Pythagoras has distinguished this plant also into male and female,

the former having smaller leaves than the other, and of a grass-green

colour; the female plant, he says, has leaves of a larger size and

a more vivid hue. The same author, too, has considered rue to be

injurious to the eyes; but this is an error, for engravers and painters

are in the habit of eating it with bread, or else nasturtium, for the

benefit of the sight; wild goats, too, eat it for the sight, they say.

Many persons have dispersed films on the eyes by rubbing them with a

mixture of the juice of rue with Attic honey, or the milk of a woman

just delivered of a male child: the same result has been produced also

by touching the corners of the eyes with the pure juice of the plant.

Applied topically, with polenta, rue carries off defluxions of the

eyes; and, taken with wine, or applied topically with vinegar and rose

oil, it is a cure for head-ache. If, however, the pain attacks the

whole of the head,[1546] the rue should be applied with barley-meal

and vinegar. This plant has the effect also of dispelling crudities,

flatulency, and inveterate pains of the stomach; it opens the uterus,

too, and restores it when displaced; for which purpose it is applied as

a liniment, with honey, to the whole of the abdomen and chest. Mixed

with figs, and boiled down to one half, it is administered in wine for

dropsy; and it is taken in a similar manner for pains of the chest,

sides, and loins, as well as for coughs, asthma, and affections of the

lungs, liver, and kidneys, and for shivering fits. Persons about to

indulge in wine, take a decoction of the leaves, to prevent head-ache

and surfeit. Taken in food, too, it is wholesome, whether eaten raw or

boiled, or used as a confection; boiled with hyssop, and taken with

wine, it is good for gripings of the stomach. Employed in the same way,

it arrests internal hæmorrhage, and, applied to the nostrils, bleeding

at the nose: it is beneficial also to the teeth if rinsed with it. In

cases of ear-ache, this juice is injected into the ears, care being

taken to moderate the dose, as already stated, if wild rue is employed.

For hardness of hearing, too, and singing in the ears, it is similarly

employed in combination with oil of roses, or oil of laurel, or else

cummin and honey.

Juice of rue pounded in vinegar, is applied also to the temples and the

region of the brain in persons affected with phrenitis; some persons,

however, have added to this mixture wild thyme and laurel leaves,

rubbing the head and neck as well with the liniment. It has been given

in vinegar to lethargic patients to smell at, and a decoction of it is

administered for epilepsy, in doses of four cyathi, as also just before

the attacks in fever of intolerable chills. It is likewise given raw to

persons for shivering fits. Rue is a provocative[1547] of the urine to

bleeding even: it promotes the menstrual discharge, also, and brings

away the after-birth, as well as the dead fœtus even, according to

Hippocrates,[1548] if taken in sweet red wine. The same author, also,

recommends applications of it, as well as fumigations, for affections

of the uterus.

For cardiac diseases, Diocles prescribes applications of rue, in

combination with vinegar, honey, and barley-meal: and for the iliac

passion, he says that it should be mixed with meal, boiled in oil, and

spread upon the wool of a sheep’s fleece. Many persons recommend, for

purulent expectorations, two drachmæ of dried rue to one and a half of

sulphur; and, for spitting of blood, a decoction of three sprigs in

wine. It is given also in dysentery, with cheese, the rue being first

beaten up in wine; and it has been prescribed, pounded with bitumen, as

a potion for habitual shortness of breath. For persons suffering from

violent falls, three ounces of the seed is recommended. A pound of oil,

in which rue leaves have been boiled, added to one sextarius of wine,

forms a liniment for parts of the body which are frost-bitten. If rue

really is a diuretic, as Hippocrates[1549] thinks, it is a singular

thing that some persons should give it, as being an anti-diuretic, for

the suppression of incontinence of urine.

Applied topically, with honey and alum, it cures itch-scabs, and

leprous sores; and, in combination with nightshade and hogs’-lard, or

beef-suet, it is good for morphew, warts, scrofula, and maladies of a

similar nature. Used with vinegar and oil, or else white lead, it is

good for erysipelas; and, applied with vinegar, for carbuncles. Some

persons prescribe silphium also as an ingredient in the liniment;

but it is not employed by them for the cure of the pustules known

as epinyctis. Boiled rue is recommended, also, as a cataplasm for

swellings of the mamillæ, and, combined with wax, for eruptions of

pituitous matter.[1550] It is applied with tender sprigs of laurel,

in cases of defluxion of the testes; and it exercises so peculiar an

effect upon those organs, that old rue, it is said, employed in a

liniment, with axle-grease, is a cure for hernia. The seed pounded, and

applied with wax, is remedial also for broken limbs. The root of this

plant, applied topically, is a cure for effusion of blood in the eyes,

and, employed as a liniment, it removes scars or spots on all parts of

the body.

Among the other properties which are attributed to rue, it is a

singular fact, that, though it is universally agreed that it is hot

by nature, a bunch of it, boiled in rose-oil, with the addition of an

ounce of aloes, has the effect of checking the perspiration in those

who rub themselves with it; and that, used as an aliment, it impedes

the generative functions. Hence it is, that it is so often given in

cases of spermatorrhœa, and where persons are subject to lascivious

dreams. Every precaution should be taken by pregnant women to abstain

from rue as an article of diet, for I find it stated that it is

productive of fatal results to the fœtus.[1551]

Of all the plants that are grown, rue is the one that is most generally

employed for the maladies of cattle, whether arising from difficulty

of respiration, or from the stings of noxious creatures—in which cases

it is injected with wine into the nostrils—or whether they may happen

to have swallowed a horse-leech, under which circumstances it is

administered in vinegar. In all other maladies of cattle, the rue is

prepared just as for man in a similar case.

CHAP. 52. (14.)—WILD MINT: TWENTY REMEDIES.

Mentastrum, or wild mint,[1552] differs from the other kind in the

appearance of the leaves, which have the form of those of ocimum and

the colour of pennyroyal; for which reason, some persons, in fact,

give it the name of wild pennyroyal.[1553] The leaves of this plant,

chewed and applied topically, are a cure for elephantiasis; a discovery

which was accidentally made in the time of Pompeius Magnus, by a

person affected with this malady covering his face with the leaves for

the purpose of neutralizing the bad smell that arose therefrom. These

leaves are employed also as a liniment, and in drink, with a mixture

of salt, oil, and vinegar, for the stings of scorpions; and, in doses

of two drachmæ to two cyathi of wine, for those of scolopendræ and

serpents. A decoction, too, of the juice is given for the sting of the

scolopendra.[1554] Leaves of wild mint are kept, dried and reduced to

a fine powder, as a remedy for poisons of every description. Spread

on the ground or burnt, this plant has the effect of driving away

scorpions.

Taken in drink, wild mint carries off the lochia in females after

parturition; but, if taken before, it is fatal to the fœtus, It is

extremely efficacious in cases of rupture and convulsions, and, though

in a somewhat less degree, for orthopnœa,[1555] gripings of the bowels,

and cholera: it is good, too, as a topical application for lumbago and

gout. The juice of it is injected into the ears for worms breeding

there; it is taken also for jaundice, and is employed in liniments

for scrofulous sores. It prevents[1556] the recurrence of lascivious

dreams; and taken in vinegar, it expels tape-worm.[1557] For the cure

of porrigo, it is put in vinegar, and the head is washed with the

mixture in the sun.

CHAP. 53.—MINT: FORTY-ONE REMEDIES.

The very smell of mint[1558] reanimates the spirits, and its flavour

gives a remarkable zest to food: hence it is that it is so generally

an ingredient in our sauces. It has the effect of preventing milk

from turning sour, or curdling and thickening; hence it is that it

is so generally put into milk used for drinking, to prevent any

danger of persons being choked[1559] by it in a curdled state. It

is administered also for this purpose in water or honied wine. It is

generally thought, too, that it is in consequence of this property

that it impedes generation, by preventing the seminal fluids from

obtaining the requisite consistency. In males as well as females

it arrests bleeding, and it has the property, with the latter, of

suspending the menstrual discharge. Taken in water, with amylum,[1560]

it prevents looseness in cœliac complaints. Syriation employed this

plant for the cure of abscesses of the uterus, and, in doses of three

oboli, with honied wine, for diseases of the liver: he prescribed it

also, in pottage, for spitting of blood. It is an admirable remedy

for ulcerations of the head in children, and has the effect equally

of drying the trachea when too moist, and of bracing it when too dry.

Taken in honied wine and water, it carries off purulent phlegm.

The juice of mint is good for the voice when a person is about to

engage in a contest of eloquence, but only when taken just before. It

is employed also with milk as a gargle for swelling of the uvula, with

the addition of rue and coriander. With alum, too, it is good for the

tonsils of the throat, and, mixed with honey, for roughness of the

tongue. Employed by itself, it is a remedy for internal convulsions and

affections of the lungs. Taken with pomegranate juice, as Democrites

tells us, it arrests hiccup and vomiting. The juice of mint fresh

gathered, inhaled, is a remedy for affections of the nostrils. Beaten

up and taken in vinegar, mint is a cure for cholera, and for internal

fluxes of blood: applied externally, with polenta, it is remedial for

the iliac passion and tension of the mamillæ. It is applied, too, as a

liniment to the temples for head-ache; and it is taken internally, as

an antidote for the stings of scolopendræ, sea-scorpions, and serpents.

As a liniment it is applied also for defluxions of the eyes, and all

eruptions of the head, as well as maladies of the rectum.

Mint is an effectual preventive, too, of chafing of the skin, even if

held in the hand only. In combination with honied wine, it is employed

as an injection for the ears. It is said, too, that this plant will

cure affections of the spleen, if tasted in the garden nine days

consecutively, without plucking it, the person who bites it saying

at the same moment that he does so for the benefit of the spleen:

and that, if dried, and reduced to powder, a pinch of it with three

fingers taken in water, will cure stomach-ache.[1561] Sprinkled in this

form in drink, it is said to have the effect of expelling intestinal

worms.

CHAP. 54.—PENNYROYAL: TWENTY-FIVE REMEDIES.

