Book I

, 68.) Of course it would consist of nothing but animal sweat, mixed up perhaps with either natron or the flower of beans, which was generally used during the process. The _Sordes gymnasiorum_ is also in like manner treated of by Dioscorides, and it must have been the sweat collected from the statues and walls of the gymnasia. Dioscorides recommends it for crude boils (phymata), desquamated surfaces, and old sores. The _Sordes palestræ_ must have been pretty much the same as the _Sordes balneorum_, and accordingly it was used in a similar manner. The _Sordes ex gymnasio_ occurs in Celsus’s list of emollients (v, 15); and is treated of likewise by the Arabians. It appears singular that mankind should have so long retained a fancy for such an application, considering how easy it was to find a more agreeable substitute for it.

Γλυκυρρίζα,

Glycyrrhiza, _Liquorice_, is of a tepid and humid temperament, having also some astringency. Hence it smooths asperities, not only in the trachea but also in a scabious bladder. It also quenches thirst.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. It would appear to have been rather the _Glycyrrhiza glandulifera_ than the _G. glabra_. The latter, according to C. Bauhin, contains more saccharine matter than the _G._ of the ancients. Dioscorides, in his usual empirical style, enumerates with considerable judgment the cases in which it may be administered with advantage; such as asperities of the trachea (hoarseness) in the form of a linctus, for ardour of the stomach, ulcerations of the bladder and kidneys, and so forth (iii, 9.) All the ancient authorities, from Dioscorides downwards agree in stating that liquorice quenches thirst; and this we believe is still the popular opinion in this country, and was the professional, down to a late date. See Rutty (Mat. Med. p. 221.) The glycyrrhiza occurs in the works of Hippocrates, Celsus, and the Arabians. As they all give it the same characters, we need not occupy space with extracts from them. See particularly Serapion (De Simpl. 147); Ebn Baithar (ii, 66.) According to the Greek Pharmacopœia the _G. glabra_ is the species now used in Greece.

Γλυκυσίδη,

Glycyside, _Pæony_, (called also Pentorobon and Pæonia); its root is acrid, somewhat bitter and desiccative, having also some astringency. Hence it excites the menstrual discharge, and cleanses the kidneys and liver when drunk, to the size of an almond, with wine; but if the wine be austere it restrains alvine defluxions. When appended as a periapt, it cures the epilepsy of children.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Sprengel makes the two species described by Dioscorides to be the _Pæonia officinalis_ and _Corallina_. We have mentioned in the Third Book that it has been much celebrated both in ancient and modern times as a cure for epilepsy when appended as an amulet. See Andreas Laurentius (De Mir. Strumar. Curat. pp. 40, 63), and Macer (De Viribus Herb.) Quincy, in his ‘Complete English Dispensatory’ (London 1769), says of the root of peony, “the good women highly esteem necklaces made of it to hang about their children’s necks for convulsions and difficult breeding of the teeth.” Considering the faith which many _educated_ persons now repose in the virtues of galvanic rings and garters, the present generation has little ground for laughing at the credulity of our forefathers, with respect to amulets and other phylacteries. On the Pæonia, see particularly Dioscorides (iii, 147); Galen (De Simpl. v); Serapion (c. 61); Ebn Baithar (ii, 240.) The _Pæonia officinalis_ is still retained in the Greek Pharmacopœia (p. 121.)

Γναφάλιον,

Gnaphalium, _Cudweed_, is so called because its soft leaves have been used in place of combed wool (gnaphalum.) They are white and moderately astringent, and are, therefore, drunk with austere wine for dysentery.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. There has been a great shifting of names by botanical authorities of late, with regard to the _Gnaphalia_ and the cognate genera. It seems now agreed that the medicinal cotton-weed of the ancients shall be called _Otanthus maritimus_, Link. Our author borrows from Dioscorides and Galen, who both give exactly the same character of this plant, and this it retained down to a very recent period. See Quincy.

Γογγυλὶς,

Rapum, _Turnip_; the root and seed are flatulent, promote the formation of semen, and rouse to venery.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. The predominance of authority has determined us, after a good deal of consideration, to set this down as the _Brassica Napo-brassica_, the navew, or French turnip. All the authorities, in a word, from Dioscorides downwards, held it to be aphrodisiacal. Dioscorides holds it to be a sovereign remedy for chilblains in fomentation, cataplasm, or prepared thus: a turnip is to be scooped out in the middle and filled with rose-cerate, which is to be melted by placing the turnip in hot ashes, when it forms an excellent application to ulcerated chilblains. (ii, 134.) Pliny likewise says of the turnip, “Est et rapo vis medica. Perniones fervens impositum sanat.” (H. N. xx, 9.) A roasted turnip is still a popular remedy in Scotland for chilblains. Galen, Aëtius, and Oribasius give brief descriptions of the _gongylis_, and from them our author copies. Celsus treats of the _napus_ and _rapum_ only as potherbs. The Arabians give a confused account of the matter; Avicenna under _brassica_, and Serapion under _rapa_. (De Simpl. 191.) Rhases, translating the 134th chapter of Dioscorides, renders _gongyle_ by _Rapa rotunda_. (Cont. l. ult. 557.) Altogether it appears to us strange that some of our late authorities should have referred the gongylis to the _Brassica oleracea_. See Dierbach (Mat. Med. Hippocrat.) The introduction of the different varieties of the latter into gardening is a very curious but difficult subject. See Beckmann (Hist. of Invent.), and Loudon (Encyc. of Garden. 674.)

Γορδύλιον,

Gordylium (called also by some Seseli), is hot, diuretic, and emmenagogue. The root of it, when taken in a linctus, with honey, promotes expectoration.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Most probably it is a species of Seseli. Either our author or some copyist of his works has evidently been guilty of the mistake of writing _gordylion_ for _tordylion_. See the chapter of Dioscorides on the tordylium (iii, 56.)

Γύρις,

Pollen, _Fine Flour_, resembles starch in its properties, but is weaker.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. On the medicinal properties of _pollen_, see Pliny (H. N. xxii, 60), who, however, borrows all his information from Dioscorides (ii, 107.) Both recommend the pollen used for glueing books, in hæmoptysis.

