Lentes, Lentils, (?) are desiccants of the second order, being intermediate as to cooling and heating qualities. They have also some astringency. They therefore dry the body and bind the belly; but the decoction loosens it. The first water, therefore, is thrown away when it is taken to restrain the bowels. The Lens palustris, Duck-meat, moistens and refrigerates in the second order.
Commentary. See Book I, 79. It is, undoubtedly, the Cicer Lens. The Lens palustris is the Lemna minor, Angl. Duck-meat. Our author borrows from Dioscorides, who treats of the virtues of the lentil more fully than it would seem to deserve. It is simply a vegetable astringent. (ii, 129.) The other authorities treat of both in the same terms as our author. See in particular Avicenna (ii, 2, 711); Serapion (c. 9.)
Phalaris; the juice, leaves, and seed, when drunk, relieve pains of the bladder. They are also remarkable for some tenuity of parts, and are of a heating nature.
Commentary. Sibthorp refers it to the Phalaris Canariensis. Our author borrows its medicinal character from Dioscorides (iii, 149), and the same is repeated by Galen and all the authorities who treat of it. None of the Arabians, as far as we can discover, have noticed it, except Ebn Baithar, who, in describing it, merely gives extracts from Dioscorides and Galen. It would appear, that in the shops of the apothecaries, it still is kept, and is reputed to be useful in pains of the bladder. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 18.)
Phalangitis, Spiderwort, is so named because it is a remedy for the bites of the venomous spiders called phalangia. It also consists of subtile parts, and hence is supposed to prove a remedy in cases of tormina.
Commentary. According to Sibthorp, it is the Anthericum Græcum. Our author, like Galen and the other authorities that treat of it, copies almost word for word from Dioscorides. (iii, 112.) Ebn Baithar, in describing it, merely gives extracts from Dioscorides and Galen. It does not appear to be noticed by the Arabians. It has been scarcely known in modern practice, and yet the Anthericum Liliastrum is still kept in the shops and retains the name of spiderwort, with the reputation of being useful against the bites of scorpions. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 22.)
Suber, Cork, and particularly that from wine-vessels, when burnt has very desiccative ashes. This is mixed up especially with dysenteric remedies.
Commentary. Theophrastus gives an accurate description of the Quercus Suber. (H. P. iii, 16.) Cork, as Pliny states, is formed from its bark. He recommends its ashes or charcoal in hemorrhages. (H. N. xxiv, 8.) Q. Serenus recommends it in the same cases. (c. 22.) Dioscorides does not describe this article. Galen also omits it in his list of simples, but briefly notices it in a preliminary book (v), and recommends the burnt cork of a wine-cask as an astringent. (De Comp. med. sec. loc. v.) We have not been able to trace it in the works of the Arabians.
Phillyrea, Mock Privet; the leaves of the tree are astringent like those of the wild olive. They relieve ulcers in the mouth when chewed, and when the mouth is rinsed with a decoction of them. When drunk they prove diuretic and emmenagogue.
Commentary. Stackhouse and Sprengel agree that it is the Phillyrea latifolia L. Our author copies its medicinal characters literally from Dioscorides. (i, 125.) None of the other Greek authorities on the Mat. Med. have described it. Neither can we find traces of it in the works of any of the Arabians, except Ebn Baithar, who gives nothing of any moment under this head but a translation of the chapter of Dioscorides referred to above. It certainly is not the Mahaleb of the Arabians, as we shall show in the Appendix.
Verbascum, Petty Mullein; there are many species, among which is that called Thryalis. The leaves of all the kinds are possessed of desiccative and moderately detergent powers, and especially that with the golden flower. Being sour they suit with all sorts of fluxes. Some also rinse the teeth with them.
Commentary. It cannot be doubted that the genus is referable to the Verbascum, but the species cannot be well determined. See Sibthorp (Flora Græca), and Sprengel (ad Dioscor. iv, 102.) The white female Phlomos would appear to be the Verbascum Thapsus, and the black is indisputably the Verbascum nigrum. The Phlomis Lychnitis of Dioscorides is probably the V. Lychnitis. The other species cannot be determined with any degree of certainty. Our author abridges the medicinal characters given to them by Dioscorides. (l. c.) Galen also, as well as Aëtius and Oribasius, borrow freely from Dioscorides. The mullein occurs in the Hippocratic treatises (Morb. Mulier.), but we do not find it in the works of Celsus. Pliny describes the verbascum in nearly the same terms as Dioscorides. (H. N. xxv, 74.) See also Apuleius (De Herbis, 71.) The Arabians follow Dioscorides in delivering its medicinal properties. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 98); Ebn Baithar (i, 184.) The verbascum held a place in the Dispensatory as late as the time of Lewis. (ii, 417.) The V. Thapsus, nigrum, and Lychnitis, although now rejected from our Dispensatory, are still retained in the shops. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 91.) It is said that the juice of their leaves, which is acrid and bitterish, is used to poison mice and fish. Lindley (Veg. King. 683.) In the modern Greek Pharmacopœia, both the Verbascum Thapsus and thapsiforme stand for the female phlomos. (166.)
(Called by some Rhus), is a herb like the Darnel. It has astringent powers, and when drunk with austere wine stops all fluxes.
Palma, the Palm-tree, has a fruit which, when ripe, is moderately hot, stomachic, and tonic, when taken internally or applied externally. The rest of the palm-tree is sufficiently astringent, and hence is mixed up as an ingredient with stomach and liver remedies. But the most astringent part is the involucrum or cover, as it were, of the fruit while growing.
Commentary. The herb is undoubtedly the Lolium perenne. The tree is the Phœnix Dactylifera. We would refer to the ‘Hierobotanicon’ of Olaus Celsius and our own article on this head, in the Appendix to Dunbar’s Greek Lexicon, for the general literature of this interesting subject. We need not dwell particularly on the medicinal virtues of the herb, as all the authorities are agreed that it is applicable in such cases as astringents are indicated. See in particular Dioscorides (iv, 43.) A decoction of different parts of the palm-tree was much used by the ancient physicians as an astringent. Pliny recommends it particularly in discharges from the uterus and bowels. (H. N. xxiii, 53.) He borrows, however, from Dioscorides, who recommends it as an astringent in these and various other cases, such as hemorrhoids and wounds; he adds, however, that they induce headaches, and when eaten in great quantity intoxicate and that the dried dates when eaten are useful in hæmoptysis, stomachic and dysenteric diseases, and complaints of the bladder, when applied in a powder as a cataplasm with the quince and cerate of wild vine-flowers. (i, 148.) Celsus recommends a decoction of dates as an astringent gargle. (v, 22, 9.) Galen has a most interesting article on the palm, which he recommends in general as being possessed of an astringent quality, in hepatic and stomachic affections, both internally and externally. Serapion, Mesue, and Rhases likewise recommend it in such cases. Rhases gives a most copious account of this subject borrowed from various sources. One of his authorities says, dates spoil the teeth and create obstructions in the liver and spleen. Another says they create semen, and are useful in phthisis. (Cont. l. ult. i, 531.) Avicenna recommends them generally as astringents, and particularly in fluxes of the womb and in hemorrhoids. (ii, 2, 87.) Ebn Baithar copies mostly from Rhases under this head. (i, 211, 496.) The composition of palm-oil is described by Dioscorides. (i, 54.) It is the only preparation from the palm which is now retained in the Pharmacopœia.
Phormium, is possessed of attenuating, detergent, and attractive powers. Its seed, therefore, attenuates leucoma, and extracts sharp-pointed weapons of wood.
