Delphi Complete Works of Pliny the Elder
Page 157
Mixed with barley-meal, this plant brings tumours to a head, and boiled with quinces, it is employed as a liniment for inflammations of the eyes. It keeps away serpents, and for their stings it is either taken in wine, or else employed in combination with it as a liniment. It is extremely efficacious, also, for the stings of those noxious insects by which shivering fits and chills are produced, such as the scorpion and the spider called “phalangium,” for example; taken in a potion, it is good for other kinds of poison, as also for shivering fits, however produced, and for the extraction of foreign substances adhering to the flesh; it has the effect, also, of expelling intestinal worms. It is stated that a sprig of this plant, if put beneath the pillow, will act as an aphrodisiac, and that it is of the very greatest efficacy against all those charms and spells by which impotence is produced.
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CHAP. 93. (22.)
ONE REMEDY DERIVED FROM THE LEUCANTHEMUM. NINE REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE AMARACUS.
The leucanthemum, mixed with two-thirds of vinegar, is curative of asthma. The sampsuchum or amaracus, — that of Cyprus being the most highly esteemed, and possessed of the finest smell — is a remedy for the stings of scorpions, applied to the wound with vinegar and salt. Used as a pessary, too, it is very beneficial in cases of menstrual derangement; but when taken in drink, its properties are not so powerfully developed. Used with polenta, it heals defluxions of the eyes; and the juice of it, boiled, dispels gripings of the stomach. It is useful, too, for strangury and dropsy; and in a dry state, it promotes sneezing. There is an oil extracted from it, known as “sampsuchinum,” or “amaracinum,” which is very good for warming and softening the sinews; it has a warming effect, also, upon the uterus. The leaves are good for bruises, beaten up with honey, and, mixed with wax, for sprains.
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CHAP. 94. (23.)
TEN REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE ANEMONE OR PHRENION.
We have as yet spoken only of the anemone used for making chaplets; we will now proceed to describe those kinds which are employed for medicinal purposes. Some persons give the name of “phrenion” to this plant: there are two species of it; one of which is wild, and the other grows on cultivated spots; though they are, both of them, attached to a sandy soil. Of the cultivated anemone there are numerous varieties; some, and these are the most abundant, have a scarlet flower, while others, again, have a flower that is purple or else milk-white. The leaves of all these three kinds bear a strong resemblance to parsley, and it is not often that they exceed half a foot in height, the head being very similar to that of asparagus. The flower never opens, except while the wind is blowing, a circumstance to which it owes its name. The wild anemone is larger than the cultivated one, and has broader leaves, with a scarlet flower.
Some persons erroneously take the wild anemone to be the same as the argemone, while others, again, identify it with the poppy which we have mentioned under the name of “rhœas:” there is, however, a great difference between them, as these two other plants blossom later than the anemone, nor does the anemone possess a juice or a calyx like theirs; besides which, it terminates in a head like that of asparagus.
The various kinds of anemone are good for pains and inflammations of the head, diseases of the uterus, and stoppage of the milk in females; taken, too, in a ptisan, or applied as a pessary in wool, they promote the menstrual discharge. The root, chewed, has a tendency to bring away the phlegm, and is a cure for tooth-ache: a decoction of it is good, too, for defluxions of the eyes, and effaces the scars left by wounds. The Magi have attributed many very wonderful properties to these plants: they recommend it to be gathered at the earliest moment in the year that it is seen, and certain words to be repeated, to the effect that it is being gathered as a remedy for tertian and quartan fevers; after which the flower must be wrapped up in red cloth and kept in the shade, in order to be attached to the person when wanted. The root of the anemone with a scarlet flower, beaten up and applied to the body of any animated being, produces an ulcer there by the agency of its acrid qualities; hence it is that it is so much employed as a detergent for ulcerous sores.
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CHAP. 95. (24.)
SIX REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE ŒNANTHE.
The œnanthe is a plant which is found growing upon rocks, has the leaf of the parsnip, and a large root with numerous fibres. The stalk of it and the leaves, taken with honey and black wine, facilitate delivery and bring away the after-birth: taken with honey, also, they are a cure for cough, and act as a powerful diuretic. The root of this plant is curative of diseases of the bladder.
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CHAP. 96. (25.)
ELEVEN REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE HELICHRYSOS.
The helichrysos is by some persons called the “chrysanthemon. It has small, white branches, with leaves of a whitish colour, similar to those of the abrotonum. The clusters, disposed around it, and glistening like gold in the rays of the sun, are never known to fade; hence it is that they make chaplets of it for the gods, a custom which was most faithfully observed by Ptolemæus, the king of Egypt. This plant grows in shrubberies: taken in wine, it acts as a diuretic and emmenagogue, and, in combination with honey, it is employed topically for burns. It is taken also in potions for the stings of serpents, and for pains in the loins; and, with honied wine, it removes coagulated blood in the abdominal regions and the bladder. The leaves of it, beaten up and taken in doses of three oboli, in white wine, arrest the menstrual discharge when in excess.