Γύψος,

Gypsum, _Parget_, or Mineral White, in addition to its desiccant, is possessed of obstruent powers. Hence it agrees with hemorrhages, along with pollen and the white of an egg. When burnt it has no longer its obstruent powers, but it is more desiccant and repellent, especially with oxycrate.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. We have treated pretty fully of this article in another place (Vol. II, 233.) It is the sulphate of lime, of which selenite or the foliated sulphate of lime is a sub-species. In the shops, when pulverized, it is known by the names of mineral white and stucco. Dioscorides merely says of its medicinal powers, that it is styptic and emplastic, and restrains bleeding and sweats. Galen is somewhat fuller in his account of it, recommending it, with the fine flour of wheat, which is found sticking about the walls of mills, and the down of a hare, for stopping bleeding. Aëtius and our author copy closely from Galen. Serapion borrows both from Dioscorides and Galen (c. 379.) Avicenna recommends it with Armenian bole, lentils, myrtle-water, and some vinegar, as an application to the forehead in bleeding from the nose. (ii, 2, 284.) Rhases copies verbatim from Galen, Dioscorides, and our author. (Cont. l. ult. i, 235.) Averrhoes recommends it in the manner described above from Galen as a styptic. (Collig. v, 43.) Celsus prescribes it for stopping colliquative sweating in cardiac disease (iii, 19.)

Δάδες,

Tedæ, _Dead Pines_, have certain acrid, concoctive, and detergent powers. Hence boiled in vinegar they cure toothache when the mouth is rinsed with the vinegar; but if a little honey is added, they bring away phlegm. When made into a linctus they promote the discharges from the breast.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. This term properly signifies a small torch used in performing lustrations, but here it is used for a small slip taken from a pine-tree. The tree from which the _tedæ_ were taken was the _Pinus Cembro_; this Matthiolus, Harduin, and our old herbalists have clearly made out. See in particular Parkinson (p. 1537.) Gerard calls it by the English name of torch-pine, and, evidently copying from Dioscorides, adds, “the torch-pine, cut into small pieces and boiled in vinegar, is a remedy against the toothache, if the teeth be washed with the decoction.” (p. 1361.) The other authorities treat of it in general terms, under the head of Pinus.

Δαμασκηνά,

Damascena, _Damascenes_, will be treated of with Plums.

Δαμασσώνιον,

Damasonium, _Water-plantain_, has certain detergent powers, and proves lithontriptic, and occasions a metastasis of the contents of the intestinal canal to the urine.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. There can be no doubt that it is the _Alisma_ of Dioscorides, and therefore probably the elegant water plant now called _Alisma Plantago_. On this point see Gerarde, Parkinson, Cordus, and Sprengel. Dioscorides recommends its root in cases of poisoning by the sea-hare, the red frog, and by opium; in tormina and dysentery when drunk by itself and with carrot; and in convulsions and hysterical complaints. He adds, that the herb binds the belly, is emmenagogue, and softens swellings when applied. (iii, 159.) Galen states that he had never any experience of it in the cases mentioned by Dioscorides; but that he had found it possessed of lithontriptic powers. The other Greek authorities follow him. The Arabians copy from both. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 244, 249); Ebn Baithar (ii, 513.)

Δαῦκος,

Daucus, _Carrot_ (called also Staphylinus), consists of two varieties. The root of the cultivated carrot is flatulent and aphrodisiacal; the seed of the wild is wholly devoid of flatulent properties, is diuretic and emmenagogue; and so in like manner the stem.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Of the three species of _Daucus_ described by Dioscorides (iii, 76), the leaves of the first are compared by him to those of the fennel; the leaves of the second to those of the wild parsley; and the leaves of the third to those of coriander. The first is the species which was long known in this country by the name of Candy carrots, and which has obtained various names of late years from our botanical authorities. It seems now settled that it should be called _Athamanta Cretensis_. “The second,” says our indefatigable herbalist, old Parkinson, whose practical acquaintance with all sorts of plants entitles his opinion to high consideration, “is acknowledged to be so like the first that the climate and country only make the difference.” It is now called _Athamanta cervaria_. The third, or coriander-leaved daucus, as the same authority clearly indicates, was probably a species of _seseli_. It, however, is not very certainly determined. The following description of their medicinal virtues by our Quincy may be said to embody the concurrent opinions of all the ancient authorities, Greek, Roman, and Arabian. “The seed is aperient and good in disorders of the kidneys; as also to hasten delivery, and bring away the after-birth. It is likewise accounted a good alexipharmic, and proper against the bites of venomous creatures.” See Avicenna (ii, 2, 214, 287); Ebn Baithar (ii, 462); Celsus (v, 23); Hippocrates (De Ratione Vict. in Acut.); also under Staphylinus.

Δάφνη,

Laurus, _The Bay-tree_; its leaves are powerfully desiccant and calefacient, but its fruit still more so. The bark of its root, being bitter and sub-astringent, proves lithontriptic and cures hepatic affections when drunk to the amount of three oboli with fragrant wine.

Δάφνη πόα,

Laurus herba (Ruscus? _Butcher’s-broom?_), called also Alexandrina, is hot, acrid, and somewhat bitter; it therefore promotes the menstrual and urinary discharges. The daphnoides and the chamædaphne are possessed of the same powers; but the latter is edible.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Dioscorides describes the virtues of the bay-tree (_Laurus nobilis_) at considerable length, representing it to be heating and emollient, and hence he says, the decoction of it makes a good hip-bath in diseases of the womb and bladder; the green leaves, he adds, are sub-astringent, and hence prove useful when applied to the stings of wasps and bees. He recommends the berries in phthisis and other complaints of the chest, as alexipharmic, and as forming a good application to leprosy, and as an injection in earache and deafness. The bark, he says, is lithontriptic, kills the fœtus in utero, and proves useful in hepatic diseases. (i, 106.) Galen briefly calls it diuretic and emmenagogue. The Arabians follow Dioscorides. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 444.) The _Laurus_ still holds a place in the Materia Medica, although now seldom used. See Pereira (p. 800.) The concurrent authority of the commentators and herbalists has settled that the Laurus Alexandrina was a species of _Ruscus_, probably the _R. hypophyllum_. The chamædaphne was also a species of _Ruscus_, perhaps the _racemosus_. The daphnoides is generally held to be the mountain laurel of Parkinson, i. e. the _Daphne Alpina_. All the other authorities treat of these plants in nearly the same terms as our author. They are all generally held to be emmenagogue and diuretic.

Δέρμα,

Pellis, _Skin_; that of a sheep newly taken off and still warm, when applied to those who have been scourged with rods, cures them wonderfully. The skin of the hippopotamus, when burnt and triturated with water and applied, disperses hard tubercles. That of the viper, when triturated and applied in cases of alopecia, promotes the growth of the hair in a wonderful degree. The leather of old shoes burnt has desiccative ashes; hence it cures sores in the feet from friction, if not in an inflamed state; and also burns, intertrigo, and protuberances.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. We have mentioned, in the Fourth Book, that the fresh skin of a newly-killed sheep was esteemed an excellent application to parts which had been bruised or cut by scourges. (See Vol. II, 46.) Dioscorides and most of the other authorities recommend the ashes of old shoes in the cases mentioned by our authors. Avicenna recommends the fresh skin of a goat as an application to poisoned wounds. (ii, 2, 539.)