Commentary. Our author’s account of it is taken from Galen. It would appear to be a variety of the ὅρμινον, i. e. Salvia Horminum L., Purple-top Clary, as is stated by Sprengel. (Notæ in Dioscor. iii, 135.) We can find nothing interesting regarding it in the other authorities.
Valeriana, Valerian, has a root which resembles the nard, but is weaker for most purposes, only it is more diuretic like Celtic.
Commentary. It is the Valeriana officinalis, or perhaps the V. Dioscoridis. We have mentioned already that the ancient nards were various species of valerian. All the ancient authorities describe it as being diuretic and emmenagogue. See in particular Dioscorides (i, 10.) Galen ascribes to it diuretic powers (De Simpl. viii), and Pliny emmenagogue (H. N. xxi, 80.) The Arabians give it the same characters. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 255); Serapion (De Simpl. 62); Ebn Baithar (ii, 265.) Bergius in like manner states its virtues thus: “Virtus: emmenagoga, abortiens, diuretica, sanguinem amovens.” See also Rutty (Mat. Med.) Recent authorities, however, are not so lavish in its praises. See Pereira (971.)
Folium, Leaf, the leaf of the Malabathrum, which has been already treated of.
Commentary. Apicius, in like manner, uniformly calls the leaf of the Malabathrum by the name of Folium. We still incline to the opinion which we deliberately formed and expressed some years ago, that it was the leaf of the cassia or wild cinnamon tree. We refer to a learned disquisition on it by Olaus Celsius, in his ‘Hierobotanicon,’ and to Geoffroy (Treatise on Fossil, Veg., and Anim. Subst. 318.) The φ. of Dioscorides is quite a different substance, being the same as the λινόζωστις, which see.
Fucus marinus, Seaweed, cools and dries in the second order, having also a moderate degree of astringency.
Commentary. Various species of Fuci are described by Theophrastus and Dioscorides, but so briefly, that it is scarcely possible to determine them exactly. It is deserving of remark, however, that Galen, Aëtius, and Oribasius describe a species of Fucus, under the head of Ceruse, which is therefore supposed to have been a preparation of lead. The article, however, which our author here treats of is unquestionably the vegetable, as is evident from Aëtius. (p. 24, ed. Ald.) Dioscorides says it is possessed of an astringent power, which is efficacious in cataplasms for the cure of gouty affections and inflammations. These plants are to be used in a moist state before they are dried. He adds, that Nicander says the purple fucus is theriacal, and that some persons took its root to be the fucus which women use for painting their face., (iv, 98.) Pliny gives a very similar description of the “Phycos thalassion, id est, Fucus marinus.” (H. N. xxvi, 66.) Galen treats of it in nearly the same language as our author. It would appear to be the Muscus marinus of Avicenna, who borrows the description which he gives of it from Dioscorides, (ii, 2, 452, and 711.) Our old English herbalists, Parkinson and Gerard, repeat the characters given to the fuci by the ancients, but these articles were long omitted from our Dispensatories, until of late some of them were readmitted, when it was ascertained that they contained iodine. We have known old practitioners, who used the Fucus vesiculosus, or Sea Wrack, very extensively as an application to scrofulous sores. See further Pereira (562), and Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 7.) Beckmann gives a very ingenious disquisition on the Phycos thalassion of the ancients, which he makes out to have been our Archil or Lichen roccella, a sea-weed which has been extensively used, both in ancient and in modern times for the dyeing of wool. (History of Inventions.) It must be to it that Horace alludes when he speaks of “lana medicata fuco,” in his famous ode on Regulus.
Phyllites, Hart’s Tongue, is somewhat sour, and from this quality it naturally proves a remedy for diarrhœa when drunk.
Commentary. There seems little reason to doubt that it is the Scolopendrium officinale, or Spleenwort. It is the Lingua Cervina of Parkinson (Theatre of Plants, 1047.) Both Galen and Dioscorides, like our author, recommend it in fluxes of the bowels, as being possessed of astringent powers. It is not met with in the works either of Hippocrates or Celsus. It was retained in the Dispensatory in the time of Quincy (88, 123), and even at the present day it is not an entire stranger to the shops. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 12.)
Galbanum, is heating almost in the third degree, and is desiccative almost in the second, being possessed of emollient and discutient powers.
Commentary. Dioscorides says of Galbanum, that it is the juice of a Ferula growing in Syria, by some called metopium. Pliny describes it thus: “Quod maxime laudant, cartilaginosum, purum, ad similitudinem Hammoniaci.” Now, in Dr. Duncan’s edition of the Edinburgh Dispensatory (1811), it is said in like manner that “Galbanum agrees in virtue with gum ammoniac;” and from this casual coincidence in the descriptions of the ancient and modern galbanums, we infer their identity. It would appear to be now settled, that galbanum is the product of different umbellifers, the most common of which is the Opoidia galbanifera. See the late publications of Royle, Lindley, and Pereira. Dioscorides describes it as being possessed of a heating, fiery, epispastic, and discutient power, in pessaries and fumigations as promoting menstruation and the expulsion of the fœtus; he recommends it externally, for furunculi and other complaints of the skin, and internally for chronic coughs, dyspnœa, asthma, ruptured and sprained parts; its vapour rouses in cases of epilepsy, hysteria, and vertigo, and drives away venomous animals. It is used in toothache for filling the hollow of the teeth. (iii, 87.) Galen and the other Greek authorities treat of it in general terms, like our author. It occurs in the works of Hippocrates, and in those of Celsus, who recommends it in nearly the same cases as Dioscorides, as in furunculus, difficulty of breathing, and so forth. (See v, 18, et pluries.) For the Arabians, see Avicenna (ii, 2, 312); Serapion (c. 320.) They borrow their account of its medicinal virtues from Dioscorides, recommending it as an alexipharmic, an application to tumours, and a remedy in certain diseases of the chest. Avicenna says it is less powerful than sagapenum. The Arabian authorities of Ebn Baithar do not supply anything of much importance in addition to what is furnished by Dioscorides and Galen.
Chalcitis, is possessed of astringent, acrid, caustic, and escharotic powers. In subtility of particles it is intermediate between misy and sori; but when burnt its parts become still finer.