Pennyroyal[1562] partakes with mint, in a very considerable degree, the

property[1563] of restoring consciousness in fainting fits; slips of

both plants being kept for the purpose in glass bottles[1564] filled

with vinegar. It is for this reason that Varro has declared that a

wreath of pennyroyal is more worthy to grace our chambers[1565] than

a chaplet of roses: indeed, it is said that, placed upon the head, it

materially alleviates head-ache.[1566] It is generally stated, too,

that the smell of it alone will protect the head against the injurious

effects of cold or heat, and that it acts as a preventive of thirst;

also, that persons exposed to the sun, if they carry a couple of sprigs

of pennyroyal behind the ears, will never be incommoded by the heat.

For various pains, too, it is employed topically, mixed with polenta

and vinegar.

The female[1567] plant is the more efficacious of the two; it has

a purple flower, that of the male being white. Taken in cold water

with salt and polenta it arrests nausea, as well as pains of the

chest and abdomen. Taken, too, in water, it prevents gnawing pains

of the stomach, and, with vinegar and polenta, it arrests vomiting.

In combination with salt and vinegar, and polenta, it loosens the

bowels. Taken with boiled honey and nitre, it is a cure for intestinal

complaints. Employed with wine it is a diuretic, and if the wine is

the produce of the Aminean[1568] grape, it has the additional effect

of dispersing calculi of the bladder and removing all internal pains.

Taken in conjunction with honey and vinegar, it modifies the menstrual

discharge, and brings away the after-birth, restores the uterus, when

displaced, to its natural position, and expels the dead[1569] fœtus.

The seed is given to persons to smell at, who have been suddenly struck

dumb, and is prescribed for epileptic patients in doses of one cyathus,

taken in vinegar. If water is found unwholesome for drinking, bruised

pennyroyal should be sprinkled in it; taken with wine it modifies

acridities[1570] of the body.

Mixed with salt, it is employed as a friction for the sinews, and

with honey and vinegar, in cases of opisthotony. Decoctions of it are

prescribed as a drink for persons stung by serpents; and, beaten up in

wine, it is employed for the stings of scorpions, that which grows in a

dry soil in particular. This plant is looked upon as efficacious also

for ulcerations of the mouth, and for coughs. The blossom of it, fresh

gathered, and burnt, kills fleas[1571] by its smell. Xenocrates, among

the other remedies which he mentions, says that in tertian fevers, a

sprig of pennyroyal, wrapped in wool, should be given to the patient to

smell at, just before the fit comes on, or else it should be put under

the bed-clothes and laid by the patient’s side.

CHAP. 55.—WILD PENNYROYAL: SEVENTEEN REMEDIES.

For all the purposes already mentioned, wild pennyroyal[1572] has

exactly the same properties, but in a still higher degree. It bears a

strong resemblance to wild marjoram,[1573] and has a smaller leaf than

the cultivated kind: by some persons it is known as “dictamnos.”[1574]

When browsed upon by sheep and goats, it makes them bleat, for which

reason, some of the Greeks, changing a single letter in its name, have

called it “blechon,”[1575] [instead of “glechon.”]

This plant is naturally so heating as to blister the parts of the body

to which it is applied. For a cough which results from a chill, it is

a good plan for the patient to rub himself with it before taking the

bath; it is similarly employed, too, in shivering fits, just before the

attacks come on, and for convulsions and gripings of the stomach. It is

also remarkably good for the gout.

To persons afflicted with spasms, this plant is administered in drink,

in combination with honey and salt; and it renders expectoration easy

in affections of the lungs.[1576] Taken with salt it is beneficial for

the spleen and bladder, and is curative of asthma and flatulency. A

decoction of it is equally as good as the juice: it restores the uterus

when displaced, and is prescribed for the sting of either the land or

the sea scolopendra, as well as the scorpion. It is particularly good,

too, for bites inflicted by a human being. The root of it, newly taken

up, is extremely efficacious for corroding ulcers, and in a dried state

tends to efface the deformities produced by scars.

CHAP. 56.—NEP: NINE REMEDIES.

Nep[1577] has also some affinity in its effects with pennyroyal. Boiled

down in water to one third, these plants dispel sudden chills: they

promote the menstrual discharge also in females, and allay excessive

heats in summer. Nep possesses certain virtues against the stings of

serpents; at the very smoke and smell of it they will instantly take

to flight, and persons who have to sleep in places where they are

apprehensive of them, will do well to place it beneath them. Bruised,

it is employed topically for lacrymal fistulas[1578] of the eye: fresh

gathered and mixed in vinegar with one third part of bread, it is

applied as a liniment for head-ache. The juice of it, injected into

the nostrils, with the head thrown back, arrests bleeding at the nose,

and the root has a similar effect. This last is employed also, with

myrtle-seed, in warm raisin wine, as a gargle for the cure of quinsy.

CHAP. 57.—CUMMIN: FORTY-EIGHT REMEDIES. WILD CUMMIN: TWENTY-SIX

REMEDIES.

Wild cummin is a remarkably slender plant, consisting of four or five

leaves indented like a saw; like the cultivated[1579] kind, it is much

employed in medicine, among the stomachic remedies more particularly.

Bruised and taken with bread, or else drunk in wine and water, it

dispels phlegm and flatulency, as well as gripings of the bowels and

pains in the intestines. Both varieties have the effect, however,

of producing paleness[1580] in those who drink these mixtures; at

all events, it is generally stated that the disciples of Porcius

Latro,[1581] so celebrated among the professors of eloquence, used to

employ this drink for the purpose of imitating the paleness which had

been contracted by their master, through the intensity of his studies:

and that Julius Vindex,[1582] in more recent times, that assertor of

our liberties against Nero, adopted this method of playing upon[1583]

those who were looking out for a place in his will. Applied in the form

of lozenges, or fresh with vinegar, cummin has the effect of arresting

bleeding at the nose, and used by itself, it is good for defluxions

of the eyes. Combined with honey, it is used also for swellings of the

eyes. With children of tender age, it is sufficient to apply it to

the abdomen. In cases of jaundice, it is administered in white wine,

immediately after taking the bath.

(15.) The cummin of Æthiopia,[1584] more particularly, is given in

vinegar and water, or else as an electuary with honey. It is thought,

too, that the cummin of Africa has the peculiar property of arresting

incontinence of urine. The cultivated plant is given, parched and

beaten up in vinegar, for affections of the liver, as also for vertigo.

Beaten up in sweet wine, it is taken in cases, also, where the urine

is too acrid; and for affections of the uterus, it is administered in

wine, the leaves of it being employed topically as well, in layers of

wool. Parched and beaten up with honey, it is used as an application

for swellings of the testes, or else with rose oil and wax.

For all the purposes above-mentioned, wild cummin[1585] is more

efficacious than cultivated; as also, in combination with oil, for the

stings of serpents, scorpions, and scolopendræ. A pinch of it with

three fingers, taken in wine, has the effect of arresting vomiting

and nausea; it is used, too, both as a drink and a liniment for the

colic, or else it is applied hot, in dossils of lint,[1586] to the

part affected, bandages being employed to keep it in its place. Taken

in wine, it dispels hysterical affections, the proportions being three

drachmæ of cummin to three cyathi of wine. It is used as an injection,

too, for the ears, when affected with tingling and singing, being mixed

for the purpose with veal suet or honey. For contusions, it is applied

as a liniment, with honey, raisins, and vinegar, and for dark freckles

on the skin with vinegar.

CHAP. 58.—AMMI: TEN REMEDIES.

There is another plant, which bears a very strong resemblance to

cummin, known to the Greeks as “ammi;”[1587] some persons are of

opinion, that it is the same as the Æthiopian cummin. Hippocrates gives

it[1588] the epithet of “royal;” no doubt, because he looks upon it

as possessed of greater virtues than Egyptian cummin. Many persons,

however, consider it to be of a totally different nature from cummin,

as it is so very much thinner, and of a much whiter colour. Still,

it is employed for just the same purposes as cummin, for we find it

used at Alexandria for putting under loaves of bread, and forming

an ingredient in various sauces. It has the effect of dispelling

flatulency and gripings of the bowels, and of promoting the secretion

of the urine and the menstrual discharge. It is employed, also, for

the cure of bruises, and to assuage defluxions of the eyes. Taken

in wine with linseed, in doses of two drachmæ, it is a cure for the

stings of scorpions; and, used with an equal proportion of myrrh, it is

particularly good for the bite of the cerastes.[1589]

Like cummin, too, it imparts paleness of complexion to those who drink

of it. Used as a fumigation, with raisins or with resin, it acts as a

purgative upon the uterus. It is said, too, that if women smell at this

plant during the sexual congress, the chances of conception will be

greatly promoted thereby.

CHAP. 59.—THE CAPPARIS OR CAPER: EIGHTEEN REMEDIES.

We have already spoken[1590] of the caper at sufficient length when

treating of the exotic plants. The caper which comes[1591] from beyond

sea should never be used; that of Italy[1592] is not so dangerous. It

is said, that persons who eat this plant daily, are never attacked by

paralysis or pains in the spleen. The root of it, pounded, removes

white eruptions of the skin, if rubbed with it in the sun. The

bark[1593] of the root, taken in wine, in doses of two drachmæ, is good

for affections of the spleen; the patient, however, must forego the

use of the bath. It is said, too, that in the course of thirty-five

days the whole of the spleen may be discharged under this treatment, by

urine and by stool. The caper is also taken in drink for lumbago and

paralysis; and the seed of it boiled, and beaten up in vinegar, or the

root chewed, has a soothing effect in tooth-ache. A decoction of it in

oil is employed, also, as an injection for ear-ache.

The leaves and the root, fresh out of the ground, mixed with honey, are

a cure for the ulcers known as phagedænic. In the same way, too, the

root disperses scrofulous swellings; and a decoction of it in water

removes imposthumes of the parotid glands, and worms. Beaten up and

mixed with barley-meal, it is applied topically for pains in the liver;

it is a cure, also, for diseases of the bladder. In combination with

oxymel, it is prescribed for tapeworm, and a decoction of it in vinegar

removes ulcerations of the mouth. It is generally agreed among writers

that the caper is prejudicial to the stomach.