Δίκταμνον,

Dictamnum, _Dittany_, consists of more subtile particles than pennyroyal, but resembles it in other respects. That variety called Pseudo dictamnum is weaker.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. That the Dictamnus Creticus, so celebrated even in poetry (Virg. Æn. xii, 412) as a vulnerary herb, was a species of _Origanum_, has been long known and acknowledged. Until of late years it held a place in our Dispensatories under the name of dittany of Candy. It was always held to be alexipharmic, and as such it is commended by Dioscorides. Such, he adds, is the power of this herb that by the smell and touch it kills venomous reptiles; and the juice of it when poured into a wound inflicted by an iron instrument or the bite of a venomous animal immediately cures it. (iii, 34.) Galen would appear to have been sceptical as to the great medicinal powers said to be inherent in this plant, for he dismisses it with a brief notice to the effect that it is more attenuant than the pennyroyal, but like to it otherwise. See also Celsus (v, 25.) The Arabians follow Dioscorides, and represent it to be diuretic and emmenagogue. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 461) and Serapion (De Simpl. 310.) They describe it along with the pennyroyal. The bastard dittany has been pretty generally recognized as the _Dictamnus Fraxinella_. See Parkinson, Miller, and Pereira (ii, 1652, ed. sec.) The last of these authors remarks regarding it, that “it was formerly much used in medicine, but of late years has fallen into almost total disuse.” Not very many years ago, however, it was in great repute as being diuretic, emmenagogue, alexipharmic, anthelmintic, &c. See Alston’s Lectures (i, 434.) It is still esteemed by the Arabians and Persians as a tonic and stimulant. Ainslie (Mat. Med. 63.)

Διονυσίας,

Dionysias, is treated of under Androsæmum.

Διφρυγὲς,

Diphryges, _Husk of Brass_, is possessed of mixed powers, being somewhat astringent and moderately acrid. It is therefore a good application for malignant ulcers.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Dioscorides gives a very circumstantial description of three varieties of this substance, which for many years has been lost sight of. Matthiolus calls it the Husk of Bronze, and Sprengel says it is called _Kupfermulm_ in Germany. Rutty ranks it among the obsolete medicines of the ancients. (Mat. Med. pr. 27.) Rhases treats of it. (Cont. ult. 256.) See Serapion (c. 418.)

Διψακὸς,

Dipsacus, _Teasel_; the root of this thorn is desiccant in the second degree, and is also somewhat detergent.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. The root of the _Dipsacus fullonum_, or manured teasel, is praised by Dioscorides as an application to fissures and fistulæ of the anus, and it held a reputation in these cases down to a late period. See Rutty (Mat. Med. 168.) Dioscorides further mentions its use as an amulet in quartans, for which also it was long celebrated; for our Quincy speaks of “the superstition of some people of his day in using it as a charm against agues.” (Complete Dispensatory, 117.) For the Arabians, see particularly Serapion (c. 106) and Ebn Baithar. It is not noticed by Hippocrates nor Celsus.

Δορύκνιον,

Dorycnium, _Shrub Trefoil (?)_, is of a similar temperament with the poppy and mandragora, that is, immoderately cold. When taken in a small quantity it occasions torpor, and in larger doses it proves fatal.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. In the Fifth Book we have stated the difficulty of determining what it was. Authorities are divided between the _Convolvulus Dorycnium_ L. (Angl. Shrubby Bindweed), the _Solanum Sodomæum_, and _Atropa Belladonna_. Dioscorides says of it that it is soporific, and when taken in large doses proves fatal; he adds, some affirm that the seed of it is sought after for philtres, or love potions. (iv, 75.) Galen gives nearly the same account of it under the name of _Dorycnidium_. The Arabians would appear not to have admitted it into the Mat. Med., for the Doronicon of Serapion is a different plant. (c. 335.)

Δρακόντιον,

Dracontium, or Dracunculus, _Dragon-herb_, somewhat resembles the Wake-robin (Arum), but is more acrid and bitter than it, and also hotter, and consists of more subtile particles. It has also some astringency. The root of it, therefore, when taken in a potion cleanses the bowels, and is an excellent application to malignant ulcers; and the leaves in like manner. But the fruit of it is stronger.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. We have treated of the Dragon-herb (_Arum Dracunculus_) as an article of food in another place. (Vol. I, p. 114.) Dioscorides gives so circumstantial a description of its medicinal properties that we cannot find space for it. Suffice to say, he uses it internally in diseases of the chest, and as an aphrodisiac, externally, in various cutaneous diseases, in collyria, in injections into the ears, and as an alexipharmic. (ii, 195.) Galen embodies the substance of Dioscorides’s empirical description of its virtues agreeably to his own system, recommending it principally as a deobstruent internally, and an application to sores and cancerous tumours externally. Aëtius also gives an elaborate description of its powers. Oribasius merely states in general terms that it is calefacient and attenuant. Apuleius recommends it for the bite of the asp. Mesue ascribes to it powerfully cathartic and carminative powers. His account of it is very elaborate, and deserving of more attention than we can afford room to bestow upon it. He recommends it in the form of a suppository to relieve hemorrhoids and flatulence. (De Simpl. 24.) Avicenna borrows largely from Dioscorides. (ii, 2, 432.) Rhases copies from Dioscorides, Galen, and Oribasius. (Cont. l. ult. i, 257.) Serapion does the same. (De Simpl. 43.) It remains to be mentioned that Dioscorides, Oribasius, Mesue, and Avicenna, besides the species of dracunculus which we have been treating of, also describe another by the name of the Lesser. It is supposed to be the _Arum Italicum_. The dragon-herb held a place in the Dispensatory down to a very late date. Boerhaave calls it a powerful diuretic and promoter of the menses. Quincy says it is reckoned alexipharmic.

Δρυοπτερὶς,

Dryopteris, _Oak-fern_, is sweet, acrid, and bitterish, and its root has some sourness. It is septic, and hence it is depilatory.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. According to Dierbach, it comprehends both the _Polypodium Dryopteris_ and the _Asplenium Adiantum nigrum_, and this opinion is supported by that of the older authorities. See Parkinson (1042) and Alston (§ 52.) Sprengel refers it to the former. Our author borrows from Dioscorides, and Avicenna does the same. (ii, 2, 219.) Our older herbalists, Parkinson and Gerard, treat of the oak-fern, but it has long ceased to hold a place in our Dispensatory.