Commentary. We will first give an abstract of the information furnished by the ancient authorities themselves regarding this much-disputed article in their Materia Medica, and reserve what we have to say as to the substance itself to the conclusion. Galen is the author who has given the fullest account of the nature and formation of the misy, sori, and chalcitis (see Opera, ed. Basil, T. ii, 127); but as his description of them is lengthy, we prefer giving the abstract of the same furnished by Aëtius. It is to be borne in mind then that what follows is upon the authority of Galen, who visited the copper-mines of Cyprus for the express purpose of ascertaining the nature of the misy, sori, and chalcitis. “At the mine in Cyprus, in the mountains of the Soli, there was a great cave dug in the mountain, at the right side of which, that is to say, on our left hand as we entered, there was a passage into the mine in which I saw certain specimens of the three substances stretched upon one another like zones, the lowest being that of sori, upon it chalcitis, and then that of misy. In process of time the chalcitis changes into misy by degrees, and the sori can change into chalcitis, but requires a much longer space of time. So that it is no wonder that these three substances should be possessed of homogeneous (similar) powers, as differing from one another only in tenuity and density of their parts, the grossest being the sori, and the finest the misy, whereas chalcitis possesses an intermediate power. When burnt they become more attenuant, but less styptic.” (p. 30, ed. Aldi.) Galen (l. c.) states distinctly that the misy is an efflorescence which forms upon the chalcitis, similar to the verdigris which forms upon copper (or bronze), and that the three substances in question are convertible into one another. He also states that a specimen of chalcanthos, when long kept, turns to chalcitis. Pliny gives a very confused account of the misy, sori, and chalcitis, which betrays evident marks of a very imperfect acquaintance with the subject; but it is quite obvious that he meant to describe the very same substances as those which Dioscorides and Galen describe under these names, as is obvious from his ascribing the same medicinal powers as they do to each of these articles. (See H. N. xxxiv, 29, 30, 31, with the notes of Harduin.) Dioscorides gives but a very brief description of these substances, with the origin of which he most probably was not so well acquainted as Galen. He describes the best kind as being like bronze or copper (χαλκοειδῆ), friable, free of stones, not old, and having long and glancing fibres. He says of it that it has styptic, heating, and escharotic powers, and that it clears away impurities about the canthi and eyes; that it is one of the mild septics; is useful in erysipelas, herpes, hemorrhages of the uterus and nose, with the juice of leeks; that when dried it is useful in epulis, spreading sores, and diseases of the tonsils; that when burnt it is more useful in ophthalmic remedies in the form of a powder with honey; that it melts down and cleanses callus and asperity of the eyelids; and removes fistulæ when introduced in the form of a collyrium. (v, 115.) It occurs in one of the Hippocratic treatises (De Ulceribus), but its meaning there is not well defined. By blue chalcitis is probably meant chalcanthos, or blue vitriol. Celsus prescribes it frequently as a caustic and escharotic application. (v. 9, et pluries.) As stated already (see Misy), Avicenna gives an account of these substances under the head of “Atramentum sutorium,” the chalcitis being further distinguished by the name of colcotar. He refers to Galen’s description of them already given, but either he or his translator evidently misinterprets the original, for he represents Galen as saying that the atramentum rubeum (sori) is formed from the colcotar. He says of all the three substances that they are caustic, escharotic, and styptic; and he recommends them in the same instances as Dioscorides and Galen do. (ii, 2, 47.) Serapion, as already stated, describes them under the name of vitreolum or zeg, including also the chalcanthos in the same chapter. It may be interesting to our readers to see his version of the passage of Galen given above from Aëtius. “Vidi in mineris tres venas extensas unam super aliam per longum spacium, et vena inferior erat zeg rubeum (sori?), et secunda quæ erat super eam erat colcotar (chalcitis?), et tertia superior erat zeg viride (misy?), et hoc est quod zeg rubeum convertitur et fit colcotar et colcotar fit zeg viride.” He afterwards gives Galen’s account of the medicinal powers of chalcitis, which does not differ materially from our author’s. (De Simpl. 386.) Rhases, under the head of vitreolum, gives, in abridged extracts from Dioscorides and Galen, their descriptions of sori, chalcitis, and misy, which he calls vitreolum ruffum, colcotor, and vitreolum viride. (Contin. l. ult. 747.) Averrhoes quotes Galen’s account of the origin of the three vitriols which he calls vitreolum rubeum (sori?), v. viride (misy?), and cholcotar (chalcitis?). (Collig. v, 43.) And now, respecting the nature of the three metallic substances misy, sori, and chalcitis, we have to state it as our deliberate opinion, that, provided the authority of Galen be held decisive of the question, there can be no hesitation in coming to the conclusion that they were merely varieties of the chalcanthum, arising principally from age or differences in the proportion of the ingredients entering into its composition. (See below.) Probably then the chalcitis was a specimen of pure sulphate of copper which had contracted an efflorescence from age. The misy or zeg viride of the Arabians no doubt owed its colour to a predominance of the sulphate of iron; while in the sori we may suppose that zinc or other impurities gave it its peculiar characters.
Atramentum Sutorium, Copperas or Vitriol, is water concreted in the metal mines of Cyprus, having a very strong astringency with no contemptible degree of heat; and of all substances it is the most effectual for pickling and drying humid flesh. In process of time it changes to chalcitis.
Commentary. No person who reads the account of this substance given by Dioscorides and Pliny can doubt of its being blue vitriol, or an impure sulphate of copper procured by the evaporation of water found in mines of copper. Pliny’s description of it is quite characteristic: “Color est cœruleus, perquam spectabili nitore vitrumque esse creditur.” He also states that it is the same as the “atramentum sutorium.” (H. N. xxxiv, 32.) Celsus says the same of it, and ranks it with styptics (v, 1); with corrosive substances (v, 6); with caustics (v, 7, 8); with escharotics (vi, 11); and recommends it when strongly heated or roasted to remove callus (v, 28, 12), and for other purposes. Whether the blue chalcitis of Hippocrates (De Ulcer. 13), alluded to in the preceding article, be blue vitriol as some have supposed (Pereira, Mat. Med. 494), we cannot pretend positively to determine, but we think it probable. Galen describes most graphically his visit to the copper mines of Cyprus, where, among other strange sights, he witnessed the process of procuring chalcanthum. He mentions that a specimen of it which he carried with him in the course of twenty years was converted into chalcitis on its surface, while its centre remained chalcanthum, and that he meant to keep it until its centre should change likewise, and until the chalcitis should be converted into misy. Dioscorides describes several varieties of the chalcanthum, one of which is called pectum, being procured by natural evaporation; and another ephthon or coctum, as being procured by boiling. The best kind, he says, is blue, heavy, compact, and translucent. He says it is astringent, heating, and escharotic; kills the lumbricus latus when taken to the amount of a drachm; that it is emetic, cures those who have swallowed mushrooms when drunk with water, and that it purges the head when a piece of wool smeared with it is introduced into the nostrils. (v, 114.) Oribasius gives a minute description of the chalcanthum, but it is confessedly taken from Dioscorides. (Med. Coll. 13.) Aëtius says distinctly that the water running from the copper mines of Cyprus concretes into chalcanthum, and that it changes into chalcitis. He, in fact, evidently borrows from Galen. Avicenna, as formerly stated by us, gives a description of this substance along with misy, sori, and chalcitis, under the general head of “atramentum sutorium.” (ii, 2, 47.) He also treats of it separately under its proper name, but his account of it is entirely made up from Dioscorides. (166.) Serapion’s, in like manner, is copied from Dioscorides. (c. 386.) Haly Abbas’s chapter on the vitriols is so barbarously translated, that we cannot pretend to unfold his account of this substance. (Pract. ii, 47.) Though, as we have stated above, we think there can be no doubt that the chalcanthos of Dioscorides and Pliny was an impure sulphate of copper procured from the “waters of cementation” issuing from copper mines, it is proper to mention that after mature consideration of the subject, with the assistance of an esteemed authority on the Materia Medica in London, we have arrived at the conclusion that either the term must have been applied loosely to other metallic sulphates, or the ancient sulphate of copper must have contained a very large admixture of the sulphates of iron and of zinc. Probably, then, the term chalcanthos was used anciently in as loose a manner as the terms vitriol and copperas have been in modern times. (See Tournefort’s Mat. Med.) It is further deserving of remark under this head, that the description of the impure sulphate of copper, which is given in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia, corresponds exactly with Dioscorides’s description of the chalcanthos. In the Pharmacopœia it is directed that the sulphate of copper should not contain much of the sulphates of zinc and iron. And now, in conclusion, as this is one of the most important subjects connected with ancient pharmacy, we shall briefly state our reasons for holding, contrary to the opinion of many recent authorities of high reputation, that the chalcanthum either consisted principally of copper, or at least contained a large proportion of that metal in its composition. 1st. The name implies that the Greeks thought it a cupreous substance, and Pliny seems to say that the name had been properly given. (l. c.) 2d. Pliny’s description of it applies exactly to blue vitriol. (l. c.) 3d. Dioscorides’s description of it tallies with the description of the sulphate of copper given in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia. 4th. The chalcanthos was indisputably formed from the evaporation of waters issuing from mines of copper, that is to say, from “waters of cementation.” Compare Galen (l. c.) with Pereira (Mat. Med. 495.) 5th. It was administered as an emetic. See Dioscorides (l. c.) 6th. It was used externally as a powerful escharotic. See Dioscorides, Celsus, and Galen (pluries.) 7th. It was ranked among the poisons. See Cicero (ad Familiares, ix,) and the Arabian authorities on Toxicology.