CHAP. 60.—LIGUSTICUM, OR LOVAGE: FOUR REMEDIES.

Ligusticum,[1594] by some persons known as “panax,” is good for the

stomach, and is curative of convulsions and flatulency. There are

persons who give this plant the name of “cunila bubula;” but, as we

have already[1595] stated, they are in error in so doing.

CHAP. 61. (16.)—CUNILA BUBULA: FIVE REMEDIES.

In addition to garden cunila,[1596] there are numerous other varieties

of it employed in medicine. That known to us as “cunila bubula,” has a

very similar seed to that of pennyroyal. This seed, chewed and applied

topically, is good for wounds: the plaster, however, must not be taken

off till the fifth day. For the stings of serpents, this plant is taken

in wine, and the leaves of it are bruised and applied to the wound;

which is also rubbed with them as a friction. The tortoise,[1597] when

about to engage in combat with the serpent, employs this plant as a

preservative against the effects of its sting; some persons, for this

reason, have given it the name of “panacea.”[1598] It has the effect

also of dispersing tumours and maladies of the male organs, the leaves

being dried for the purpose, or else beaten up fresh and applied to the

part affected. For every purpose for which it is employed it combines

remarkably well with wine.

CHAP. 62.—CUNILA GALLINACEA, OR ORIGANUM: FIVE REMEDIES.

There is another variety, again, known to our people as “cunila

gallinacea,”[1599] and to the Greeks as Heracleotic origanum.[1600]

Beaten up with salt, this plant is good for the eyes; and it is a

remedy for cough and affections of the liver. Mixed with meal, and

taken as a broth, with oil and vinegar, it is good for pains in the

side, and the stings of serpents in particular.

CHAP. 63.—CUNILAGO: EIGHT REMEDIES.

There is a third species, also, known to the Greeks as “male cunila,”

and to us as “cunilago.”[1601] This plant has a fœtid smell, a ligneous

root, and a rough leaf. Of all the varieties of cunila, this one, it

is said, is possessed of the most active properties. If a handful of

it is thrown anywhere, all the beetles in the house, they say, will be

attracted to it; and, taken in vinegar and water, it is good for the

stings of scorpions more particularly. It is stated, also, that if a

person is rubbed with three leaves of it, steeped in oil, it will have

the effect of keeping all serpents at a distance.

CHAP. 64.—SOFT CUNILA: THREE REMEDIES. LIBANOTIS: THREE REMEDIES.

The variety, on the other hand, known as soft[1602] cunila, has a more

velvety leaf, and branches covered with thorns; when rubbed it has just

the smell of honey, and it adheres to the fingers when touched. There

is another kind, again, known to us as “libanotis,”[1603] a name which

it owes to the resemblance of its smell to that of frankincense. Both

of these plants, taken in wine or vinegar, are antidotes for the stings

of serpents. Beaten up in water, also, and sprinkled about a place,

they kill fleas.[1604]

CHAP. 65.—CULTIVATED CUNILA; THREE REMEDIES. MOUNTAIN CUNILA; SEVEN

REMEDIES.

Cultivated cunila[1605] has also its medicinal uses. The juice of

it, in combination with rose oil, is good for the ears; and the

plant itself is taken in drink, to counteract the effects of violent

blows.[1606]

A variety of this plant is the mountain cunila, similar to wild thyme

in appearance, and particularly efficacious for the stings of serpents.

This plant is diuretic, and promotes the lochial discharge: it aids

the digestion, too, in a marvellous degree. Both varieties have a

tendency to sharpen the appetite, even when persons are troubled

with indigestion, if taken fasting in drink: they are good, too, for

sprains, and, taken with barley-meal, and vinegar and water, they are

extremely useful for stings inflicted by wasps and insects of a similar

nature.

We shall have occasion to speak of other varieties of libanotis[1607]

in their appropriate places.

CHAP. 66. (17.)—PIPERITIS, OR SILIQUASTRUM: FIVE REMEDIES.

Piperitis,[1608] which we have already mentioned as being called

“siliquastrum,” is taken in drink for epilepsy. Castor[1609] used to

give a description of it to the following effect: “The stalk of it

is long and red, with the knots lying close together; the leaves are

similar to those of the laurel, and the seed is white and slender,

like pepper in taste.” He described it also as being beneficial to

the gums and teeth, imparting sweetness to the breath, and dispelling

flatulency.

CHAP. 67.—ORIGANUM, ONITIS, OR PRASION: SIX REMEDIES.

Origanum,[1610] which, as we have already stated, rivals cunila in

flavour, includes many varieties employed in medicine. Onitis,[1611] or

prasion,[1612] is the name given to one of these, which is not unlike

hyssop in appearance: it is employed more particularly, with warm

water, for gnawing pains at the stomach, and for indigestion. Taken in

white wine it is good for the stings of spiders and scorpions; and,

applied with vinegar and oil, in wool, it is a cure for sprains and

bruises.

CHAP. 68.—TRAGORIGANUM: NINE REMEDIES.

Tragoriganum[1613] bears a strong resemblance to wild thyme. It

is diuretic, disperses tumours, and taken in drink is extremely

efficacious in cases of poisoning by mistletoe and stings by serpents.

It is very good for acid eructations from the stomach, and for the

thoracic organs. It is given also for a cough, with honey, as well as

for pleurisy and peripneumony.

CHAP. 69.—THREE VARIETIES OF HERACLEOTIC ORIGANUM: THIRTY REMEDIES.

Heraclium,[1614] again, comprehends three varieties; the first,[1615]

which is the darkest, has broader leaves than the others, and is of a

glutinous nature; the second,[1616] which has leaves of a more slender

form, and not unlike sampsuchum[1617] in appearance, is by some persons

called “prasion,” in preference: the third[1618] is of an intermediate

nature between the other two, but is less efficacious for medicinal

purposes than either. But the best kind of all is that of Crete, for it

has a particularly agreeable smell; the next best being that of Smyrna,

which has even a more powerful odour than the last. The Heracleotic

origanum, however, known by the name of “onitis,” is the one that is

the most esteemed for taking in drink.

Origanum, in general, is employed for repelling serpents; and it is

given boiled to persons suffering from wounds. Taken in drink, it is

diuretic; and mixed with root of panax, it is given for the cure of

ruptures and convulsions. In combination with figs or hyssop, it is

prescribed for dropsical patients in doses of one acetabulum, being

reduced by boiling to one sixth. It is good also for the itch,[1619]

prurigo, and leprosy, taken just before the bath. The juice of it is

injected into the ears with milk; it being a cure, also, for affections

of the tonsils and the uvula, and for ulcers of the head. A decoction

of it, taken with the ashes in wine, neutralizes poison by opium or

gypsum.[1620] Taken in doses of one acetabulum, it relaxes the bowels.

It is applied as a liniment for bruises and for tooth-ache; and mixed

with honey and nitre, it imparts whiteness to the teeth. It has the

effect, also, of stopping bleeding at the nose.

A decoction of this plant, with barley-meal, is employed for

imposthumes of the parotid glands; and, beaten up with nut-galls and

honey, it is used for roughness of the trachea: the leaves of it, with

honey and salt, are good, too, for the spleen. Boiled with vinegar

and salt, and taken in small doses, it attenuates the phlegm, when

very thick and black; and beaten up with oil, it is injected into the

nostrils for jaundice. When persons are affected with lassitude, the

body is well rubbed with it, care being taken not to touch the abdomen.

Used with pitch, it is a cure for epinyctis, and, applied with a

roasted fig, it brings boils to a head. Employed with oil and vinegar,

and barley-meal, it is good for scrofulous swellings; and applied

topically in a fig, it is a cure for pains in the sides. Beaten up, and

applied with vinegar, it is employed as a liniment for bloody fluxes of

the generative organs, and it accelerates the lochial discharge after

child-birth.

CHAP. 70.—DITTANDER: THREE REMEDIES.

Dittander[1621] is generally considered to rank among the caustic

plants. It is owing to this property that it clears the skin of the

face, not, however, without excoriating it; though, at the same time,

the excoriations are easily healed by employing wax and rose oil.

It is owing to this property, too, that it always removes, without

difficulty, leprous sores and itch-scabs, as well as the scars left

by ulcers. It is said, that in cases of tooth-ache, if this plant is

attached to the arm on the suffering side, it will have the effect of

drawing the pain to it.

CHAP. 71.—GITH, OR MELANTHION: TWENTY-THREE REMEDIES.

Gith[1622] is by some Greek writers called “melanthion,”[1623] and by

others “melaspermon.”[1624] That is looked upon as the best which has

the most pungent odour and is the darkest in appearance. It is employed

as a remedy for wounds made by serpents and scorpions: I find that

for this purpose it is applied topically with vinegar and honey, and

that by burning it serpents are kept at a distance.[1625] It is taken,

also, in doses of one drachma for the bites of spiders. Beaten up, and

smelt at in a piece of linen cloth, it is a cure for running at the

nostrils; and, applied as a liniment with vinegar and injected into

the nostrils, it dispels head-ache. With oil of iris it is good for

defluxions and tumours of the eyes, and a decoction of it with vinegar

is a cure for tooth-ache. Beaten up and applied topically, or else

chewed, it is used for ulcers of the mouth, and combined with vinegar,

it is good for leprous sores and freckles on the skin. Taken in drink,

with the addition of nitre, it is good for hardness of breathing, and,

employed as a liniment, for indurations, tumours of long standing, and

suppurations. Taken several days in succession, it augments the milk in

women who are nursing.

The juice of this plant is collected[1626] in the same manner as that

of henbane; and, like it, if taken in too large doses, it acts as a

poison, a surprising fact, seeing that the seed is held in esteem as a

most agreeable seasoning for bread.[1627] The seed cleanses the eyes

also, acts as a diuretic, and promotes the menstrual discharge; and

not only this, but I find it stated also, that if thirty grains only

are attached to the body, in a linen cloth, it will have the effect of

accelerating the after-birth. It is stated, also, that beaten up in

urine, it is a cure for corns on the feet; and that when burnt it kills

gnats and flies with the smell.