Δρῦς,

Quercus, _the Oak_; its leaves and fruit are possessed of desiccant and tepid powers, so as to agglutinate recent wounds and cure incipient inflammations. The membrane under the bark of the acorn which surrounds the fleshy part of the fruit being much more astringent, is given for the female fluor and other diseases attended with discharges.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Dierbach states that three species of the oak with edible roots grow in Greece, the _Quercus Æsculus_, the _Q. Ilex_, and the _Q. Ballote_. He adds, that the first species is generally meant by δρῦς in the Hippocratic writings. Eustathius remarks that the φηγὸς of Homer was a species of oak. (Ad Iliad. v, 691.) In fact, it was the _Quercus æschylus_, or rather comprehend it and the _Q. Robur_. See Parkinson (1389.) After all the illustration which the subject has received from the old herbalists, and more recent commentators on Dioscorides and Theophrastus, it must be admitted that there is still considerable difficulty in determining the various species of oak described by the ancients. Our author borrows his account of the medicinal powers of the oak from Dioscorides, whom all the other authorities also follow. The quercus occurs in the Mat. Med. of Hippocrates, and in those of all the Arabians. We need scarcely add that the _Quercus Robur_ still maintains a place in our Dispensatory.

Ἔβενος,

Ebenus, _Ebeny_; the wood is calefacient, detergent, and consists of subtile particles. Hence it is believed to remove films which obstruct the pupil, and is an ingredient for other ophthalmic remedies.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. The Latin poet Virgil, who applies the term India both to the region of the East, which has always held that name, and to Abyssinia (Georg. iv, 293), says, that India is the only country that produces ebeny. (Georg. ii, 116.) This account of it will still be admitted to be pretty correct. Dr. Royle mentions that “_Diospyros Ebenus_ yields the best kinds in the Mauritius, perhaps also in Madagascar; but _D. ebenaster_ and _D. melanoxylon_, the ebeny trees of the Coromandel coast, yield it in the peninsula, of very good quality, as other species do in other parts of India.” (Hindoo Med. 89.) See Ainslie (Mat. Ind. ii, 48.) In medicine it was principally used in collyria for psorophthalmia and xerophthalmia as recommended by Dioscorides (i, 129), and in old ulcers and watery pustules as recommended by Aëtius (i) and Galen. (De Simpl. vi.) See also Celsus (v, 12.) The Arabians, who must have been still more familiar with it than the Greeks, say of it, in addition, that it is lithontriptic. Rhases (Contin. l. ult. 258), Avicenna (ii, 2, 226), and Serapion (c. 152.) It is still imported to this country, but has long ceased to occupy a place in our Dispensatory.

Ἐγκέφαλον,

Cerebrum, _Brain_; the boiled brains of a hare when rubbed in and eaten, are useful (it is said) for forwarding dentition in infants. Some write that brain when eaten proves useful for tremblings. Dioscorides says that the brain of a cock when drunk with wine relieves those who have been bitten by venomous animals, and that it stops hemorrhages from the meninges. Galen says that the brain of a camel when dried and drunk with vinegar cures epilepsy, and that of the weasel in like manner; that the brain of a swallow with honey is of use in suffusions; while that of sheep when prepared in like manner is an excellent remedy in the dentition of children.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Galen and Serapion treat of the medicinal properties of brains in much the same terms as our author. Indeed our author copies from Galen. Avicenna says brains prove emetic after food, and are useful in the case of a person who has swallowed any poison. (ii, 2, 125.)

Ἐλάια,

Olea, _the Olive_; the green shoots of it are possessed of the same degree of coldness as of astringency; the fruit when perfectly ripe is moderately hot, but the unripe is more astringent and cold. The tear of Ethiopian olive resembling the slender ammoniac, is possessed of detergent powers. It is used, therefore, for cicatrices, albugo, and dimness of vision, and for the pains of the teeth when put into the carious hole. But some say that it is the wild olive that does this. Oil from fully ripe olives is sweet and moderately hot, and rather of a moistening nature. But the unripe has just as much astringency as coldness. The washed is freer from pungency. As to the old, the older it is so much the hotter and more discutient is it, more especially if it consist of subtile particles at first. This is ascertained from its being pure and transparent, and from a small quantity of it being sufficient to anoint a large part of the body, and from its being readily drunk in by the skin. Such in particular is the Sabine. That from the wild olive is at the same time detergent, astringent, and drying, as an oil. Castor oil has the same powers as old oil. The other kinds, such as that of sesame, or of radish and the like, derive peculiar properties from the substance they are formed from.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. We have treated of the olive as an article of food in another place. (Vol. I, 135.) The Ethiopian or wild olive comprehended several species of the _Elæagnus_. The tears of it, mentioned by Dioscorides and our author, and likened to gum ammoniac, are now unknown. Some, as Parkinson remarks, have supposed it our gum elemi, but that is probably a mistake. All the authorities, Greek, Latin, and Arabian, mention it as a sour, astringent medicine. Samonicus calls it “succis oleaster acerbis.” Abu l’Fadli calls it a powerful astringent. (Apud Celsii Hierobot.) The leaves of the cultivated olive Dioscorides says have the same kind of powers as the wild, but in an inferior degree, and hence, from their greater mildness, they are more suitable for ophthalmic remedies; he also recommends the juice of the green olive in pityriasis, psora, and other cutaneous diseases. (i, 136.) We need not follow out what has been written by the others on this subject.

Ἔλαιον. For an account of the oils used by the ancients in the practice of medicine, see in particular Dioscorides (i, 29 et seq.), Galen (De Simpl. vi), and Mesue (De Oleis.) The _Oleum Cicinum_, i. e. oil of the palma christi, now called _castor oil_, is often mentioned by the ancient authors. Dioscorides states that it is purgative and anthelminthic. Aëtius states that _linseed oil_ may often be used instead of it. _Almond oil_ he particularly commends in complaints of the ears. The _oil of Sesame_, he says, resembles common oil, being a gentle purgative; it is the _gingilie_ oil of the modern Hindoos. Serapion recommends the oil of olives as an astringent application to stop profuse perspiration, to remove scabies and other cutaneous complaints on the head, to cure aphthæ and ulcers of the mouth, and for various other complaints. He, however, merely copies from Dioscorides, (i, 136.) But of all the ancient authorities, Mesue is the one who gives the fullest account of the composition and medicinal powers of the oils. Some of them are not described by the Greeks before his time, as far as we know. We shall give a specimen of a few of his prescriptions. His _oil of mandragora_, which he recommends for extinguishing inflammation and procuring sleep, is prepared from equal parts of the juice of its berries and oil of sesame boiled in a double vessel until the juice be evaporated. Add, he says, a little juice and boil again, do so a third time, and lay it aside. For the oil of mandrake a much more complicated receipt is given by Myrepsus (xvi, 50), which held its place in our Pharmacopœia down to the days of Quincy. (Complete Dispensatory, 527.) The _oil of eggs_, which Mesue commends strongly from experience for cleansing the skin, curing cutaneous eruptions, making hair grow, and curing malignant ulcers, he directs to be prepared thus: about thirty yelks of eggs hardened by boiling, and broken down into pieces, are to be fried in an earthen fryingpan that has been leadened, stirring with a wooden or iron ladle until they grow red, and their oil is poured out, which they yield the more largely if compressed with the ladle. This oil of eggs is described in similar terms by Moses Charras, in the Royal Pharmacopœia (p. 200), and is a popular remedy in Scotland to this day. Mesue describes the composition of an oil of frogs, which he recommends much for soothing the pains of arthritis, and the burning heat of ardent fevers, also the oil of vipers, of wolves, and many others, which will be more properly treated of by us in section xx of this Book. The oils are also well described by Aëtius (i) and Myrepsus (De Oleis.)