Æs ustum, Burnt Copper, is acrid, with a share of astringency. It therefore is the best of remedies for the cicatrization of ulcers upon dry bodies; but if washed it agrees better with tender bodies.
Æris flos, the Flower of Copper, is possessed of more subtile powers than burnt copper, or than the squama æris. Wherefore, when added to collyria, it clears away asperities and sycoses of the eyelids.
Commentary. Though there can be no doubt that this term is generally used by the Greek classical authors to signify bronze, or a combination of copper and tin in the proportion of from 2 to 14 per cent. of the latter, it is also certain that it was frequently applied to native copper, as it is in general by the authorities on the Materia Medica. The ancients, it may be proper to remark cursorily in this place, were acquainted with the formation of brass, which they made by compounding together copper and cadmia. See Watson’s ‘Chemical Essays,’ and Beckmann’s ‘History of Inventions.’ Brass was their aurichalcum or orichalcum. The Æs ustum, according to Geoffroy, “is copper reduced to a calx or crocus, either by itself or mixed with sulphur or salt, by a long calcination in a reverberatory furnace.” “The Squama æris, or flake of copper,” he adds, “is little different from the Æs ustum, being only the particles of burnt copper which fly off when it is hammered.” He says of the Flos æris, “it is nothing but copper reduced to small grains like millet seed, which is done by pouring cold water upon melting copper, which thereupon immediately flies every way into grains.” In short it was fine granulated copper. These preparations of copper are described by all the ancient authorities. See in particular Dioscorides (v, 87, 88), who describes the process of making the flos æris very minutely. He recommends it as a detergent and caustic medicine for various purposes, such as removing dimness of the cornea, wasting polypi in the nostrils, and protuberances about the anus; and also for the cure of deafness when blown into the ear with a syringe in the form of a powder, and in complaints of the gums and tonsils. He also says that given to the amount of three oboli it evacuates thick humours. He also describes several processes for burning the copper, and recommends the æs ustum as a cleansing and detergent medicine for various ulcers, especially those of the eye, and also as an emetic when taken in a draught with hydromel, or in a linctus with honey. None of the other Greek authorities treat so fully of these preparations as Dioscorides. Celsus prescribes them frequently as caustic and corrosive substances. (v, 6, 7, et pluries.) The Arabians used these articles not only as external applications, but as emetics and purgatives. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 231); Serapion (c. 414); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. iii, 48); Averrhoes (Collig. v, 43); Haly Abbas (Pract. ii, 48); Ebn Baithar (ii, 551.) The flowers of copper, and burnt or calcined copper, are noticed in the works of all our earlier writers on medicine, and recommended to be administered both internally and externally. See Platearius (De Simpl. Med.) The process of preparing calcined copper is minutely described by Moses Charras in his ‘Royal Pharmacopœia,’ published at Paris in 1676. They are briefly described by Dr. Hill, who says of the æs ustum that “it was much used externally by the ancients.” (Mat. Med. 32.) Neither of these preparations of copper occurs in the Complete English Dispensatory of Quincy, published in 1763. They are omitted also in Pemberton’s London Dispensatory, published in 1746. They would appear, however, to have been longer retained in use by the Continental physicians, since a formula for preparing the Calx æris is given in Crantz’s Mat. Med. (ii, 91. Vienna, 1765.) He says that the Flos æris, and Squama æris, were preparations not in use. Rutty ranks them among the obsolete medicines of the ancients. A formula for Æs ustum is given in Gray’s Suppl. to Pharmacop. (p. 242.) It is the same as that of Dioscorides. (v, 37.)
Chamædrys, Germander, is heating and drying in the third degree. It therefore melts down enlarged spleens, proves diuretic and emmenagogue, and removes visceral obstructions.
Commentary. It clearly is the Teucrium Chamædrys L. Theophrastus says that its fruit purges bile. (H. P. ix, 10.) Dioscorides commends it in spasms, scirrhous spleen, dysuria, and incipient dropsy; and as an emmenagogue; and, by the way, Dr. Hill confirms this account of it. Galen and all the other authorities treat of it in nearly the same terms. We have not been able to find it in the works of Hippocrates. For the Arabians, see particularly Serapion (c. 180); Avicenna (ii, 2, 132); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 152.) One of Serapion’s Arabian authorities recommends the syrup in chronic coughs, dyspepsia, and incipient dropsies, and the decoction in black jaundice. Avicenna joins both Dioscorides and Serapion in regard to the virtues which they ascribe to it. Whether or not this be the “trixago” of Celsus (iv, 6) has never been satisfactorily determined. The Arabian translators adopt this name. It has still the reputation of being a pectoral medicine. Lindley (Veg. Kingd. 661.)
Hedera, Ground Ivy; the flower being considerably bitter, removes obstructions of the liver. It is also given in ischiatic diseases.
Commentary. We see no good reason for disputing its identity with Glechoma hederaceum, or Ground Ivy, which we believe to have been introduced into this country by the Romans for the Chamæcissos. Dioscorides gives it nearly the same characters as our author, that is to say, he recommends it in sciatica and jaundice. (iv, 124.) Galen and the other Greek authorities treat of it in nearly the same terms as our author. The Arabians notice it under the same head with the other species of ivy. See Serapion (De Simpl. 41); Avicenna (ii, 2, 169); Rhases (Contin. 190.) The ground-ivy maintained a place in the Dispensatory with a high reputation as a hepatic, splenitic, diuretic, and nephritic medicine in the days of Quincy. (117.) In the modern Greek Pharmacopœia the glechoma hederaceum stands for the χαμαίκισσος. (75.)
Χαμαικέρασος. This occurs in the “Euporiston” generally ascribed to Dioscorides. It is referred by Sprengel to the Convallaria majalis, or Lily of the valley.
Chamæleuce, Ground Poplar, is calefacient in the third order and desiccative in the first.
Commentary. Sprengel maintains that we should read χαμαιπέυκη, and refers it to Stachelina Chamæpeuce L. In Dioscor. (iv, 125.) Dioscorides merely recommends it in lumbago. All the other authorities assign it the same general characters.
Chamæleon; the root of the black chamæleon is calefacient and desiccative in nearly the third order. It is also a detergent application to the skin, and a discutient and emollient one to indurated tumours. When applied in a cataplasm it cures phagedænic ulcers. But when taken internally it is poisonous. The root of the white chamæleon is like that of the black, but more bitter. When drunk with austere wine to the amount of an acetabulum, it kills the broad intestinal worms. It is also useful in dropsical complaints.
Commentary. We stated in the Fifth Book, Sections 37, 46, that we were inclined to refer the black chamæleon to the Carthamus corymbosus, and the white to the Carlina acaulis, and we see no good reason for changing this opinion. Some good authorities, however, prefer the C. gummifera. See Lindley (Veg. Kingd. 708.) The virtues, however, which Dr. Lindley ascribes to the C. acaulis, agree very well with those of the ixia, or white chamæleon, as stated by the ancient authorities; whether, however, it produces the gum resembling mastich, as the white chamæleon is described by Dioscorides as doing, we are not so sure. Parkinson says it produces such a gum “sometimes, and in some places.” (Theatre of Plants, 968.) See also Gerard (1157.) Dioscorides recommends its root as a vermifuge; in dropsy and dysuria when taken in wine. (iii, 8.) The root of the black chamæleon he recommends with other articles for the cure of lichen, for toothache, and various other purposes. (9.) Our author borrows mostly from Galen under this head. Aëtius remarks that the root of the black species is poisonous, and hence is to be applied only externally in scabies, lichen, leprosy, and the like. This species is noticed in the Hippocratic works. (De Ulcer.) The other occurs in the works of Celsus, who prescribes it as an ingredient in a malagma for gout. (v, 18, 33.) The Arabians treat elaborately of both species. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 197, 455); Serapion (c. 274, 275); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. ii, 208); Averrhoes (Collig. v, 42.) Upon the whole their characters of them agree with those by Dioscorides and Galen.