CHAP. 72.—ANISE: SIXTY-ONE REMEDIES.

Anise,[1628] too, one of the comparatively small number of plants

that have been commended by Pythagoras, is taken in wine, either raw

or boiled, for the stings of scorpions. Both green and dried, it is

held in high repute, as an ingredient in all seasonings and sauces,

and we find it placed beneath the under-crust of bread.[1629] Put with

bitter-almonds into the cloth strainers[1630] for filtering wine, it

imparts an agreeable flavour to the wine: it has the effect, also, of

sweetening the breath, and removing all bad odours from the mouth, if

chewed in the morning with smyrnion[1631] and a little honey, the mouth

being then rinsed with wine.

This plant imparts a youthful look[1632] to the features; and if

suspended to the pillow, so as to be smelt by a person when asleep, it

will prevent all disagreeable dreams. It has the effect of promoting

the appetite, also—for this, too, has been made by luxury one of

the objects of art, ever since labour has ceased to stimulate it.

It is for these various reasons that it has received the name of

“anicetum,”[1633] given to it by some.

CHAP. 73.—WHERE THE BEST ANISE IS FOUND: VARIOUS REMEDIES DERIVED FROM

THIS PLANT.

The most esteemed anise is that of Crete, and, next to it, that of

Egypt. This plant is employed in seasonings to supply the place of

lovage; and the perfume of it, when burnt and inhaled, alleviates

headache. Evenor prescribes an application of the root, pounded, for

defluxions of the eyes; and Iollas employs it in a similar manner, in

combination with saffron and wine, or else beaten up by itself and

mixed with polenta, for violent defluxions and the extraction of such

objects as have got into the eyes: applied, too, as a liniment in

water, it arrests cancer of the nose. Mixed with hyssop and oxymel, and

employed as a gargle, it is a cure for quinsy; and, in combination with

rose oil, it is used as an injection for the ears. Parched anise purges

off phlegm from the chest, and, if taken with honey, it is better still.

For a cough, beat up fifty bitter almonds, shelled, in honey, with one

acetabulum of anise. Another very easy remedy, too, is to mix three

drachmæ of anise with two of poppies and some honey, a piece the size

of a bean being taken three times a-day. Its main excellence, however,

is as a carminative; hence it is that it is so good for flatulency of

the stomach, griping pains of the intestines, and cœliac affections. A

decoction of it, smelt at and drunk, arrests hiccup, and a decoction

of the leaves removes indigestion. A decoction of it with parsley, if

applied to the nostrils, will arrest sneezing. Taken in drink, anise

promotes sleep, disperses calculi of the bladder, arrests vomiting

and swelling of the viscera, and acts as an excellent pectoral for

affections of the chest, and of the diaphragm, where the body is

tightly laced. It is beneficial, also, to pour a decoction of it, in

oil, upon the head for head-ache.

It is generally thought that there is nothing in existence more

beneficial to the abdomen and intestines than anise; for which reason

it is given, parched, for dysentery and tenesmus. Some persons add

opium to these ingredients, and prescribe three pills a-day, the size

of a bean, with one cyathus of wine. Dieuches has employed the juice

of this plant for lumbago, and prescribes the seed of it, pounded with

mint, for dropsy and cœliac affections: Evenor recommends the root,

also, for affections of the kidneys. Dalion, the herbalist, employed

it, with parsley, as a cataplasm for women in labour, as also for pains

of the uterus; and, for women in labour, he prescribes a decoction of

anise and dill to be taken in drink. It is used as a liniment also

in cases of phrenitis, or else applied fresh gathered and mixed with

polenta; in which form it is used also for infants attacked with

epilepsy[1634] or convulsions. Pythagoras, indeed, assures us that

persons, so long as they hold this plant in the hand, will never be

attacked with epilepsy, for which reason, as much of it as possible

should be planted near the house; he says, too, that women who inhale

the odour of it have a more easy delivery, it being his advice also,

that, immediately after they are delivered, it should be given them to

drink, with a sprinkling of polenta.

Sosimenes employed this plant, in combination with vinegar, for all

kinds of indurations, and for lassitude he prescribes a decoction of it

in oil, with the addition of nitre. The same writer pledges his word to

all wayfarers, that, if they take aniseed in their drink, they will be

comparatively exempt from fatigue[1635] on their journey. Heraclides

prescribes a pinch of aniseed with three fingers, for inflations of

the stomach, to be taken with two oboli of castoreum[1636] in honied

wine; and he recommends a similar preparation for inflations of the

abdomen and intestines. In cases of orthopnœa, he recommends a pinch

of aniseed with three fingers, and the same quantity of henbane, to be

mixed in asses’-milk. It is the advice of many to those who are liable

to vomit,[1637] to take, at dinner, one acetabulum of aniseed and ten

laurel-leaves, the whole to be beaten up and drunk in water.

Anise, chewed and applied warm, or else taken with castoreum in oxymel,

allays suffocations of the uterus. It also dispels vertigo after

child-birth, taken with a pinch of cucumber seed in three fingers

and the same quantity of linseed, in three cyathi of white wine.

Tlepolemus has employed a pinch of aniseed and fennel in three fingers,

mixed with vinegar and one cyathus of honey, for the cure of quartan

fever. Applied topically with bitter almonds, aniseed is beneficial

for maladies of the joints. There are some persons who look upon it

as, by nature, an antidote to the venom of the asp. It is a diuretic,

assuages thirst, and acts as an aphrodisiac. Taken in wine, it promotes

a gentle perspiration, and it has the property of protecting cloth from

the ravages of moths. The more recently it has been gathered, and the

darker its colour, the greater are its virtues: still, however, it is

injurious to the stomach, except when suffering from flatulency.

CHAP. 74. (18.)—DILL: NINE REMEDIES.

Dill[1638] acts also as a carminative, allays gripings of the stomach,

and arrests looseness of the bowels. The roots of this plant are

applied topically in water, or else in wine, for defluxions of the

eyes. The seed of it, if smelt at while boiling, will arrest hiccup;

and, taken in water, it dispels indigestion. The ashes of it are a

remedy for swellings of the uvula; but the plant itself weakens the

eyesight and the generative powers.

CHAP 75.—SACOPENIUM, OR SAGAPENON: THIRTEEN REMEDIES.

The sacopenium which grows in Italy is totally different from that

which comes from beyond sea. This last, in fact, is similar to gum

ammoniac, and is known as “sagapenon.”[1639]

[1640]Sacopenium is good for pains of the sides and chest, for

convulsions, coughs of long standing, expectorations, and swellings of

the thoracic organs: it is a cure also for vertigo, palsy, opisthotony,

affections of the spleen and loins, and for shivering fits. For

suffocations of the uterus, this plant is given in vinegar to smell

at; in addition to which, it is sometimes administered in drink, or

employed as a friction with oil. It is a good antidote, also, for

medicaments of a noxious nature.

CHAP. 76.—THE WHITE POPPY: THREE REMEDIES. THE BLACK POPPY: EIGHT

REMEDIES. REMARKS ON SLEEP. OPIUM. REMARKS IN DISFAVOUR OF THE POTIONS

KNOWN AS “ANODYNES, FEBRIFUGES, DIGESTIVES, AND CŒLIACS.” IN WHAT WAY

THE JUICES OF THESE PLANTS ARE TO BE COLLECTED.

We have already[1641] stated that there are three varieties of the

cultivated poppy, and, on the same occasion, we promised to describe

the wild kinds. With reference to the cultivated varieties, the

calyx[1642] of the white[1643] poppy is pounded, and is taken in wine

as a soporific; the seed of it is a cure, also, for elephantiasis.

The black[1644] poppy acts as a soporific, by the juice which exudes

from incisions[1645] made in the stalk—at the time when the plant is

beginning to flower, Diagoras says; but when the blossom has gone off,

according to Iollas. This is done at the third[1646] hour, in a clear,

still, day, or, in other words, when the dew has thoroughly dried

upon the poppy. It is recommended to make the incision just beneath

the head and calyx of the plant; this being the only kind, in fact,

into the head of which the incision is made. This juice, like that

of any other plant, is received in wool;[1647] or else, if it is in

very minute quantities, it is scraped off with the thumb nail just

as it is from the lettuce, and so again on the following day, with

the portion that has since dried there. If obtained from the poppy

in sufficiently large quantities, this juice thickens, after which

it is kneaded out into lozenges, and dried in the shade. This juice

is possessed not only of certain soporific qualities, but, if taken

in too large quantities, is productive of sleep unto death even: the

name given to it is “opium.”[1648] It was in this way, we learn, that

the father of P. Licinius Cæcina, a man of Prætorian rank, put an end

to his life at Bavilum[1649] in Spain, an incurable malady having

rendered existence quite intolerable to him. Many other persons,

too, have ended their lives in a similar way. It is for this reason

that opium has been so strongly exclaimed against by Diagoras and

Erasistratus; for they have altogether condemned it as a deadly poison,

forbidding it to be used for infusions even, as being injurious to

the sight. Andreas says, in addition to this, that the only reason

why it does not cause instantaneous blindness, is the fact that they

adulterate it at Alexandria. In later times, however, the use of it

has not been disapproved of—witness the celebrated preparation known

as “diacodion.”[1650] Lozenges are also made of ground poppy-seed,

which are taken in milk as a soporific.[1651] The seed is employed,

too, with rose-oil for head-ache; and, in combination with that oil,

is injected into the ears for ear-ache. Mixed with woman’s milk, this

seed is used as a liniment for gout: the leaves, too, are employed in a

similar manner. Taken in vinegar, the seed is prescribed as a cure for

erysipelas and wounds.