Ἐλαιόμελι,

Elæomeli, _Honeyed Oil_. In Syria, an oil thicker and sweeter than honey, flows from a certain trunk; when drunk to the amount of two cyathi with a hemina of water, it produces a discharge of crude and bilious matters from the bowels. Those who have taken it become torpid; yet one need not be alarmed, but only rouse them.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Pliny describes it as a natural exudation from trees on the maritime coasts of Syria. He adds, it is fat, thicker than honey, thinner than resin, of a sweet taste, and is used in medicine: “Manat ex arboribus pingue, crassius melle, resina tenuius, sapore dulci, et hoc medicis.” (H. N. xxv, 7.) He states in another place that it is a nauseous purgative. (xxiii, 56.) Dioscorides gives the same account of it as our author, and describes an oil to be prepared from it. Avicenna and Rhases recommend it as an application to ulcerated scabies. It appears singular that this natural substance should have been entirely lost sight of in modern times, inasmuch that unless we adopt the conjecture of Alston, that it was some species of manna, we must admit ourselves entirely ignorant of it.

Ἐλατήριον,

Elaterium; the juice of the fruit of the wild cucumber is so called, being in the second order of calefacients. It promotes the menstrual discharge, and destroys the fœtus when applied in a pessary, by its extreme bitterness. When rubbed in with milk it evacuates by the nose. When administered in an injection, it occasions a discharge downwards of phlegm, and sometimes of blood.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. It would appear that Hippocrates applied the term to all drastic purgatives. See Eustathius, Iliad. (xviii, 564.) By Dioscorides and all subsequent authorities, it is restricted to signify the fecula of the _Momordica Elaterium_, or wild cucumber. It was much used by the ancient physicians in the cure of dropsy, as we have stated in the Third Book. Dioscorides correctly states that it evacuates bile and phlegm, both upwards and downwards. He recommends it particularly in cases attended with difficulty of breathing. As an emetic, he directs us to administer it in oil, or with the ointment of iris. As a purgative, he recommends it to be given with double the quantity of salt and some mustard, in the form of a pill, of the size of a tare. Like our author, he states that it is emmenagogue, and proves fatal to the fœtus when applied in a pessary. Galen and the other authorities on the Materia Medica give it nearly the same characters. Theophrastus states that it is the most durable of all medicines, and that the oldest is the best. (H. P. ix, 14.) It is said by Hippocrates, that if a woman or she-goat, giving suck, partake of elaterium, it will affect her young. (Epid. vi, 5.) Galen in his commentary remarks, that other purgatives have the same effect when given similarly. (Op. t. v, 218, ed. Basil.) The Arabians also show a good practical acquaintance with this substance. Thus, for example, Avicenna praises it strongly in affections of the chest attended with difficulty of breathing, and more especially in cases of dropsy. He recommends it also in the form of a clyster for the cure of diseases of the joints and sciatica, and speaks of a plaster of it for the gout. He directs a pill to be prepared from it with double the quantity of salt. He states correctly that it occasions evacuations of phlegm and blood; that it is diuretic, and emmenagogue, and kills the child in a suppository. (ii, 2, 177.) Mesue also writes of the wild cucumber and elaterium with great precision, recommending the latter internally as an emetic, a phlegmagogue, and a hydragogue, more especially in dropsy. He also recommends it in jaundice, and _engorgement_ of the liver and spleen; and states that it is most beneficial in sciatica when administered in a clyster or applied as a plaster. He speaks highly of the efficacy of the roots of the wild cucumber when applied to the head, in a cataplasm for hemicrania, and as an errhine in the same complaint. (De Simpl. ix.) Serapion also, in treating of the wild cucumber, gives interesting extracts, both from Greek and Arabian authorities, respecting the medicinal powers of elaterium. (De Simpl. 204.) Ebn Baithar gives a most ample account of it. (ii, 276.)

Ἐλάτη,

Abies, _the Fir_; this tree is calefacient and desiccative, like the black poplar. Its resin will be treated of among the resins.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Without doubt it is the _Pinus Abies_, L. The other authorities in general do not treat of it, except under the resinæ. It does not otherwise occur in Dioscorides, Galen, Serapion, or Avicenna.

Ἐλατίνη,

Elatine, _the Toadflax_; this herb is like the Helxine, and is moderately refrigerant and astringent.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. That the Fluellin or Female Speedwell (_Linaria Elatine_) is the elatine of the ancients has been long known and almost generally admitted. See Parkinson, Gerard, Rutty, &c. Dioscorides recommends the leaves with flour for inflammations and running of the eyes, and for dysentery. Pliny, evidently translating Dioscorides, says of the elatine, “eadem cum line semine cocta sorbitionis usu dysenteria liberat.” (H. N. xxvii, 50.) It would appear that it had been omitted by the Arabians. It held a place in our Dispensatory with its ancient character down to a late period. See Parkinson, Gerard, Quincy, Rutty, and Hill.

Ἐλαφόβοσκος,

Pabulum cervi (_Parsnip?_), is of heating and drying powers in the second degree, and consists of subtile particles.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Our older herbalists and commentators are pretty well agreed in holding it to be the garden parsnip (_Pastinaca sativa_.) Dioscorides pronounces it to be alexipharmic, and Aëtius does the same. The other authorities treat very briefly of it. Avicenna calls the _Pastinaca_ aphrodisiacal, and this reputation it maintained down to modern times. See Quincy.

Ἐλελίσφακος,

Salvia, _Sage_, is decidedly calefacient and subastringent.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. The sage (_Salvia officinalis_) has held a place in the Materia Medica from the earliest ages down to our times. Dioscorides calls it diuretic, emmenagogue, alexipharmic, and vulnerary. The other Greek authorities, like our author, speak more moderately in its praise. The Arabians who treat of it follow Dioscorides. See Serapion (De Simpl. 153.) In modern times it was at one period held in much esteem. See Quincy. It is retained in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia (p. 142.)