Chamæmelum, or Anthemis, Chamomile, heats and dries in the first order. It is also attenuant, discutient, relaxant, and aromatic.
Commentary. It certainly applies to the Anthemis nobilis, but probably is not restricted to it. It appears to be the ἄνθεμον of Theophrastus. (H. P. vii, 8, 14.) It is the ἄνθεμις of Dioscorides, who describes three species, which it has been found very difficult to distinguish and identify. He says the roots, the flowers, and the stem are calefacient and attenuant, that both when drunk and in a hip-bath they promote the evacuation of the menses, fœtus, calculi, and urine; that they are drunk for tympanitis and ileus; cure jaundice and diseases of the liver; and that the decoction is used in a fomentation for complaints about the bladder. He says the chamomiles cure fistula lachrymalis in a cataplasm, and aphthæ as a masticatory, and that the oil prepared in a manner described by him, is useful in intermittent fevers when the body is rubbed with it. (iii, 143.) Aëtius strongly recommends the whole body to be rubbed with oil of chamomile in such cases to promote perspiration. According to Galen this is the ἐυάνθεμον of Hippocrates. (Morb. Mulier., i, 625.) We cannot find it in Celsus. Galen, in the preliminary dissertation to his ‘Mat. Med.,’ strongly eulogises the oil of chamomile as being calculated to soothe pain, relieve contracted parts, soften hardened, and to dispel fevers not accompanied with visceral inflammation. (iii, 133, ed. Basil.) The Arabians appear to have been very partial to this plant, of which they treat at great length. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 118); Serapion (De Simpl. 22); Rhases (Contin. l. ult. ii, 154, i, 156); Averrhoes (Collig. v, 42); Haly Abbas (Pract. ii, 34.) In a word, they entirely concur in the characters given to the chamomiles by Dioscorides and Galen.
Chamæpitys, Ground Pine, heats in the second order, but dries in the third. It is therefore a cathartic and detergent of the viscera, especially of the liver. It is diuretic and emmenagogue, agglutinates large wounds, and cures putrid ulcers. It also discusses scirrhous swellings, and the decoction of it is useful in ischiatic diseases.
Commentary. It appears probable that our author’s plant is Ajuga chamæpitys, but here commentators are by no means agreed. It is briefly mentioned by Nicander (Alex. 65), and by Celsus as a medicine which opens the pores or mouths of vessels (v, 4), but it does not occur, we believe, in the Hippocratic treatises. Of the three species described by Dioscorides, the first is probably this plant, the second is a species of teucrium, and the third ajuga iva. His characters of the first agree in the main with those given to it by our author, who, as well as Galen, Aëtius, and Oribasius, evidently copy from him. The other two species, he says, are possessed of similar powers. All the Arabians concur in representing it as being diuretic, emmenagogue, a medicine that expels the fœtus, and a laxative. See Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 153); Avicenna (ii, 2,131); Serapion (c. 179); Averrhoes (Collig. v, 32.) Avicenna in particular recommends it for the cure of sciatica and gout, and for this virtue it was celebrated as long as it retained a place in our Dispensatory. See Quincy (116.) It was an ingredient in the famous Portland powder. It is still to be found in the shops, where it bears the names of Iva arthritica and Teucrium chamæpitys. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 49.)
Chamædrops; some call this plant Chamædrys, and some Teucrium, being possessed of similar powers to the Chamædrys.
Commentary. According to Dioscorides it is the same as the Χαμάιδρυς.
Chamæsyce, Ground Fig, has detergent and acrid powers, so that the twigs and juice of it remove myrmecia and acrochordones. They therefore clear away thick cicatrices in the eyes with honey, and cure dimness of vision and incipient suffusions.
Commentary. From the place assigned to it by Dioscorides it was evidently a spurge. It is acknowledged to be the Euphorbia chamæcyce. Our author appears to have borrowed the characters which he gives it from Dioscorides. (iv, 167.) Galen and the others do the same. It does not occur in the works either of Hippocrates or Celsus, nor have we been able to find it in those of the Arabians. We are not aware of its having been used by modern authorities.
Chamelæa, Mezereon, or Spurge Olive, is possessed of detergent powers. It therefore cleanses foul ulcers and eschars with honey.
Commentary. Notwithstanding the difference of opinion which has prevailed among the commentators regarding this plant, we see no good grounds for doubting that it was the Daphne Mezereon, which we believe to have been naturalized in this country by the Romans for its medicinal uses. Dioscorides says of its leaves that they are like to those of the olive, but more slender and thick, biting to the taste and scarifying the trachea. Its leaves, he adds, purge phlegm and bile downwards, especially if taken in a pill with double the quantity of southernwood mixed with one part of the chamelæa; let it be taken in water or honey as a pill; but it is insoluble, for it is evacuated as it was taken; the powdered leaves mixed up with honey cleanse foul ulcers, and such as are covered with eschars. (iv, 169.) We do not meet with it in the works of Hippocrates nor of Celsus. Galen and the other Greek authorities treat of it in very general terms like our author. Beyond all doubt is this the mezereon of Serapion, who commences his chapter on it by giving extracts from the descriptions of the chamelæa given by Dioscorides, Galen, and our author. He then gives a very lengthy account of it from Arabian authorities, first from Alcanzi and next from Aben Mesuai, which we regret that our necessary limits prevent us from giving a proper abstract of. He says that persons of a gross constitution, and more especially old men, bear this medicine best, and he recommends us to administer it with myrobalans, or tamarinds, or prunes. He further directs it to be given in water that has been boiled. Altogether there is not a more important chapter in Serapion than the one on Mezereon. (c. 373.) Mesue also gives a very interesting account of the mezereon, which he illustrates with extracts from Dioscorides and Galen on the chamelæa. He assigns to it powers to purge yellow and black bile, and says that its greatest use is in dropsy. It is also, he says, anthelminthic. He recommends tents smeared with it for fistulæ and sinuous ulcers. (De Simpl. 22.) Haly Abbas also gives an excellent account of it, representing it as a medicine which purges phlegm, yellow and black bile. (Pract. 2, 54, 564.) Rhases describes the two chamæleons and the chamelæa together under the head of Laureola. He quotes “the Book of Poisons” as stating that in the dose of two drachms it proves fatal. He gives quotations from Dioscorides, Galen, and our author. (Cont. l. ult. i, 413.) Avicenna, in like manner, describes the two chamæleons and the chamelæa under the head of mezereon, but evidently recognised the distinction between the last and the first two. He commends the mezereon particularly in dropsy. (ii, 2, 455.) The above sketch, it will be remarked, clearly proves the identity of the χαμέλαια of the Greeks, and the Mezereon of the Arabians. We admit, however, that it does not prove their identity with the Daphne Mezereon. To us it appears, however, that the physiological effects of the mezereon, as described by our best authorities of the present day, correspond very well with the effects of the chamelæa or mezereon as described by Dioscorides and Serapion. In particular compare Pereira (805) with Serapion (l. c.) It is proper to mention, however, that Sibthorp held the χ. to be Daphne oleoides. Both the Daphne Mezereon, and D. Gnidium are retained in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia. (108.)