For my own part, however, I do not approve of opium entering into the

composition of eye-salves,[1652] and still less of the preparations

from it known as febrifuges,[1653] digestives, and cœliacs: the black

poppy, however, is very generally prescribed, in wine, for cœliac

affections. All the cultivated[1654] poppies are larger than the

others, and the form of the head is round. In the wild poppy the head

is elongated and small, but it is possessed of more active[1655]

properties than the others in every respect. This head is often boiled,

and the decoction of it taken to promote sleep, the face being fomented

also with the water. The best poppies are grown in dry localities, and

where it seldom rains.

When the heads and leaves of the poppy are boiled together, the name

given to the decoction is “meconium;”[1656] it is much less powerful,

however, in its effects than opium.

The principal test[1657] of the purity of opium is the smell, which,

when genuine, is so penetrating as to be quite insupportable. The next

best test is that obtained by lighting it at a lamp; upon which it

ought to burn with a clear, brilliant flame, and to give out a strong

odour when extinguished; a thing that never happens when opium has been

drugged, for, in such case, it lights with the greatest difficulty,

and the flame repeatedly goes out. There is another way of testing

its genuineness, by water; for, if it is pure, it will float like a

thin cloud upon the surface, but, if adulterated, it will unite in the

form of blisters on the water. But the most surprising thing of all is

the fact, that the sun’s heat in summer furnishes a test; for, if the

drug is pure, it will sweat and gradually melt, till it has all the

appearance of the juice when fresh gathered.

Mnesides is of opinion that the best way of preserving opium is to mix

henbane seed with it; others, again, recommend that it should be kept

with beans.

CHAP. 77. (19.)—THE POPPY CALLED RHŒAS: TWO REMEDIES.

The poppy which we have[1658] spoken of under the names of “rhœas”

and the “erratic” poppy, forms an intermediate variety between the

cultivated and the wild poppy; for it grows in the fields, it is true,

but it is self-set nevertheless. Some persons eat[1659] it, calyx and

all, immediately after it is gathered. This plant is an extremely

powerful purgative: five heads of it, boiled in three semi-sextarii of

wine, and taken in drink, have the effect of producing sleep.

CHAP. 78.—THE WILD POPPY CALLED CERATITIS, GLAUCIUM, OR PARALIUM: SIX

REMEDIES.

There is one variety of wild poppy known as “ceratitis.”[1660] It is

of a black colour, a cubit in height, and has a thick root covered

with bark, with a head resembling a small bud, bent and pointed at

the end like a horn. The leaves of this plant are smaller and thinner

than those of the other wild poppies, and the seed, which is very

diminutive, is ripe at harvest. Taken with honied wine, in doses of

half an acetabulum, the seed acts as a purgative. The leaves, beaten up

in oil, are a cure for the white[1661] specks which form on the eyes of

beasts of burden. The root, boiled down to one half, in doses of one

acetabulum to two sextarii of water, is prescribed for maladies of the

loins and liver, and the leaves, employed with honey, are a cure for

carbuncles.

Some persons give this kind of poppy the name of “glaucion,” and

others of “paralium,”[1662] for it grows, in fact, in spots exposed to

exhalations from the sea, or else in soils of a nitrous nature.

CHAP. 79.—THE WILD POPPY CALLED HERACLIUM, OR APHRON: FOUR REMEDIES.

DIACODION.

There is another kind[1663] of wild poppy, known as “heraclion”

by some persons, and as “aphron” by others. The leaves of it, when

seen from a distance, have all the appearance of sparrows;[1664] the

root lies on the surface of the ground, and the seed has exactly the

colour of foam.[1665] This plant is used for the purpose of bleaching

linen[1666] cloths in summer. It is bruised in a mortar for epilepsy,

being given in white wine, in doses of one acetabulum, and acting as an

emetic.

This plant is extremely useful, also, for the composition of the

medicament known as “diacodion,”[1667] and “arteriace.” This

preparation is made with one hundred and twenty heads[1668] of this or

any other kind of wild poppy, steeped for two days in three sextarii of

rain water, after which they are boiled in it. You must then dry the

heads; which done, boil them down with honey to one half, at a slow

heat. More recently, there have been added to the mixture, six drachmæ

of saffron, hypocisthis,[1669] frankincense, and gum acacia, with one

sextarius of raisin wine of Crete. All this, however, is only so much

ostentation; for the virtue of this simple and ancient preparation

depends solely upon the poppy and the honey.

CHAP. 80.—THE POPPY CALLED TITHYMALON, OR PARALION: THREE REMEDIES.

There is a third kind, again, called “tithymalon;”[1670] some persons

give it the name of “mecon,” others of “paralion.” It has a white leaf,

resembling that of flax, and a head the size of a bean. It is gathered

when the vine is in blossom, and dried in the shade. The seed, taken in

drink, purges the bowels, the dose being half an acetabulum, in honied

wine. The head of every species of poppy, whether green or dry, used as

a fomentation, assuages defluxions[1671] of the eyes. Opium, if taken

in pure wine immediately after the sting of a scorpion, prevents any

dangerous results. Some persons, however, attribute this virtue to the

black poppy only, the head or leaves being beaten up for the purpose.

CHAP. 81. (20.)—PORCILLACA OR PURSLAIN, OTHERWISE CALLED PEPLIS:

TWENTY-FIVE REMEDIES.

There is a wild purslain,[1672] too, called “peplis,” not much superior

in its virtues to the cultivated[1673] kind, of which such remarkable

properties are mentioned. It neutralizes the effects, it is said, of

poisoned arrows, and the venom of the serpents known as hæmorrhois

and prester;[1674] taken with the food and applied to the wound, it

extracts the poison. The juice, too, they say, taken in raisin wine,

is an antidote for henbane. When the plant itself cannot be procured,

the seed of it is found to be equally efficacious. It is a corrective,

also, of impurities in water; and beaten up in wine and applied

topically, it is a cure for head-ache and ulcers of the head. Chewed in

combination with honey, it is curative of other kinds of sores. It is

similarly applied to the region of the brain in infants, and in cases

of umbilical hernia; as also for defluxions of the eyes, in persons of

all ages, being applied to the forehead and temples with polenta. If

employed as a liniment for the eyes, milk and honey are added, and when

used for proptosis[1675] of the eyes, the leaves are beaten up with

bean-shells. In combination with, polenta, salt, and vinegar, it is

employed as a fomentation for blisters.

Chewed raw, purslain reduces ulcerations of the mouth and gum-boils,

and cures tooth-ache; a decoction of it is good, too, for ulcers

of the tonsils. Some persons have added a little myrrh to it, when

so employed. Chewed, it strengthens such teeth as may happen to be

loose, dispels crudities, imparts additional strength to the voice,

and allays thirst. Used with nut-galls, linseed, and honey, in equal

proportions, it assuages pains in the neck; and, combined with honey

or Cimolian[1676] chalk, it is good for diseases of the mamillæ. The

seed of it, taken with honey, is beneficial for asthma. Eaten in

salads,[1677] this plant is very strengthening to the stomach. In

burning fevers, applications of it are made with polenta; in addition

to which, if chewed, it will cool and refresh the intestines. It

arrests vomiting, also, and for dysentery and abscesses, it is eaten

with vinegar, or else taken with cummin in drink: boiled, it is good

for tenesmus. Taken either in the food or drink, it is good for

epilepsy; and, taken in doses of one acetabulum in boiled wine,[1678]

it promotes the menstrual discharge. Employed, also, as a liniment with

salt, it is used as a remedy for fits of hot gout and erysipelas.

The juice of this plant, taken in drink, strengthens the kidneys

and bladder, and expels intestinal worms. In conjunction with oil,

it is applied, with polenta, to assuage the pain of wounds, and it

softens indurations of the sinews. Metrodorus, who wrote an Abridgment

of Botany,[1679] says that it should be given after delivery, to

accelerate the lochial discharge. It is also an antaphrodisiac, and

prevents the recurrence of lascivious dreams. One of the principal

personages of Spain, whose son has been Prætor, is in the habit of

carrying the root of it, to my knowledge, suspended by a string

from his neck, except when he is taking the bath, for an incurable

affection of the uvula; a precaution by which he has been spared all

inconvenience.

I have found it stated, too, in some authors, that if the head is

rubbed with a liniment of this plant, there will be no defluxions

perceptible the whole year through. It is generally thought, however,

that purslain weakens the sight.

CHAP. 82.—CORIANDER: TWENTY-ONE REMEDIES.

There is no wild coriander[1680] to be found; the best, it is generally

agreed, is that of Egypt. Taken in drink and applied to the wound, it

is a remedy for the sting[1681] of one kind of serpent, known as the

amphisbæna:[1682] pounded, it is healing also for other wounds, as well

as for epinyctis and blisters. Employed in the same state with honey

or raisins, it disperses all tumours and gatherings, and, beaten up in

vinegar, it removes abscesses of an inflammatory nature. Some persons

recommend three grains of it to be taken for tertian fevers, just

before the fit comes on, or else in larger quantities, to be bruised

and applied to the forehead. There are others, again, who think that it

is attended with excellent results, to put coriander under the pillow

before sunrise.

While green, it is possessed of very cooling and refreshing properties.

Combined with honey or raisins, it is an excellent remedy for spreading

ulcers, as also for diseases of the testes, burns, carbuncles, and

maladies of the ears. Applied with woman’s milk, it is good for

defluxions of the eyes; and for fluxes of the belly and intestines,

the seed is taken with water in drink; it is also taken in drink for

cholera, with rue. Coriander seed, used as a potion with pomegranate

juice and oil, expels worms in the intestines.

Xenocrates states a very marvellous fact, if true; he says, that if a

woman takes one grain of this seed, the menstrual discharge will be

retarded one day, if two grains, two days, and so on, according to the

number of grains taken. Marcus Varro is of opinion, that if coriander

is lightly pounded, and sprinkled over it with cummin and vinegar, all

kinds of meat may be kept in summer without spoiling.

CHAP. 83.—ORAGE: FOURTEEN REMEDIES.

Orage,[1683] again, is found both wild and cultivated. Pythagoras has

accused this plant of producing dropsy, jaundice, and paleness of the

complexion, and he says that it is extremely difficult of digestion.