Ἑλένιον,

Inula, _Elecampane_ (?); it is calefacient and desiccative with some recrementitious humidity. When mixed with linctuses it promotes expectoration, and it acts as a rubefacient to the parts it is applied to.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. All the other authorities give the elecampane (_Inula Helenium_) much the same characters as our author. Dioscorides says the root is calefacient, and proves diuretic and emmenagogue; that in a linctus, with honey, it is useful in coughs, orthopnœa, and the like; and, further, that it is carminative and alexipharmic. The leaves he recommends in a cataplasm with wine for ischiatic disease, and in powder for hæmoptysis. (i, 27, 28.) Galen’s character of it mainly agrees with that of Dioscorides, that is to say, he recommends elecampane, internally, in chest complaints, and externally as a rubefacient in sciatica, hemicrania, and a disposition of the joints to dislocation. The Arabians give it all the characters ascribed to it by the Greeks, namely, of being diuretic, emmenagogue, expectorant, carminative, alexipharmic, and rubefacient externally; and, further, hold of themselves that it is cordial. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 235), and Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 237.) Serapion gives us the following extract from Hunain’s ‘Translation of Hippocrates’ (Hunain ex verbo Hippocratis): “Elecampane drives away anger and sorrow, strengthens the mouth of the stomach, clears the chest, expels the superfluities in the veins by the menses and urine, and more especially a wine made from it.” (De Simpl. 138.) In fact, as we ought perhaps to have mentioned, the helenium is a Hippocratic herb. (Nat. Mul. 572, ed. Foës.) It was also well known to Celsus (v, 11 et alibi.) The elecampane still retains its place in our Dispensatory and also in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia (p. 76.) The other species described by Dioscorides as the Egyptian elecampane, and which he recommends solely as being alexipharmic, is held by Sprengel to be the _Teucrium Marum_. Parkinson, however, supported by high authority, seems to make out a strong case for the _Cistus Helianthemum_, or rock rose (p. 655.) Old Gerard, on the other hand, adopts the opinion of those commentators who referred it to the _Marum_. (p. 67.) The _Teucrium Marum_ also holds a place in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia.

Ἐλεοσέλινον,

Apium palustre, _Marsh Parsley_; being formed in wet places, it has the same properties as the cultivated parsley, and is larger than it.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. The smallage (_Apium graveolens_) is briefly treated of by the other authorities. We need scarcely say that it is still retained in our Dispensatory. See Quincy.

Ἐλέφας,

Elephas, _the Elephant_; the parings from its hoof, when applied in a cataplasm, cure whitlow; and those of the bones and teeth of it, being of a drying and detergent nature, are mixed with similar medicines.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Dioscorides in like manner recommends a cataplasm prepared with the shavings from the _elephant’s_ hoofs in cases of paronychia. Most of the other authorities would appear not to have treated of it. Ivory shavings were retained in the Dispensatory until late years. See Quincy.

Ἑλκυσματα τοῦ ἀργύρου,

Recrementum argenti, _the Dross of Silver_, has the same powers as the molybdæna, for it is astringent and epispastic, hence it is mixed with the plasters called Fusca and Epulotic.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. What the _Scoriæ argenti_ are will be readily understood from the following description of the process of extracting silver from the ores of it: “These ores are extremely hard, and also mixed with bituminous, sulphureous, arsenical, or vitriolic substances, which carry off with them a considerable part of the silver, or burn it to _scoriæ_ along with themselves.” Geoffroy, &c. (p. 272, Engl. ed.) Our author copies almost verbatim from Dioscorides, and the other Greek authorities supply nothing additional under this head. Aëtius treats of the _scoriæ_ in general terms, as we shall see in the proper place, and merely says of the _Scoriæ argenti_ that they are possessed of desiccative powers. Of the Arabians, Avicenna, in treating of this article, borrows every word from the Greeks. (ii, 2, 693.) Serapion quotes an Arabian authority, Adamasti, to the effect that the scoria argenti is of use in cardiac disease (c. 415.) Rhases, after quoting from Galen, Dioscorides, and Paulus, gives the opinions of two Arabian authorities, Damas (?) and Chuz, the former to the effect that it is useful in palpitation of the heart and fetor of the mouth, and the other, that it cures scabies and pruritus. (Cont. l. ult. i, 74.)

Ἐλλέβορος,

Helleborus, _Hellebore_; both kinds are calefacient and desiccative in the third degree. It (the white) is also acrid and detergent; and hence it agrees with leprous affections of the skin. The black, when introduced into fistulæ, makes the callus cast off in three days.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Those who wish to see the general literature of this interesting article may find our opinions briefly stated under the proper head in the Appendix to Dunbar’s ‘Lexicon.’ In this place it will be sufficient to mention that we have come to the conclusion that the Helleborus albus of the ancients was identical with our _Veratrum album_. Hippocrates makes mention of both species; when he simply uses the term helleborus, he means the white, as in Aphor. v, 1, and iv, 15, 16. He also recommends the _niger_ as well as the _albus_ in melancholy and quartans (Epist. 1288, ed. Foës.) Aretæus, at the conclusion of his work, as it has come down to us, pronounces a strong eulogy on hellebore, which he calls the great remedy in cases of elephantiasis. Dioscorides recommends it as an emetic, emmenagogue, and sternutatory. (iv, 148-9.) Mesue and Serapion mention it as an emetic, but concur with Hippocrates in stating that it sometimes induces convulsions if administered unguardedly. Haly Abbas gives exactly the same account of it. Averrhoes mentions that in his time the _Lapis lazuli_ was used as a purgative in place of hellebore. (v, 42.) Rhases concurs with the Greek authorities in praising its effects for the cure of epilepsy, melancholy, arthritis, and mania. Macer Floridus praises it in the cure of epilepsy, mania, quartans, &c. We would now beg to be allowed to depart from our general rule, and to quote some modern opinions in illustration of the ancient on this important subject,—the more important from hellebore forming, as is supposed, one of the ingredients in the celebrated patent medicine _eau médicinale_. Conrad Gesner, an upright and learned physician, as Bergius calls him, had great confidence in the white hellebore, which he took himself, and administered freely to his patients with great success. He says of it, “recreat et roborat, et hilariorem facit, et acuit ingenium, quod in me et aliis sæpissime expertus scribo. Ego, si vixero, in ellebori historiâ multa proferam quæ medici admirentur.” The following is his formula for preparing it: ℞ Hell. alb. dr. ij, vini cretici oz. vj, stent in maceratione, per mensem, additis, si placet, aromatibus. Of this preparation, from 6 to 9 scr. were given according to circumstances. Baglivi calls hellebore the “Hercules remediorum, pluriumque domitor incurabilium morborum.” Platearius, treating of hellebore, says that the ancients used it as a purge, in like manner as scammony is now used, for that men’s bodies, in former times, were stronger than now; such a medicine would require to be given with great caution. He says of it, that it purges phlegm and black bile. The white, he adds, is a more violent medicine than the black. (De Simplici Medicina.) For a great many years past, with the exception of the partial administration of the _eau médicinale_ in cases of gout, the internal use of the veratrum may be said to have been quite lost in the practice of medicine, and that, not only in this country, but also in the land of Hippocrates and Dioscorides. In the modern Greek Pharmacopœia it is directed to be kept as a poison. (p. 76.) Mesue, Serapion, and many of the authorities recommend the black hellebore in melancholy. That it was either the _Helleborus niger_, or the species _orientalis_, Tournefort, and not the _Veratrum album_ which was commonly administered in Anticyra, in cases of mania and melancholy, is clearly proved from Dioscorides (iv, 149.) He further states of it that, applied _per vaginam_, it procures menstruation, and kills the fœtus; he recommends it for the cure of scabies, alphos, lichen, and leprosy; he also speaks favorably of it as an external application to fistulæ, dropsies, toothache, and diseases of the ears. Galen recommends both species equally in nearly the same class of complaints. Notwithstanding the high authority of Pereira, who maintains the contrary, we do not see the least reason to doubt that the _black hellebore_ of the ancients was our _Helleborus niger_, or Christmas rose. See Gerard (Paradisus, p. 386) and Parkinson (p. 211.) Without doubt it was introduced into this country by the Romans for their _H. niger_. The _H. officinalis_, Salisb., which Dr. Sibthorp brings forward in its place, is a distinct species. See Alston’s Lectures (42); also the Greek Pharmacopœia, Athens, 1837, (p. 77.)