Chelidonium, Columbine or Celandine; the great is calefacient in the third order, and powerfully detergent. The juice of it contributes to acuteness of sight. The root when drunk with anise removes icteric obstructions, and also when taken with wine. When masticated it cures toothache. The smaller species, which belongs to the fourth order of calefacients, is more acrid, so as to ulcerate the skin in a cataplasm. It also removes leprous nails. The juice of it purges by the nose.
Commentary. That the first species is the Chelidonium majus L. admits of no dispute. The other would seem to be the Ranunculus Ficaria, or Fig-wort. Pliny praises it as an application to strumous tumours, and a remedy for impairment of sight. From the experiments of Orfila, it appears that the C. magus acts as a very acrid poison. Dioscorides describes the great celandine very minutely, and recommends it in jaundice and toothache. (ii, 201.) He gives the same character of the less as our author. (ii, 212.) Galen and Aëtius treat of them like our author. Neither of them is to be found in the works of Hippocrates. Celsus prescribes the juice of the “chelidonia” as an application to enlarged tonsils. (vi, 14.) Both species are distinctly treated of by the Arabians. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 295, 727); Serapion (c. 196); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 200.) They all recommend the juice of the greater celandine in jaundice, in toothache, and in affections of the eyes. It long held a place in our Dispensatory, retaining its character for curing jaundice and removing films from the eyes. See Quincy (117.) Even at the present day rustic farriers use the acrid juice of the celandine for removing films from the eyes of cattle. The chelidonium majus occurs in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia. (46.)
Hirundines, Swallows; when burnt their ashes, if rubbed in with honey, cure inflammatory cynanche. They also contribute to acuteness of sight.
Commentary. It is the Hirundo rustica. Celsus also recommends the ashes of swallows in cases of cynanche and diseases of the eyes. (iv, 4.) Dioscorides speaks of their use in these and in other cases. (ii, 6.) Galen gives the same account of them as our author. The Arabians repeat the descriptions given by Dioscorides and Galen. See Serapion (c. 443); Avicenna (ii, 2, 347); Rhases (Contin. l. ult. i, 741); Ebn Baithar (i, 375.)
Fel, Bile, or Gall, is the hottest of all animal juices, but differs according to the colour, for the yellow is hotter than the pale, and the violet-coloured than the yellow; and also according to the difference of the animals which produce it; forasmuch as that of swine is the weakest of all, so that it agrees with ulcers in the ears, and does not prove pungent; but that of sheep is more acrid, and still more that of goats, to which the galls of bears and oxen are allied. But the gall of bulls is stronger, and still more so that of the hyæna, next that of the fish called callionymus, and that of the scorpion which answers in suffusions, dimness of vision, and leucomata, and likewise that of the sea-tortoise. The gall of the wild goat is believed to cure nyctolopia. The gall of all fowls is more acrid and desiccative than the gall of quadrupeds. But of them the best is the gall of cocks and partridges. Those of hawks and eagles are in so far more acrid and corrosive, and of a violet colour, but sometimes black.
Commentary. Our author’s account of the medicinal properties of bile is abridged from Galen. Bile is an article which, although now excluded from the British Pharmacopœias, still holds its place in the Continental. Scarpa recommends the gall of certain animals for the removal of albugo. Pliny thus states its virtues as a medicine: “Vis ejus excalfacere, mordere, scindere, extrahere, discutere. Minorum animalium subtilius intelligitur, et ideo ad oculorum medicamenta utilius existimatur.” (H. N. xxviii, 40.) See Dioscorides (ii, 96.) Avicenna calls it a hot, abstergent medicine. Of quadrupeds, he says, the strongest is that of a calf, and the weakest that of a sheep. He treats largely of the subject, but draws liberally from Dioscorides and Galen (ii, 2, 250.) See also Serapion (De Simpl. 459); Haly Abbas (Pract. ii, 50); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 291); Ebn Baithar (ii, 510.) The gall of a bull is retained in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia.
Chondrile, Gum Succory, being a species of Endive, is bitterish, and is therefore so far more desiccative than it.
Commentary. Without doubt it is the Chondrilla juncea, or Gum Succory. It produces a gum similar to Lactucarium, for which it is still cultivated in Lemnos. See Lindley (Veg. Kingd. 708.) Dioscorides describes another species which is supposed to be Apargia tuberosa. Dioscorides describes accurately the gum of the former species which he compares to mastich, and says of it that when applied on a linen cloth with myrrha to the size of an olive it is emmenagogue; that along with natron it cleanses mild leprosy; that the gum is used for glueing the hairs of the eyelashes; that the fresh root does the same when a needle is dipped into it and applied to the hairs; that it is beneficial in the bites of the viper; and that its juice is an astringent of the bowels. He describes the second species as being also glutinous. (ii, 160.) Galen and the other Greek authorities treat only of the former species, and that in very brief terms. Neither of them are described either by Hippocrates or Celsus. We find difficulty in discovering traces of it in any of the works of the Arabians, except Ebn Baithar (i, 395.) The Chondrilla juncea is still not wholly unknown in the shops. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 63.)
Chondrus, is like wheat, but more glutinous than it.
Commentary. In the First Book we have explained its nature. (Vol. I, 123.) It would appear to have been the article now called Farro, being prepared from the spelt wheat, exactly as pearled barley is from barley. See Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 16.)
Chrysocolla; one kind of it is found in metal mines, and another is prepared in a mortar of red copper with a pestle of the same, it being triturated with the urine of a boy not come to puberty during the heat of the dog days. It therefore is detergent, having discutient and desiccative powers greater than those of the kind found in metal mines, so that it consumes flesh without being pungent. It therefore agrees with ill-conditioned ulcers. By burning it you may render it less pungent.