He asserts, also, to its disparagement, that every thing that grows

near it in the garden is sure to be drooping and languid. Diocles and

Dionysius have added a statement, that it gives birth to numerous

diseases, and that it should never be boiled without changing the water

repeatedly; they say, too, that it is prejudicial to the stomach, and

that it is productive of freckles and pimples on the skin.

I am at a loss to imagine why Solo of Smyrna has stated that this plant

is cultivated in Italy with the greatest difficulty. Hippocrates[1684]

prescribes it with beet, as a pessary for affections of the uterus;

and Lycus of Neapolis recommends it to be taken in drink, in cases

of poisoning by cantharides. He is of opinion, also, that either

raw or boiled, it may be advantageously employed as a liniment for

inflammatory swellings, incipient boils, and all kinds of indurations;

and that, mixed with oxymel and nitre, it is good for erysipelas and

gout. This plant, it is said, will bring away mal-formed nails, without

producing sores. There are some persons who give orage-seed with honey

for jaundice, and rub the throat and tonsils with it, nitre being added

as well. They employ it, also, to purge the bowels, and use the seed,

boiled, as an emetic,[1685] either taken by itself, or in conjunction

with mallows or lentils.

Wild orage is used for dyeing the hair, as well as the other purposes

above enumerated.

CHAP. 84. (21.)—THE MALLOW CALLED MALOPE: THIRTEEN REMEDIES. THE MALLOW

CALLED MALACHE: ONE REMEDY. THE MALLOW CALLED ALTHÆA, OR PLISTOLOCHIA:

FIFTY-NINE REMEDIES.

Both kinds of mallows,[1686] on the other hand, the cultivated and the

wild, are held in very general esteem. These kinds are subdivided,

each of them, into two varieties, according to the size of the leaf.

The cultivated mallow with large leaves is known to the Greeks by the

name of “malope,”[1687] the other being called “malache,”[1688]—from

the circumstance, it is generally thought, that it relaxes[1689] the

bowels. The wild[1690] mallow, again, with large leaves and white

roots, is called “althæa,” and by some persons, on account of its

salutary properties, “plistolochia.”[1691] Every soil in which mallows

are sown, is rendered all the richer thereby. This plant is possessed

of remarkable virtues,[1692] as a cure for all kinds of stings,[1693]

those of scorpions, wasps, and similar insects, as well as the bite of

the shrew-mouse, more particularly; nay, what is even more than this,

if a person has been rubbed with oil in which any one of the mallows

has been beaten up, or even if he carries them on his person, he will

never be stung. A leaf of mallow put upon a scorpion, will strike it

with torpor.

The mallow is an antidote, also, against the poisonous effects of

white[1694] lead; and applied raw with saltpetre, it extracts all kinds

of pointed bodies from the flesh. A decoction of it with the root,

taken in drink, neutralizes the poison of the sea-hare,[1695] provided,

as some say, it is brought off the stomach by vomiting.

Other marvels are also related in connection with the mallow, but the

most surprising thing of all is, that if a person takes half a cyathus

of the juice of any one of them daily, he will be exempt from all

diseases.[1696] Left to putrefy in wine, mallows are remedial for

running sores of the head, and, mixed with honey, for lichens and

ulcerations of the mouth; a decoction of the root, too, is a remedy for

dandriff[1697] of the head and looseness of the teeth. With the root of

the mallow which has a single stem,[1698] it is a good plan to prick

the parts about a tooth when it aches, until the pain has ceased. With

the addition of human saliva, the mallow cleanses scrofulous sores,

imposthumes of the parotid glands, and inflammatory tumours, without

producing a wound. The seed of it, taken in red wine, disperses phlegm

and relieves nausea; and the root, attached to the person with black

wool, is a remedy for affections of the mamillæ. Boiled in milk, and

taken as a pottage, it cures a cough within five days.

Sextius Niger says that mallows are prejudicial to the stomach,

and Olympias, the Theban authoress, asserts that, employed with

goose-grease, they are productive of abortion. Some persons are of

opinion, that a good handful of the leaves, taken in oil and wine,

promotes the menstrual discharge. At all events, it is a well-known

fact, that if the leaves are strewed beneath a woman in labour, the

delivery will be accelerated; but they must be taken away immediately

after the birth, or prolapsus of the uterus will be the consequence.

Mallow-juice, also, is given to women in labour, a decoction of it

being taken fasting in wine, in doses of one hemina.

Mallow seed is attached to the arms of patients suffering from

spermatorrhœa; and, so naturally adapted is this plant for the

promotion of lustfulness, that the seed of the kind with a single stem,

sprinkled upon the genitals, will increase the sexual desire in males

to an infinite degree, according to Xenocrates; who says, too, that if

three roots are attached to the person, in the vicinity of those parts,

they will be productive of a similar result. The same writer informs us

also, that injections of mallows are good for tenesmus and dysentery,

and for maladies of the rectum even, if used as a fomentation only. The

juice is given warm to patients afflicted with melancholy, in doses

of three cyathi, and to insane persons[1699] in doses of four. One

hemina of the decoction is prescribed, also, for epilepsy.[1700] A warm

decoction of the juice is employed, too, as a fomentation for calculus,

flatulency, gripings of the stomach, and opisthotony. The leaves are

boiled, and applied with oil, as a poultice for erysipelas and burns,

and raw, with bread, to arrest inflammation in wounds. A decoction of

mallows is beneficial for affections of the sinews and bladder, and

for gnawing pains of the intestines; taken, too, as an aliment, or an

injection, they are relaxing to the uterus, and the decoction, taken

with oil, facilitates the passage of the urine.[1701]

The root of the althæa[1702] is even more efficacious for all the

purposes above enumerated, and for convulsions and ruptures more

particularly. Boiled in water, it arrests looseness of the bowels; and

taken in white wine, it is a cure for scrofulous sores, imposthumes

of the parotid glands, and inflammations of the mamillæ. A decoction

of the leaves in wine, applied as a liniment, disperses inflammatory

tumours; and the leaves, first dried, and then boiled in milk, are a

speedy cure for a cough, however inveterate. Hippocrates prescribes a

decoction of the root to be drunk by persons wounded or thirsty from

loss of blood, and the plant itself as an application to wounds, with

honey and resin. He also recommends it to be employed in a similar

manner for contusions, sprains, and tumours of the muscles, sinews, and

joints, and prescribes it to be taken in wine for asthma and dysentery.

It is a singular thing, that water in which this root has been put,

thickens when exposed in the open air, and congeals[1703] like ice.

The more recently, however, it has been taken up, the greater are the

virtues of the root.[1704]

CHAP. 85.—WILD LAPATHUM OR OXALIS, OTHERWISE CALLED LAPATHUM

CANTHERINUM, OR RUMEX: ONE REMEDY. HYDROLAPATHUM: TWO REMEDIES.

HIPPOLAPATHUM: SIX REMEDIES. OXYLAPATHUM: FOUR REMEDIES.

Lapathum, too, has pretty nearly the same properties. There is a

wild[1705] variety, known to some as “oxalis,” very similar in taste

to the cultivated kind, with pointed leaves, a colour like that of

white beet, and an extremely diminutive root: our people call it

“rumex,”[1706] while others, again, give it the name of “lapathum

cantherinum.”[1707] Mixed with axle-grease, this plant is very

efficacious for scrofulous sores. There is another kind, again, hardly

forming a distinct variety, known as “oxylapathon,”[1708] which

resembles the cultivated kind even more than the last, though the

leaves are more pointed and redder: it grows only in marshy spots.

Some authors are found who speak of a “hydrolapathon,”[1709] which

grows in the water, they say. There is also another variety, known as

“hippolapathon,”[1710] larger than the cultivated kind, whiter, and

more compact.

The wild varieties of the lapathum are a cure[1711] for the stings

of scorpions, and protect those who carry the plant on their person

from being stung. A decoction of the root in vinegar, employed as a

gargle, is beneficial to the[1712] teeth, and if drunk, is a cure

for jaundice. The seed is curative of the most obstinate maladies

of the stomach.[1713] The root of hippolapathum, in particular, has

the property of bringing off malformed nails; and the seed, taken in

wine, in doses of two drachmæ, is a cure for dysentery. The seed of

oxylapathum, washed in rain-water, with the addition of a piece of

gum acacia, about the size of a lentil, is good for patients troubled

with spitting of blood.[1714] Most excellent lozenges are made of the

leaves and root of this plant, with the addition of nitre and a little

incense. When wanted for use, they are first steeped in vinegar.

CHAP. 86.—CULTIVATED LAPATHUM: TWENTY-ONE REMEDIES. BULAPATHUM: ONE

REMEDY.

As to garden lapathum,[1715] it is good in liniments on the forehead

for defluxions of the eyes. The root of it cures lichens and leprous

sores, and a decoction of it in wine is remedial for scrofulous

swellings, imposthumes of the parotid glands, and calculus of the

bladder. Taken in wine it is a cure for affections of the spleen, and

employed as a fomentation, it is equally good for cœliac affections,

dysentery, and tenesmus. For all these purposes, the juice of lapathum

is found to be even still more efficacious. It acts as a carminative

and diuretic, and dispels films on the eyes: put into the bath, or

else rubbed upon the body, without oil, before taking the bath, it

effectually removes all itching sensations. The root of it, chewed,

strengthens the teeth, and a decoction of it in wine arrests[1716]

looseness of the stomach: the leaves, on the other hand, relax it.

Not to omit any particulars, Solo has added to the above varieties a

bulapathon,[1717] which differs only from the others in the length of

the root. This root, taken in wine, is very beneficial for dysentery.

CHAP. 87. (22.)—MUSTARD, THE THREE KINDS OF IT: FORTY-FOUR REMEDIES.

Mustard, of which we have mentioned[1718] three different kinds, when

speaking of the garden herbs, is ranked by Pythagoras among the very

first of those plants the pungency of which mounts upwards; for there

is none to be found more penetrating to the brain and nostrils.