Ἐλίχρυσον,

Elichrysum, _Shrubby Everlasting_ or _Eternal Flower_ (called also Chrysanthemon and Amarantum), is a plant used for garlands, having capillary leaves of a golden appearance. When drunk with wine it is suitable for dysuria, the bites of reptiles, ischiatic disease, and fractures. It also promotes menstruation, and dissolves coagula when drunk with wine and honey, and relieves catarrhs.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Linnæus makes the ancient Helichrysum identical with his _Gnaphalium_. (Gener. Plant. 946.) Accordingly Sprengel, in his R. H. H., refers it, with Cordus and Sibthorp, to the _Gnaphalium Stæchas_. But in his edition of Dioscorides he rather inclines to the _Tanacetum annuum_. Dr. Hill says of the tansy: “It has been greatly celebrated as an uterine, a vulnerary, and a diuretic. It is recommended in suppressions of the menses, and in cases of the gravel, and other nephritic complaints.” This agrees so well with the characters of the elechrysus as given by Dioscorides and Paulus, that we are inclined to identify this article with the _Tanacetum annuum_. It is proper to admit, however, that the virtues which Dioscorides ascribes to the elechrysus are ascribed by old Gerard to the cudweed. It is one of those articles in the ancient Materia Medica which can never be satisfactorily determined. See further, Parkinson (p. 695) and Lewis’s Dispensatory (i, 411.)

Ἑλξίνη,

Helxine, or Parietaria, _Pellitory of the Wall_ (called also Perdicium, Parthenium, Sideritis, and Heraclea); its powers are detergent and slightly astringent, with a coldish humidity. The Helxine, called also Cissampelos, is possessed of discutient powers.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. This is evidently the second species of Dioscorides (iv, 86), who represents the leaves as being cooling and astringent, and consequently proving a suitable cataplasm in cases of erysipelas, burning, and other inflammations, and as proving useful in chronic coughs, inflammations of the tonsils, and so forth. That this plant is the pellitory of the wall (_Parietaria officinalis_) has been long pretty generally acknowledged. See Parkinson, Gerard, and Sprengel. Galen ascribes the same medicinal virtues to it as Dioscorides; and Aëtius and Oribasius treat of it in nearly the same terms. It is the muralis of Celsus, who recommends the juice of it, added to ceruse, as an application to the gout. (iv, 24.) It may be proper to mention that Dioscorides (l. c.), Pliny (H. N. xxii, 19), and Apuleius (81), also recommend it as an application in cases of gout. The Arabians give the pellitory exactly the same characters as the Greeks do. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 335) and Rhases (Cont. l. ult. 536.) The Arabians call it herba vitri, because glass vessels were cleaned with it. It is now excluded from the Dispensatory, but held a place in it down to a late date. See Quincy, Hill, and Rutty. That the former species of helxine described by Dioscorides was a species of _Convolvulus_ has long been known. See Matthiolus and Parkinson. Dodonæus makes it the _niger_, and Sprengel the _arvensis_. Dioscorides briefly states of its medicinal virtues, that it is laxative. (iv, 39.) It is not treated of, as far as we have discovered, by Galen, Aëtius, or Oribasius. The Arabians treat of it as a species of _Volubilis_, by the name of _acfin_. See Serapion (De Simpl. 41); Mesue (De Simpl. 24.) Both agree with Dioscorides in making it to be laxative. See further APP.

Ἔλυμος ἤ Μελίνη,

Panicum, _Panic_, is, like millet, desiccative and refrigerant in its powers when applied externally. It also dries up alvine fluxes.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Panic, as Miller remarks, is a plant of the millet kind. It is the _Panicum Italicum_. It is more an article of food than of medicine. We have treated of it accordingly in the part of this work devoted to Dietetics. See Vol. I, 124.

Ἔμπετρον ἤ Πρασσοδὲς,

Empetron, _Black-berried Heath_, is a medicine which purges phlegm and bile. It is also saltish and therefore, detergent.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. It is not well determined whether it be a species of _Crithmum_, _Herniaria_, or _Salsola_. Dioscorides makes it to be a purger of phlegm, bile, and water; and all the other authorities, both Greek and Arabian, give it the same characters in the main. It does not appear that the Arabians have noticed it; neither do we find it in the works of Hippocrates or Celsus. In the modern Greek Pharmacopœia it is set down as being the _Pimpinella Saxifraga_.

Ἐπίθυμον,

Epithymum (vel Cuscuta minor?) _Dodder of Thyme_, is desiccant and calefacient in the third degree, being more drastic than thyme.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Dioscorides says of the _Cuscuta Epithymus_, or lesser dodder of thyme, that it purges phlegm and black bile, and agrees particularly with melancholic and flatulent cases. (iv, 176.) Aëtius, likewise, calls it a melanogogue medicine. Galen and Oribasius give exactly the same character of it as our author. Serapion gives a most graphic description of this singular parasitic plant, in the present instance quoting solely from Arabian authorities. They agree in general that it is deobstruent, cathartic, and emmenagogue, and join in recommending it particularly in jaundice, obstructions of the liver and spleen, and in the fevers of children. (De Simpl. 39.) Mesue, also, gives nearly the same characters of it; he mentions of it that it is a weak and slow purge, unless taken in a large dose, and, therefore, he recommends it to be given with Indian myrobalans, black hellebore, mulse, salts, or the like. (16.) See also Avicenna (ii, 2, 226) and Rhases (Cont. 270.) It held a place in our Dispensatory, with the character of being a cleanser, down to a late period. See Rutty (Materia Medica, p. 80.); Quincy (Complete Engl. Dispens. p. 117.)