Commentary. In order to understand this very complicated subject, it will be necessary in the first place to give an exposition of what the ancients themselves have written upon it. Dioscorides writes thus of the Chrysocolla: “The best is the Armenian, which is of an intense leek colour; the second in quality is the Macedonian; and then the Cyprian, of which the kind that is pure must be selected; but that which is full of earth and stones must be rejected. The aforesaid article is to be worked thus: Having pounded it, throw it into a mortar, and having poured in water, rub strongly with the flattened hand to the mortar; then allowing it to settle, strain; and pouring in more water, again rub, and do this alternately until it becomes clean and pure; then having dried it in the sun, lay past for use. But if you wish to burn (calcine?) it, do so in the following manner: Having triturated it sufficiently, put it into a pan, place upon the coals, and do otherwise as we previously said in the former cases. The chrysocolla has the power of deterging ulcers, repressing and cleansing fungous flesh; is styptic, calefacient, mildly septic, with a certain amount of pungency. It belongs to the class of medicines which excite vomiting, and which may prove fatal to life.” (v, 104.) This chrysocolla is evidently the same as that which Theophrastus has described as “being found in great quantity in gold mines and the parts around them.” (De Lapid. 47.) Now we may here say at once that every person conversant with mineralogy, must recognise the chrysocolla, described above, as being the mineral called “common copper-green” by Jameson, being an impure carbonate of copper. For a clear description of it, see Cleaveland (Mineralogy, p. 570.) This, it will be remarked, is the only substance to which Dioscorides applies the name of Chrysocolla; but in a preceding chapter, treating of the varieties of verdigris, he says, “There is a certain kind of verdigris made by the goldsmiths, by means of a mortar and pestle, of Cyprian copper and the urine of a young person, with which they solder gold.” (v, 92.) Now to this variety of the verdigris, as we shall soon see, the name Chrysocolla (from its being used in soldering gold) was also applied by the writers subsequent to Dioscorides. Thus Pliny (H. N. xxxiii, 26, 27, 28) first gives a very elaborate description of the true chrysocolla; and then in the following chapter he briefly notices the other kind, which he says was also called “santerna,” and was prepared from Cyprian verdigris, the urine of a boy, with the addition of nitrum (soda?) pounded in a Cyprian mortar with Cyprian copper or bronze. This, he adds, forms a solder to gold. This, however, he does not say was ever used in medicine. The former kind or true chrysocolla of Dioscorides, he says was used in medicine for cleansing wounds along with wax and oil, and also in a dry powder; that it was given in a linctus with honey for orthopnœa and angina; that it was used as an emetic; was added as an ingredient to collyria for specks on the eyes, and to green plasters for relieving pain and contracting cicatrices. This chrysocolla, he says, in conclusion, the physicians call acesis (a term, by the way, synonymous with medicinal), and was different from the orobitis which he had previously described as being artificially tinged with a herb called by him “lutum,” meaning thereby, we suppose, woad, or the Isatis tinctoria. (l. c.) Galen describes the two kinds together, and treats of their medicinal powers as follows: This medicine, chrysocolla, is one of those that consume the flesh, and is not strongly pungent; but it is moderately discutient and desiccant. Wherefore some call only the fossil by this name, but some also the substance which is prepared in a bronze (copper?) mortar with a copper pestle by means of the urine of a boy, which some value according to the differences of the verdigris. But it is better to prepare it in summer, or at least in hot weather, pounding the urine in the mortar. And it answers more excellently if the bronze, of which you make the mortar, be red, and the pestle too, for more is thus rubbed off by the turning round of the pestle when the bronze is of a softer nature. This medicine is most suited to malignant sores, both by itself and mixed with other substances. He concludes by saying of the fossil chrysocolla, that the more desiccative the less stimulant it is, as being so much the more attenuated; and that when burnt (calcined), it becomes still more attenuated. (De Simpl. ix.) It is clear from this statement that Galen included under his list of Simples both the fossil chrysocolla and the kind prepared from verdigris. Aëtius merely abridges the account of the chrysocolla given by Galen. (ii, 81.) And as Oribasius professedly copies his descriptions of the fossils used in medicine from Dioscorides, we need not say anything further of his account of chrysocolla, than that it coincides entirely with that of Dioscorides. (Med. Coll. xiii.) Celsus ranks it with the corrosive (v, 6) and the caustic substances. (v, 8.) We now turn to the Arabians. Avicenna, in the first place, treats of this substance under the name of chrysocolla, of which he describes two species; the one, the artificial, made with the urine of a boy in a bronze mortar, as already explained; the other the fossil, of which he says he will now treat. He describes its general characters, namely, that it is abstergent, caustic, septic, and so forth. Referring to Dioscorides and Galen, he calls it an emetic and astringent medicine, and good for malignant sores. (ii, 2, 358.) He there refers to sect. 696, where he treats of tincar, of which he says that it consists of two kinds, the fossil and the factitious, the latter of which is called the gold-solder (capistrum auri). It is useful, he says, in toothache and carious teeth. Averrhoes describes it under the names of Laçacolaap, i. e. Consolidatura auri; in Arabic, Cumbar. He gives exactly the same account of the two species as Galen. He says the factitious kind is best prepared in a mortar of red bronze with the urine of a young person; which species is more efficacious than the other. (Collig. v, 43.) Serapion in the portion of his work devoted to minerals, writes thus of Tincar, i. e. Borax. “Ebn Amram says of it, it is of the species of salts, and is found with the taste of baurach (nitrum?), and has some bitterness; and it is either fossil or factitious. And the fossil is in the banks of the sea; it is hot, dry, and subtile; is useful in toothache, and kills the worm in them, and in stopping the throbbing in them it has wonderful powers.” Rhases and Aben Mesuai say of it, that the basis (radix) of it is the urine of a boy, we mean of the factitious, and it is the solder of gold (chrysocolla.) It would appear to be the chrysocolla which is described by Haly Abbas (Pract. ii, 48, 495), but we must admit ourselves incapable of interpreting correctly his meaning as expressed in the barbarous translation of his works. Ebn Baithar first treats of chrysocolla under the name of Tankâr in an extract from the works of Ebn Amram which we have given above as quoted by Serapion. (i, 214.) And again in the 2d volume (434), he first gives descriptions of the chrysocolla in extracts from Dioscorides and Galen, and concludes with the remark that some people called it the tankar chrysocolla, but that the chrysocolla of Dioscorides and Galen was a totally different article from the tankar. Rhases gives merely extracts from Dioscorides and Galen. (Cont. l. ult. i, 25.) He calls it adhesio auri. From what has been stated above, we now draw the following conclusions regarding the matters treated of under this head: 1. That the mineral known by the names of “copper green,” “mountain green,” “native carbonate of copper,” was the true chrysocolla of Dioscorides, the said term signifying Gold solder. 2. That Dioscorides further describes a preparation of verdigris which was also used for soldering gold, to which the name chrysocolla was likewise applied by Pliny, Galen, and others. 3. That under the names of Tincal, Tankâr, and Borax, the Arabians described a species of salt, which most probably was our Sodæ Biboras, to which they sometimes applied the name chrysocolla from its being used in the soldering of gold, but their best authorities (as for example, Avicenna, and Ebn Baithar) were well aware that this borax was a totally different substance from the chrysocolla of Dioscorides. The name borax is probably a corruption of Baurach, which is the term applied by the Arabians to the nitrum of the Greeks and Romans, that is to say, natron, or soda. If the reader will take the trouble to read what has been written on the chrysocolla of the ancients by many learned men in modern times, as, for example, Alston, Hill, Geoffroy, Quincy, Sprengel, and Kidd, he will be the better able to judge whether or not we have succeeded in illustrating what has always been considered a very obscure subject.
Chrysocome or Chrysitis; its root has at the same time acrid and astringent powers, and therefore is not much used. Only in peripneumonia and hepatic affections it is given boiled in honeyed water. It also promotes menstruation.
Commentary. Pliny complains that it had no name in the Latin language; and Anguillara and Matthiolus were unable to make out what it is. It now holds a place in the Linnæan system by the name of Chrysocoma Linosyris. Our author borrows his characters of this article from Dioscorides (iv. 55.) Galen describes it in almost the same words. It is not to be found in the works of Dioscorides or Celsus, nor, as far as we can discover, in those of the Arabians.
Pseudo-Bunion, Bastard Rape; its properties being like those of rape, it is heating, discutient, and detergent. It, therefore, removes tormina, stranguries, and pains of the sides. It also discusses scrofulous swellings when applied along with salts and wine.
Commentary. It would appear that it is the Pimpinella tenuis or Slender Burnet. Our author copies from Dioscorides. Galen treats very lightly of this article. It does not appear that it is treated of by the Arabians.
Pseudo-Dictamnum, Bastard Dittany, has the powers of weak dittany.
Commentary. We are inclined to join those who refer it to the Marrubium Pseudodictamnum. Galen and Dioscorides join in representing it as an article of little consequence.
Cerussa, White Lead, is refrigerant and emplastic.
