a pale yellowish-red. The pale is the origi nal Peruvian cinchona, and is produced by sev eral varieties of the Cinchona officinalis. The red is obtained from the C. succidubra, which grows chiefly in the forests of Ecuador around Chimborazo. The yellow sort is produced by the C. cahsaya, and grows in Bolivia and Peru.
The uses of the bark in medicine are too well known to need description; but the chem ical discoveries in relation to it are deserving of more particular mention. Its medicinal properties were found to depend upon the presence of a substance called quinine. This exists, more or less, in all kinds of Peruvian bark, but in quantities very unequal in the various kinds. See QuiNINE.