Ἐπιμήδιον,

Epimedium, _Barren Wort_; its powers are moderately refrigerant, with a watery humidity. When applied in the form of a cataplasm it preserves the breasts in a right state. It is also said to prevent conception when taken in a draught.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Our author borrows his description of the Epimedium Alpinum, or Barren Wort, from Dioscorides; and none of the others supply any additional information respecting it.

Ἐπιμηλὶς,

Epimelis, _Crab-tree_, called also Unedo by the Italian husbandmen. It is a sort of wild apple, the fruit of which, being sour, is bad for the stomach, and occasions headache.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. It appears, from Dioscorides (i, 170), that it is a species of Medlar. Probably, then, it was the _Mespilus Germanica_. Dioscorides, Galen, and all the other authorities that treat of it give it the same character as our author. As a medicine, it has the same characters as the other Medlars.

Ἐπιπακτὶς,

Epipactis (called also Helleborine, or _Bastard Hellebore_), is drunk as an antidote for deadly poisons, and for diseases of the liver.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. The older herbalists, supported by the authority of Anguillara, incline to refer this article to the genus _Herniaria_, or Rupture Wort. The epipactis, it would seem, is still in great repute throughout Greece, as being alexipharmic, and curing complaints of the liver. Our author and all the others who notice it take its medicinal characters from Dioscorides. (iv, 107.) As far as we have been able to discover, it is not noticed by Hippocrates, Celsus, nor any of the Arabians.

Ἐρέβίνθος,

Cicer, _Vetch_ or _Chick-pea_, a common kind of pulse; is flatulent, nutritious, a proper medicine for the bowels, diuretic, engenders milk and semen, and proves emmenagogue. The kind called Arietinum is more diuretic than the others. A decoction of them, more especially the black sort, breaks down stones in the kidneys. The species called Ervinum, is hotter than the others, and bitterish. The wild are in every respect stronger than the cultivated.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. It comprehends several species of the Cicer. The κριὸς is undoubtedly the _Cicer arietanum_. The two other species cannot be so readily determined. Probably they are but varieties produced by cultivation. We have treated of them among the articles of food, in the 79th section of the First Book. As a medicine, Dioscorides recommends them especially in a cataplasm for inflammations of the testicles, scabies, achor, lichen, cancerous and ill-conditioned ulcers. All kinds of vetches, he says, are diuretic, and prove useful when given with rosemary, for jaundice and dropsy. (ii, 126.) Galen gives the chiches the same character, and further holds them to be lithontriptic. (De Simpl. v.) Aëtius follows him closely. (i.) The Arabians in addition say that chiches are anthelminthic, diuretic, and purgative, and that they are useful in arthritic diseases. See Serapion (80); Avicenna (ii, 2, 128); and Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 209.) Avicenna, in particular, gives a long list of their medicinal virtues. In addition to those already stated, he joins Hippocrates in holding chiches to be aphrodisiacal; and hence he says procreating animals, such as camels, are fed with them. He joins the others in holding them to be deobstruent, lithontriptic, cathartic, and diuretic. Chiches long held a place in our Dispensatory with the characters given to them by Dioscorides and Avicenna. See Quincy (111) and Rutty (122.) Three sorts were used in modern as in ancient times, namely, the white, the red, and the black, but, as Quincy remarks, their medicinal virtues are all pretty much the same.

Ἔρια,

Lana, _Wool_; that which is unscoured is useful for embrocations, for the Œsypum is digestive, like butter. That which is scoured is simply the vehicle for other applications. That which is burnt has acrid, hot, and desiccative powers, with some tenuity of parts so as to melt down the flaccid flesh of ulcers.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Dioscorides, Galen, Serapion, and the other authorities give nearly the same account of the medicinal properties of wool.

Ἐρίκη,

Erica, _Heath_, is possessed of discutient powers without pungency. Its flower and leaves are principally to be used.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. Sprengel and Schneider agree that it is the _Erica arborea_, but the description of it given by Dioscorides, namely, that “it is like the tamarisk but much smaller,” would rather seem to apply to one of the lesser species. Dioscorides commends it as an application to the bites of reptiles. (i, 116.) Our author copies from Galen. The Arabians, with the exception of Ebn Baithar, would appear not to have treated of it, and it has not held a place in our Dispensatory for a long time past. The old herbalists, copying from the ancient authorities, ascribe to the heath the virtues which Dioscorides and Galen held it to be possessed of.

Ἔρινος,

Erinos, _Water-basil_, is an aquatic herb, two drachms of the fruit of which with four drachms of honey, when rubbed in stops defluxions of the eyes. Its juice is also a remedy for earache.

* * * * *

COMMENTARY. That it is a species of _Campanula_ has been long agreed upon. Columna held it to be the _C. Rapunculus_ or _Rampions_, but Sprengel names it _C. Erinus_. It is the _echinos_ of Galen, as is obvious from the similarity of the descriptions of the two articles. Few of the other authorities notice it. Our author merely abridges Dioscorides (iv, 29.) The rapunculus or rampion is still cultivated as a salad. See Loudon (Encycl. of Garden. 734.)

Ἑρμοδάκτυλος,

Hermodactylus, _Hermodactyl_; the root of it is possessed of purgative properties, and also the decoction. It is given for affections of the joints in rheumatism, but it is bad for the stomach.

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COMMENTARY. We cannot afford room here to discuss fully the much agitated question respecting the ancient hermodactylus, and beg to refer to what we have said on the subject in the Appendix to Dunbar’s Lexicon. See also particularly the commentators on Mesue and Dioscorides. It is to be remarked that our author has entirely omitted to notice the Κολχικὸν of Dioscorides by name, and that the only article which he has in place of it is the Ἑρμ. This is a presumptive proof of the identity of these two medicines. Serapion moreover, in his chapter on Hermodactylus, gives the words of our author in this place along with Dioscorides’s account of the colchicum. Accordingly, Bergius, Tournefort, Humelbergius, and Geoffroy are decidedly of opinion that they were identical. Prosper Alpinus, in like manner, says of it “hermodactylus qui est radix colchici Græcorum.” (De Med. Meth. iii, 9.) See also Hill’s Mat. Med. On this side of the question we further beg to quote the authority of Dr. Paris: “The active ingredient of the _Eau médicinale_ has been discovered to be the _Colchicum Autumnale_ or meadow-saffron; upon investigating the properties of this medicine, it was observed that similar effects in the cure of the gout were ascribed to a certain plant called hermodactylus by Oribasius and Aëtius (Paulus _Æg._?), but more particularly by Alexander of Tralles, a physician of Asia Minor, in the fourth century; an inquiry was accordingly instituted after this unknown plant, and upon procuring a specimen of it from Constantinople it was actually found to be a species of colchicum.” (Pharmacologia, 58.) We have already given a full account of the administration of hermodactylus in gout. (