Commentary. We have treated of it as a poison in Book V. § 59. Alston says: “Our white lead is certainly the Ψιμύθιον of Dioscorides and the Cerussa Plinii” (xviii.) The ancient ceruse consisted of the carbonate of lead which had been exposed to the vapours of vinegar, and was, therefore, little or nothing different from the modern ceruse. Geoffroy’s description of the process is taken, in fact, from Dioscorides. It would appear to have been sometimes administered internally, if, as Dr. Hill remarks, it is an ingredient in the Trochisci albi of Rhases. We have not been able to find, however, this trochisc in Rhases, nor in any of the ancient authorities. Perhaps Dr. Hill confounded it with the Emplastrum album, of which ceruse is an ingredient. (See Galen, De Comp. Med. sec. gen. vi, and Celsus, 222 ad Milligan.) Galen in fact expressly says that ceruse ought not to be administered internally (Meth. Med. iv.) He recommends it as an anodyne collyrium in pains of the eyes (Comment. in App. vi, 31), and as an astringent and soothing application in general. (De Simpl. Med. ix.) Dioscorides describes minutely the preparation of ceruse, and the different kinds of it, but gives its medicinal properties in brief terms like our author. (v. 103.) Celsus recommends it in burns and ulcers (vi, 7), but internally taken he treats of it as a poison (v, 27, 15.) All the other Greek and the Arabian authorities after Galen give ceruse exactly the same characters as we have stated them above. See in particular Serapion (De Simpl. 378); Avicenna (ii, 2, 117); Haly Abbas (Pract. ii, 48); Ebn Baithar (i, 63.) The last of these says of it, that it is useful in the same class of cases as Minium; that dissolved in vinegar, and more especially when mixed up with rose-oil, it is a good application in cephalalgia; that it forms a proper ingredient in collyria for inflammations of the eyes,—and dissolved in a woman’s milk or mixed up with the white of an egg,—that it is dropped into the eye with advantage in such cases.
Psyllium, Fleawort; the seed belongs to the second order of refrigerants. With regard to heating and moistening powers it holds an intermediate place.
Commentary. Sprengel remarks, that there can be no difficulty about it; it is the Plantago Psyllium L. Dioscorides and Pliny recommend it pounded with hog’s lard as an application to malignant ulcers; Pliny also says that its seed is a good application to the bites of serpents. (H. N. xxvi, 66.) Dioscorides says it cures tumours, arthritic diseases, intestinal hernia, and other complaints, with rose-oil, vinegar or water. It is, he says, a powerful refrigerant. (iv, 70.) Galen and the other Greek authorities give its characters succinctly like our author. Celsus puts it in his list of agglutinative substances (v, 2.) The Arabians recommend it for the same purposes as the Greeks, and also for allaying the inflammation of acute fevers. See Avicenna (ii, 2, 533); Serapion (De Simpl. 230); Ebn Baithar (i, 132); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. i, 567); Mesue (De Simpl. 20.) We have treated of it as a poison in Book V. § 40. According to Crantz its poisonous qualities have been exaggerated by Dioscorides. (Mat. Med. iii, 117.) Accordingly we do not find it treated of by the late writers on toxicology. Although it has long ceased to occupy a place in our dispensatory, it has been celebrated in modern times for its medicinal virtues. Platearius commends it highly as a cooling and astringent medicine, in acute fevers, dysenteries, hemorrhages, &c. (De Simpl. Med.) Prosper Alpinus mentions that the modern Egyptians make frequent use of its mucilage as a medicine, and hence he finds fault with Dioscorides and Mesue for setting it down as a poison. (De Med. Ægypt.); and Rutty (Mat. Med. 415.) Its seeds form with boiling water a rich mucilage, which it appears is still much used in India, in catarrh, gonorrhœa, and nephritic affections. Lindley (Veg. Kingd. 643.) A recent authority on pharmacy says of it that its seeds are mucilaginous and purgative. Gray (Suppl. to Pharmacop. 44.)
Psoricum, is formed by mixing two parts of chalcitis with one of litharge, triturating them in vinegar, and, having put them into a new pot, by burying them in dung for forty days. It becomes more desiccative, more subtile, and less pungent than chalcitis.
Commentary. Dioscorides and Pliny call it a mixture of cadmia and chalcitis; Galen, Aëtius, and our author say of litharge and chalcitis. Avicenna follows Dioscorides. (ii, 2, 273.) Celsus also directs it to be made of chalcitis and cadmia. (vi, 6, 31.) It derives its name from its being used as an application to parts affected with scabies (psora.) The psoricum has been long unknown in the practice of medicine.
Ovum, An Egg; the white and thin part is free from all pungency, being moderately cooling. It is to be used for the eyes, ulcers in the pudendum, and all ill-conditioned ulcers. It is also mixed up with the medicines which form styptic plasters. And the yelk of an egg being possessed of similar powers, is mixed up with anti-inflammatory remedies. When roasted it becomes more desiccative but less soothing. If a whole egg be boiled in vinegar, and eaten, it dries up alvine fluxes. But if, having received the addition of some sour substances, such as galls, sumach, or the flowers of the wild pomegranate, it be fried, it becomes considerably more drastic. A whole egg applied raw immediately relieves burns. When taken in a supping state, it concocts and soothes affections in the chest, and proves demulcent for asperities of the trachea. New eggs are to be preferred to old, and those of hens to the eggs of all other animals.
Commentary. Galen gives, in his usual copious and elegant style, a somewhat lengthy dissertation on the medicinal properties of eggs, but the narrow limits to which we are necessarily restricted, prevent us from transferring the substance of it to our pages, although it contains much that is highly interesting. (De Simpl. xi.) Galen recommends eggs for various medicinal purposes; and in particular he says that wool dipped in the white of an egg proves a serviceable application to burns. Dioscorides states their virtues more briefly, and to him our author is more particularly indebted. (ii, 54, 55.) He recommends the white of an egg in a tepid state for severe pains of the bladder and ulceration of the kidneys, roughness of the windpipe, vomiting of blood, catarrhs, and defluxions of the chest. Pliny, Dioscorides, and Sextus Platonicus say that eggs pounded with oil form an excellent application in cases of erysipelas, the leaves of beet being laid on the place. Pliny and Dioscorides recommend them for affections of the eyes. Avicenna recommends the white of an egg with melilot in ulcers of the intestines. He says eggs boiled in vinegar are useful in diarrhœa and dysentery. He recommends a suppository of the albumen of an egg in prolapsus ani, and other affections of the fundament. Like the preceding authorities he speaks favorably of it as an application to the eyes. (ii, 2, 520.) See also Ebn Baithar (i, 193); Serapion (c. 446); Rhases (Ad Mansor.; Antid. iv.)
Ocimum, Basil, belongs to the second order of calefacients, and has also some recrementitious humidity, hence it is of no use when taken internally; but when applied externally, it is discutient and digestive.
Commentary. It most probably is the Ocimum Basilicum. Dioscorides not only recommends it for many medicinal purposes externally, but also says of it that it loosens the bowels, is carminative, diuretic, and creates milk, but is of difficult digestion; the seed, he adds, when taken in a draught, is beneficial in melancholy, dysuria, and flatulence, and it is also sternutatory. (ii, 170.) Our author follows Galen very closely. Aëtius also condemns the internal administration of basil, but praises highly a decoction of it as a fomentation to the eyes, and particularly those of children. Oribasius as usual follows Dioscorides, and, therefore, like him approves of the internal use of it. It occurs in the works both of Hippocrates and Celsus, the latter of whom says of it that it moves the bowels, and is diuretic. (ii, 29, 31.) The Arabians treat of it still more fully than the Greeks. Avicenna says it is a cordial medicine, that it generally binds the bowels, but also moves them, if there be humours in them, that it is useful in hæmoptysis and in difficulty of breathing. (ii, 2, 101.) See also Serapion (c. 167); Ebn Baithar (i, 110); Rhases (Cont. l. ult. ii, 121.) The basil held a place in our English dispensatory down to the times of Quincy and Lewis. It holds a place in the modern Greek Pharmacopœia, where it is stated that it is indigenous in Persia, and only cultivated in gardens in Greece. (p. 27.)