The smell of this plant is far from disagreeable, and hence it is kept with clothes, to protect them from the attacks of vermin.
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CHAP. 97. (26.)
EIGHT REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE HYACINTH.
The hyacinth grows in Gaul more particularly, where it is employed for the dye called “hysginum.” The root of it is bulbous, and is well known among the dealers in slaves: applied to the body, with sweet wine, it retards the signs of puberty, and prevents them from developing themselves. It is curative, also, of gripings of the stomach, and of the bites of spiders, and it acts as a diuretic. The seed is administered, with abrotonum, for the stings of serpents and scorpions, and for jaundice.
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CHAP. 98.
SEVEN REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE LYCHNIS.
The seed of the lychnis, too, which is just the colour of fire, is beaten up and taken in drink for the stings of serpents, scorpions, hornets, and other insects of similar nature: the wild variety, however, is prejudicial to the stomach. It acts as a laxative to the bowels; and, taken in doses of two drachmæ, is remarkably efficacious for carrying off the bile. So extremely baneful is it to scorpions, that if they so much as see it, they are struck with torpor. The people of Asia call the root of it “bolites,” and they say that if it is attached to the body it will effectually disperse albugo.
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CHAP. 99. (27.)
FOUR REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE VINCAPERVINCA.
The vincapervinca, too, or chamædaphne, is dried and pounded, and given to dropsical patients in water, in doses of one spoonful; a method of treatment which speedily draws off the water. A decoction of it, in ashes, with a sprinkling of wine, has the effect of drying tumours: the juice, too, is employed as a remedy for diseases of the ears. Applied to the regions of the stomach, this plant is said to be remarkably good for diarrhœa.
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CHAP. 100.
THREE REMEDIES DERIVED FROM BUTCHER’S BROOM.
A decoction of the root of butcher’s broom is recommended to be taken every other day for calculus in the bladder, strangury, and bloody urine. The root, however, should be taken up one day, and boiled the next, the proportion of it being one sextarius to two cyathi of wine. Some persons beat up the root raw, and take it in water: it is generally considered, too, that there is nothing in existence more beneficial
to the male organs than the young stalks of the plant, beaten up and used with vinegar.
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CHAP. 101.
TWO REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE BATIS.
The batis, too, relaxes the bowels, and, beaten up raw, it is employed topically for the gout. The people of Egypt cultivate the acinos, too, both as an article of food and for making chaplets. This plant would be the same thing as ocimum, were it not that the leaves and branches of it are rougher, and that it has a powerful smell. It promotes the catamenia, and acts as a diuretic.
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CHAP. 102. (28.)
TWO REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE COLOCASIA.
The colocasia, according to Glaucias, softens the acridity of humours of the body, and is beneficial to the stomach.
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CHAP. 103. (29.)
SIX REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE ANTHYLLIUM OR ANTHYLLUM.
The people of Egypt eat the anthalium, but I cannot find that they make any other use of it; but there is another plant called the “anthyllium,” or, by some persons, the “anthyllum,” of which there are two kinds: one, similar in its leaves and branches to the lentil, a palm in height, growing in sandy soils exposed to the sun, and of a somewhat saltish taste; the other, bearing a strong resemblance to the chamæpitys, but smaller and more downy, with a purple flower, a strong smell, and growing in stony spots.
The first kind, mixed with rose-oil and applied with milk, is extremely good for affections of the uterus and all kinds of sores: it is taken as a potion for strangury and gravel in the kidneys, in doses of three drachmæ. The other kind is taken in drink, with oxymel, in doses of four drachmæ, for indurations of the uterus, gripings of the bowels, and epilepsy.
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CHAP. 104. (30.)
EIGHT REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE PARTHENIUM, LEUCANTHES, OR AMARACUS.
The parthenium is by some persons called the “leucanthes,” and by others the “amaracus.” Celsus, among the Latin writers, gives it the names of “perdicium” and “muralis.” It grows in the hedge-rows of gardens, and has the smell of an apple, with a bitter taste. With the decoction of it, fomentations are made for maladies of the fundament, and for inflammations and indurations of the uterus: dried and applied with honey and vinegar, it carries off black bile, for which reason it is considered good for vertigo and calculus in the bladder. It is employed as a liniment, also, for erysipelas, and, mixed with stale axle-grease, for scrofulous sores. For tertian fevers the Magi recommend that it should be taken up with the left hand, it being mentioned at the time for whom it is gathered, care being also taken not to look back while doing so: a leaf of it should be laid beneath the patient’s tongue, after which it must be eaten in a cyathus of water.
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CHAP. 105. (31.)
EIGHT REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE STRYCHNUM OR STRYCHNUM, HALICACABUM, CALLIAS, DORCYNION, MANICON, NEURAS, MORIO, OR MOLY.
The trychnon is by some called “strychnon;” I only wish that the garland-makers of Egypt would never use this plant in making their chaplets, being deceived as they are by the resemblance in the leaves of both kinds to those of ivy. One of these kinds, bearing scarlet berries with a stone, enclosed in follicules, is by some persons called the “halicacabum,” by others the “callion,” and by the people of our country, the “vesicaria,” from the circumstance of its being highly beneficial to the bladder and in cases of calculus.
