Abstract:
The term "quasia", as employed in the entomological and medical literature, may refer to either of two plants,
both members of the family Simaroubaceae. Quassia amara Linn. (Surinam quassia) is a small shrub
found in the West Indies and some South American tropical countries. The generic name of the plant is derived
from the name of a negro, Quassi, who in the middle of the eightennth centure acquired a reputation for
treating malignant fevers with an extract of the wood. This Surinam quassia is now largely replaced in use by
Jamaica quassia (Quassia excelsa Swartz), which is a taller tree (one hundred feet or more) occurring more
abundantly throughout the West Indies.