Pounded with vinegar, mustard is employed as a liniment for the stings

of serpents and scorpions, and it effectually neutralizes the poisonous

properties of fungi. To cure an immoderate secretion of phlegm it is

kept in the mouth till it melts, or else it is mixed with hydromel,

and employed as a gargle. Mustard is chewed for tooth-ache, and is

taken as a gargle with oxymel for affections of the uvula; it is very

beneficial, also, for all maladies of the stomach. Taken with the food,

it facilitates expectoration[1719] from the lungs: it is given, too,

for asthma and epileptic fits, in combination with cucumber seed. It

has the effect of quickening the senses, and effectually clears the

head by sneezing, relaxes the stomach, and promotes the menstrual

discharge and the urinary secretions: beaten up with figs and cummin,

in the proportion of one-third of each ingredient, it is used as an

external application for dropsy.

Mixed with vinegar, mustard resuscitates by its powerful odour

persons who have swooned in fits of epilepsy or lethargy, as well

as females suffering from hysterical suffocations. For the cure of

lethargy tordylon is added—that being the name given to the seed of

hartwort[1720]—and if the lethargic sleep should happen to be very

profound, an application of it, with figs and vinegar, is made to the

legs, or to the head[1721] even. Used as an external application,

mustard is a cure for inveterate pains of the chest, loins, hips,

shoulders, and, in general, for all deep-seated pains in any part

of the body, raising blisters[1722] by its caustic properties. In

cases of extreme indurations of the skin, the mustard is applied, to

the part without figs; and a cloth is employed doubled, where it is

apprehended that it may burn too powerfully. It is used also, combined

with red-earth,[1723] for alopecy, itch-scabs, leprosy, phthiriasis,

tetanus, and opisthotony. They employ it also as a liniment with honey

for styes[1724] on the eyelids and films on the eyes.

The juices of mustard are extracted in three different ways, in earthen

vessels in which it is left to dry gradually in the sun. From the thin

stem of the plant there exudes also a milky juice,[1725] which when

thus hardened is remedial for tooth-ache. The seed and root, after

they have been left to steep in must, are beaten up together in a

mortar; and a good handful of the mixture is taken to strengthen[1726]

the throat, stomach, eyes, head, and all the senses. This mixture is

extremely good, too, for fits of lassitude in females, being one of

the most wholesome medicines in existence. Taken in vinegar, mustard

disperses calculi in the bladder; and, in combination with honey and

goose-grease, or else Cyprian wax, it is employed as a liniment for

livid spots and bruises. From the seed, first steeped in olive-oil, and

then subjected to pressure, an oil is extracted, which is employed for

rigidity of the sinews, and chills and numbness in the loins and hips.

CHAP. 88.—ADARCA: FORTY-EIGHT REMEDIES.

It is said that adarca, of which we have already made mention[1727]

when speaking of the forest-trees, has a similar nature[1728] to that

of mustard, and is productive of the same effects: it grows upon the

outer coat of reeds, below the head.

CHAP. 89.—MARRUBIUM OR PRASION, OTHERWISE LINOSTROPHON, PHILOPAIS, OR

PHILOCHARES: TWENTY-NINE REMEDIES.

Most medical writers have spoken in high terms of marrubium, or

horehound, as a plant of the very greatest utility. Among the Greeks,

it is called “prasion”[1729] by some, by others “linostrophon,”[1730]

and by others, again, “philopais”[1731] or “philochares:”[1732] it is a

plant too well known to require any description.[1733] The leaves[1734]

and seed beaten up, together, are good for the stings of serpents,

pains of the chest and side, and inveterate coughs. The branches, too,

boiled in water with panic,[1735] so as to modify its acridity, are

remarkably useful for persons troubled with spitting[1736] of blood.

Horehound is applied also, with grease, to scrofulous swellings.

Some persons recommend for a cough, a pinch of the fresh seed with

two fingers, boiled with a handful of spelt[1737] and a little oil

and salt, the mixture to be taken fasting. Others, again, regard as

quite incomparable for a similar purpose an extract of the juices

of horehound and fennel. Taking three sextarii of the extract, they

boil it down to two, and then add one sextarius of honey; after which

they again boil it down to two, and administer one spoonful of the

preparation daily, in one cyathus of water.

Beaten up with honey, horehound is particularly beneficial for

affections of the male organs; employed with vinegar, it cleanses

lichens, and is very salutary for ruptures, convulsions, spasms, and

contractions of the sinews. Taken in drink with salt and vinegar, it

relaxes the bowels, promotes the menstrual discharge, and accelerates

the after-birth. Dried, powdered, and taken with honey, it is

extremely efficacious for a dry cough, as also for gangrenes and

hang-nails.[1738] The juice, too, taken with honey, is good for the

ears and nostrils: it is a remedy also for jaundice, and diminishes the

bilious secretions. Among the few antidotes[1739] for poisons, it is

one of the very best known.

The plant itself, taken with iris and honey, purges the stomach and

promotes expectorations: it acts, also, as a strong diuretic, though,

at the same time, care must be taken not to use it when the bladder is

ulcerated and the kidneys are affected. It is said, too, that the juice

of horehound improves the eyesight. Castor speaks of two varieties of

it, the black horehound and the white, which last he considers to be

the best. He puts the juice of it into an empty eggshell, and then

mixes the egg with it, together with honey, in equal proportions:

this preparation used warm, he says, will bring abscesses to a head,

and cleanse and heal them. Beaten up, too, with stale axle-grease and

applied topically, he says, horehound is a cure for the bite of a dog.

CHAP. 90.—WILD THYME: EIGHTEEN REMEDIES.

Wild thyme, it is said, borrows its name, “serpyllum,” from the

fact that it is a creeping[1740] plant, a property peculiar to the

wild kind, that which grows in rocky places more particularly. The

cultivated[1741] thyme is not a creeping plant, but grows upwards, as

much a palm in height. That which springs up spontaneously, grows the

most luxuriantly, its leaves and branches being whiter than those of

the other kinds. Thyme is efficacious as a remedy for the stings of

serpents, the cenchris[1742] more particularly; also for the sting

of the scolopendra, both sea and land, the leaves and branches being

boiled for the purpose in wine. Burnt, it puts to flight all venomous

creatures by its smell, and it is particularly beneficial as an

antidote to the venom of marine animals.

A decoction of it in vinegar is applied for head-ache, with rose oil,

to the temples and forehead, as also for phrenitis and lethargy: it

is given, too, in doses of four drachmæ, for gripings of the stomach,

strangury, quinsy, and fits of vomiting. It is taken in water, also,

for liver complaints. The leaves are given in doses of four oboli, in

vinegar, for diseases of the spleen. Beaten up in two cyathi of oxymel,

it is used for spitting of blood.

CHAP. 91.—SISYMBRIUM OR THYMBRÆUM: TWENTY-THREE REMEDIES.

Wild[1743] sisymbrium, by some persons called “thymbræum,” does not

grow beyond a foot in height. The kind[1744] which grows in watery

places, is similar to nasturtium, and they[1745] are both of them

efficacious for the stings of certain insects, such as hornets and

the like. That which grows in dry localities is odoriferous, and is

employed[1746] for wreaths: the leaf of it is narrower than in the

other kind. They both of them alleviate head-ache, and defluxions

of the eyes, Philinus says. Some persons, however, employ bread in

addition; while others, again, use a decoction of the plant by itself

in wine. It is a cure, also, for epinyctis, and removes spots on the

face in females, by the end of four days; for which purpose, it is

applied at night and taken off in the day-time. It arrests vomiting,

hiccup, gripings, and fluxes of the stomach, whether taken with the

food, or the juice extracted and given in drink.

This plant, however, should never be eaten by pregnant women, except

in cases where the fœtus is dead, for the very application of it is

sufficient to produce abortion. Taken with wine, it is diuretic, and

the wild variety expels calculi even. For persons necessitated to sit

up awake, an infusion of it in vinegar is applied as a liniment to the

head.

CHAP. 92.—LINSEED: THIRTY REMEDIES.

Linseed[1747] is not only used in combination with other substances,

but, employed by itself, it disperses spots on the face in women: its

juice, too, is very beneficial to the sight. Combined with incense and

water, or else with myrrh and wine, it is a cure for defluxions of the

eyes, and employed with honey, grease, or wax, for imposthumes of the

parotid glands. Prepared[1748] like polenta, it is good for fluxes of

the stomach; and a decoction of it in water and oil, applied topically

with anise, is prescribed for quinsy. It is sometimes used parched,

also, to arrest looseness of the bowels, and applications of it are

used, with vinegar, for cœliac affections and dysentery. It is eaten

with raisins, also, for pains in the liver, and excellent electuaries

are made of it for the treatment of phthisis.

Linseed-meal, with the addition of nitre, salt, or ashes, softens

rigidities of the muscles, sinews, joints, and vertebræ, as well as of

the membranous tissues of the brain. Employed with figs, linseed-meal

ripens abscesses and brings them to a head: mixed with the root of

wild cucumber, it extracts[1749] all foreign bodies from the flesh, as

well as splinters of broken bones. A decoction of linseed-meal in wine

prevents ulcers from spreading, and mixed with honey, it is remedial

for pituitous eruptions. Used with nasturtium, in equal quantities, it

rectifies[1750] malformed nails; mixed with resin and myrrh, it cures

affections of the testes and hernia,[1751] and with water, gangrenous

sores. A decoction of linseed-meal with fenugreek, in the proportion

of one sextarius of each, in hydromel, is recommended for pains in

the stomach; and employed as an injection, with oil or honey, it is

beneficial for dangerous affections of the chest and intestines.

CHAP. 93.—BLITE: SIX REMEDIES.

Blite[1752] seems to be a plant of an inert nature, without flavour or

any pungency whatever; hence it is that, in Menander, we find husbands

giving this name to their wives, by way of[1753] reproach. It is[1754]

prejudicial to the stomach, and disturbs the bowels to such a degree,

as to cause cholera in some. It is stated, however, that, taken in

wine, it is good for the stings of scorpions; and that it is sometimes

used as a liniment for corns on the feet, and, with oil, for affections

of the spleen and pains in the temples. Hippocrates is of opinion, that

if taken with the food,[1755] it will arrest the menstrual discharge.