The trychnon is more of a woody shrub than a herb, with large follicules, broad and turbinated, and a large berry within, which ripens in the month of November. A third kind, again, has a leaf resembling that of ocimum — but it is not my intention to give an exact description of it, as I am here speaking of remedies, and not of poisons; for a few drops of the juice, in fact, are quite sufficient to produce insanity. The Greek writers, however, have even turned this property into matter for jesting; for, according to them, taken in doses of one drachma, this plant is productive of delusive and prurient fancies, and of vain, fantastic visions, which vividly present all the appearance of reality: they say, too, that it the dose is doubled, it will produce downright madness, and that any further addition to it, will result in instant death.
This is the same plant which the more well-meaning writers have called in their innocence “dorycnion,” from the circumstance that weapons used in battle are poisoned with it — for it grows everywhere — while others, again, who have treated of it more at length, have given it the surname of “manicon.” Those, on the other hand, who have iniquitously concealed its real qualities, give it the name of “erythron” or “neuras,” and others “perisson” — details, however, which need not be entered into more fully, except for the purpose of putting persons upon their guard.
There is another kind, again, also called “halicacabum,” which possesses narcotic qualities, and is productive of death even more speedily than opium: by some persons it is called “morio,” and by others “moly.” It has, however, been highly extolled by Diocles and Evenor, and, indeed, Timaristus has gone so far as to sing its praises in verse. With a wonderful obliviousness of remedies really harmless, they tell us, forsooth, that it is an instantaneous remedy for loose teeth to rinse them with halicacabum steeped in wine: but at the same time they add the qualification that it must not be kept in the mouth too long, or else delirium will be the result. This, however, is pointing out remedies with a vengeance, the employment of which will be attended with worse results than the malady itself.
There is a third kind of halicacabum, that is esteemed as an article of food; but even though the flavour of it may be preferred to garden plants, and although Xenocrates assures us that there is no bodily malady for which the trychnos is not highly beneficial, they are none of them so valuable as to make me think it proper to speak more at length upon the subject, more particularly as there are so many other remedies, which are unattended with danger. Persons who wish to pass themselves off for true prophets, and who know too well how to impose upon the superstitions of others, take the root of the halicacabum in drink. The remedy against this poison — and it is with much greater pleasure that I state it — is to drink large quantities of honied wine made hot. I must not omit the fact, too, that this plant is naturally so baneful to the asp, that when the root is placed near that reptile, the very animal which kills others by striking them with torpor, is struck with torpor itself; hence it is, that, beaten up with oil, it is used as a cure for the sting of the asp.
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CHAP. 106.
SIX MEDICINES DERIVED FROM THE CORCHORUS.
The corchorus is a plant which is used at Alexandria as an article of food: the leaves of it are rolled up, one upon the other, like those of the mulberry, and it is wholesome, it is said, for the viscera, and in cases of alopecy, being good also for the removal of freckles. I find it stated also, that it cures the scab in cattle very rapidly: and, according to Nicander, it is a remedy for the stings of serpents, it gathered before it blossoms.
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CHAP. 107.
THREE REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE CNECOS.
There would be no necessity to speak at any length of the cencos or atractylis, an Egyptian plant, were it not for the fact that it offers a most efficacious remedy for the stings of veno- mous animals, as also in cases of poisoning by fungi. It is a well-known fact, that persons, when stung by the scorpion, are not sensible of any painful effects so long as they hold this plant in their hand.
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CHAP. 108. (33.)
ONE REMEDY DERIVED FROM THE PESOLUTA.
The Egyptians also cultivate the pesoluta in their gardens, for chaplets. There are two kinds of this plant, the male and the female: either of them, it is said, placed beneath the person, when in bed, acts as an antaphrodisiac, upon the male sex more particularly.
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> CHAP. 109. (34.)
AN EXPLANATION OF GREEK TERMS RELATIVE TO WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.
As we have occasion to make use of Greek names very fre- quently when speaking of weights and measures, I shall here subjoin, once for all, some explanation of them.
The Attic drachma — for it is generally the Attic reckoning that medical men employ — is much the same in weight as the silver denarius, and is equivalent to six oboli, the obolus being ten chalci; the cyathus is equal in weight to ten drachmmæ. When the measure of an acetabulum is spoken of, it is the same as one fourth part of a hemina, or fifteen drachmæ in weight. The Greek mna, or, as we more generally call it, “mina,” equals one hundred Attic drachmæ in weight.
Summary. — Remedies, narratives, and observations, seven hundred and thirty.
Roman Authors Quoted. — Cato the Censor, M. Varro, Antias, Cæpio, Vestinus, Vibius Rufus, Hyginus, Pompo- nius Mela, Pompeius Lennæus, Cornelius Celsus, Calpurnius Bassus, C. Valgius, Licinius Macer, Sextius Niger who wrote in Greek, Julius Bassus who wrote in Greek, Autonius Castor.