CHAP. 94. (23.)—MEUM, AND MEUM ATHAMANTICUM: SEVEN REMEDIES.

Meum[1756] is never cultivated in Italy except by medical men, and

by very few of those. There are two varieties of it, the finer kind

being known as “athamanticum,” because, according to some, it was

first discovered by Athamas; or else because, as others think, that

of the best quality is found upon Mount Athamas.[1757] The leaf of it

is similar to that of dill, and the stem is sometimes as much as two

cubits in length: the roots, which run obliquely, are numerous and

mostly black, though sometimes white: it is not of so red a hue as the

other kind.

The root of this plant, pounded or boiled, and taken in water, is

diuretic, and is marvellously efficacious for dispelling flatulency of

the stomach. It is good, too, for gripings of the bowels and affections

of the bladder: applied with honey to the region of the uterus, it

acts as a diuretic; and used as a liniment with parsley, upon the lower

regions of the abdomen in infants, it has a similar effect.

CHAP. 95.—FENNEL: TWENTY-TWO REMEDIES.

Fennel has been rendered famous by the serpent, which tastes it,

as already[1758] stated, when it casts its old skin, and sharpens

its sight with the juice of this plant: a fact which has led to the

conclusion that this juice must be beneficial, also, in a high degree

to the human sight. Fennel-juice is gathered when the stem is swelling

with the bud; after which it is dried in the sun and applied as an

ointment with honey. This plant is to be found in all parts of the

world. The most esteemed preparation from it, is that made in Iberia,

from the tear-like drops which exude[1759] from the stalk and the seed

fresh-gathered. The juice is extracted, also, from incisions made in

the root at the first germination of the plant.

CHAP. 96.—HIPPOMARATHRON, OR MYRSINEUM: FIVE REMEDIES.

There is, also, a wild[1760] variety of fennel, known by some persons

as “hippomarathron,” and by others as “myrsineum;” it has a larger

leaf and a more acrid taste than the other kind. It is taller, also,

about the thickness of a walking-stick, and has a white root: it grows

in warm, but stony localities. Diocles speaks, too, of another[1761]

variety of hippomarathron, with a long narrow leaf, and a seed like

that of coriander.

The seed of the cultivated fennel is medicinally employed in wine,

for the stings of scorpions and serpents, and the juice of it,

injected into the ears, has the effect of destroying small worms that

breed there. Fennel is employed as an ingredient in nearly all our

seasonings,[1762] vinegar[1763] sauces more particularly: it is placed

also beneath the undercrust of bread. The seed, in fevers even, acts

as an astringent upon a relaxed stomach, and beaten up with water, it

allays nausea: it is highly esteemed, also, for affections of the lungs

and liver. Taken in moderate quantities, it arrests looseness of the

bowels, and acts as a diuretic; a decoction of it is good for gripings

of the stomach, and taken in drink, it restores the milk. The root,

taken in a ptisan,[1764] purges the kidneys—an effect which is equally

produced by a decoction of the juice or of the seed; the root is good

too, boiled in wine, for dropsy and convulsions. The leaves are applied

to burning tumours, with vinegar, expel calculi of the bladder, and act

as an aphrodisiac.

In whatever way it is taken in drink, fennel has the property of

promoting the secretion of the seminal fluids; and it is extremely

beneficial to the generative organs, whether a decoction of the root

in wine is employed as a fomentation, or whether it is used beaten up

in oil. Many persons apply fennel with wax to tumours and bruises, and

employ the root, with the juice of the plant, or else with honey, for

the bites of dogs, and with wine for the stings of multipedes.

Hippomarathron is more efficacious, in every respect, than cultivated

fennel;[1765] it expels calculi more particularly, and, taken with

weak wine, is good for the bladder and irregularities of the menstrual

discharge.

In this plant, the seed is more efficacious than the root; the dose of

either of them being a pinch with two fingers, beaten up, and mixed

with the usual drink. Petrichus, who wrote a work “On Serpents,”[1766]

and Micton, who wrote a treatise “On[1767] Botany,” are of opinion that

there is nothing in existence of greater efficacy against serpents than

hippomarathron: indeed, Nicander[1768] has ranked it by no means among

the lowest of antidotes.

CHAP. 97.—HEMP: NINE REMEDIES.

Hemp originally grew in the forests,[1769] where it is found

with a blacker and rougher leaf than in the other[1770] kinds.

Hempseed,[1771] it is said, renders men impotent: the juice of this

seed will extract worms from the ears, or any insect which may have

entered them, though at the cost of producing head-ache. The virtues

of hemp, it is said, are so great, that an infusion of it in water

will cause it to coagulate:[1772] hence it is, that if taken in water,

it will arrest looseness in beasts of burden. A decoction of the root

in water, relaxes contractions of the joints, and cures gout and

similar maladies. It is applied raw to burns, but it must be frequently

changed, so as not to let it dry.

CHAP. 98.—FENNEL-GIANT: EIGHT REMEDIES.

Fennel-giant[1773] has a seed similar to that of dill. That which has

a single stem, bifurcated[1774] at the top, is generally thought to be

the female plant. The stalks of it are eaten boiled;[1775] and, pickled

in brine and honey, they are recommended as particularly beneficial to

the stomach;[1776] if taken, however, in too large quantities, they

are apt to produce head-ache. The root of it in doses of one denarius

to two cyathi of wine, is used in drink for the stings of serpents,

and the root itself is applied topically for the same purpose, as also

for the cure of gripings of the stomach. Taken in oil and vinegar, it

is used as a check for excessive perspirations, in fevers even. The

inspissated juice of fennel-giant, taken in quantities the size of a

bean, acts as a purgative;[1777] and the pith[1778] of it is good for

the uterus, as well as all the maladies previously mentioned. To arrest

hæmorrhage, ten of the seeds are taken in drink, bruised in wine, or

else with the pith of the plant. There are some persons who think that

the seed should be administered for epilepsy, from the fourth to the

seventh day of the moon, in doses of one spoonful.

Fennel-giant is naturally so inimical to the muræna, that the very

touch of it even will kill that fish. Castor was of opinion that the

juice of the root is extremely beneficial to the sight.

CHAP. 99.—THE THISTLE OR SCOLYMOS: SIX REMEDIES.

We have already[1779] spoken, when treating of the garden plants, of

the cultivation of the thistle; we may as well, therefore, not delay

to mention its medicinal properties. Of wild thistles there are two

varieties; one[1780] of which throws out numerous stalks immediately

it leaves the ground, the other[1781] being thicker, and having but a

single stem. They have, both of them, a few leaves only, and covered

with prickles, the head of the plant being protected by thorny points:

the last mentioned, however, puts forth in the middle of these points a

purple blossom, which turns white with great rapidity, and is carried

off by the wind; the Greeks give it the name of “scolymos.”

This plant, gathered before it blossoms, and beaten up and subjected to

pressure, produces a juice, which, applied to the head, makes the hair

grow again when it has fallen off through alopecy. The root of either

kind, boiled in water, creates thirst, it is said, in those who drink

it. It strengthens the stomach also, and if we are to believe what is

said, has some influence upon the womb in promoting the conception of

male offspring: at all events, Glaucias, who seems to have paid the

most attention to the subject, has written to that effect. The thin

juice, like mastich, which exudes from these plants, imparts sweetness

to the breath.

CHAP. 100. (24.)—THE COMPOSITION OF THERIACA.

But as we are now about to leave the garden plants, we will take

this opportunity of describing a very famous preparation extracted

from them as an antidote against the stings of all kinds of venomous

animals: it is inscribed in verse[1782] upon a stone in the Temple of

Æsculapius at Cos.

Take two denarii of wild thyme, and the same quantity of opopanax

and meum respectively; one denarius of trefoil seed; and of aniseed,

fennel-seed, ammi, and parsley, six denarii respectively, with twelve

denarii of meal of fitches. Heat up these ingredients together, and

pass them through a sieve; after which they must be kneaded with

the best wine that can be had, and then made into lozenges of one

victoriatus[1783] each: one of these is to be given to the patient,

steeped in three cyathi of wine. King Antiochus[1784] the Great, it

is said, employed this theriaca[1785] against all kinds of venomous

animals, the asp excepted.

SUMMARY.—Remarkable facts, narratives, and observations, one thousand,

five hundred, and six.

ROMAN AUTHORS QUOTED.—Cato[1786] the Censor, M. Varro,[1787] Pompeius

Lenæus,[1788] C. Valgius,[1789] Hyginus,[1790] Sextius Niger[1791] who

wrote in Greek, Julius Bassus[1792] who wrote in Greek, Celsus,[1793]

Antonius Castor.[1794]

FOREIGN AUTHORS QUOTED.—Democritus,[1795] Theophrastus,[1796]

Orpheus,[1797] Menander[1798] who wrote the “Biochresta,”

Pythagoras,[1799] Nicander.[1800]

MEDICAL AUTHORS QUOTED.—Chrysippus,[1801] Diocles,[1802]

Ophelion,[1803] Heraclides,[1804] Hicesius,[1805] Dionysius,[1806]

Apollodorus[1807] of Citium, Apollodorus[1808] of Tarentum,

Praxagoras,[1809], Plistonicus,[1810] Medius,[1811] Dieuches,[1812]

Cleophantus,[1813] Philistion,[1814] Asclepiades,[1815] Crateuas,[1816]

Petronius Diodotus,[1817] Iollas,[1818] Erasistratus,[1819]

Diagoras,[1820] Andreas,[1821] Mnesides,[1822] Epicharmus,[1823]

Damion,[1824] Dalion,[1825] Sosimenes,[1826] Tlepolemus,[1827],

Metrodorus,[1828] Solo,[1829] Lycus,[1830] Olympias[1831] of Thebes,

Philinus,[1832] Petrichus,[1833] Micton,[1834] Glaucias,[1835]

Xenocrates.[1836]