Book XX. Remedies Derived from the Garden Plants.

Chaps. 1-13.

Chap. 1.—Introduction.

We are now about to enter upon an examination of the greatest of all the operations of Nature—we are about to discourse to man upon his aliments, [Fée remarks, that the commencement of this exordium is contrary to truth, and that Pliny appears to forget that in the Eighteenth Book he has treated, at very considerable length, of the various cereals, the art of preparing bread, pottages, ptisans, &c. He suggests, that the author may have originally intended to place the Eighteenth Book after the present one, and that on changing his plan he may have neglected to alter the present passage. From his mention, however, of man’s “ignorance by what means lie exists,” it is not improbable that he may have considered that the nutritive qualities of plants are really based upon their medicinal virtues, a point of view little regarded by the majority of mankind in his time, but considered by Pliny to be the true key to a just appreciation of their utility.] and to compel him to admit that he is ignorant by what means he exists. And let no one, misled by the apparent triviality of the names which we shall have to employ, regard this subject as one that is frivolous or contemptible: for we shall here have to set forth the state of peace or of war which exists between the various departments of Nature, the hatreds or friendships which are maintained by objects dumb and destitute of sense, and all, too, created—a wonderful subject for our contemplation!—for the sake of man alone. To these states, known to the Greeks by the respective appellations “sympathia” and “antipathia,” we are indebted for the first principles [“Quibus cuncta constant.” See B. xxiv. c. 1.] of all things; for hence it is that water has the property of extinguishing fire, that the sun absorbs water, that the moon produces it, and that each of those heavenly bodies is from time to time eclipsed by the other.

Hence it is, too, descending from the contemplation of a loftier sphere, that the loadstone [See B. xxxiv. c. 42.] possesses the property of attracting iron, and another stone, [The “theamedes.” See B. xxxvi. c. 25.] again, that of repelling it; and that the diamond, that pride of luxury and opulence, though infrangible by every other object, and presenting a resistance that cannot be overcome, is broken asunder by a he-goat’s blood [Pliny is the only author who makes mention of this singularly absurd notion.] —in addition to numerous other marvels of which we shall have to speak on more appropriate occasions, equal to this or still more wonderful even. My only request is that pardon may be accorded me for beginning with objects of a more humble nature, though still so greatly conducive to our health—I mean the garden plants, of which I shall now proceed to speak.

Chap. 2. (1.)—The Wild Cucumber; Twenty-six Remedies.

We have already stated [In B. xix. c. 24: so, too, Dioscorides, B. iv. c. 154. The wild cucumber of Pliny, as Fée observes, is in reality not a cucumber, but a totally different plant, the Cucumis silvestris asininus of C. Bauhin, the Momordica elaterium of Linnæus, or squirting cucumber.] that there is a wild cucumber, considerably smaller than the cultivated one. From this cucumber the medicament known as “elaterium” is prepared, being the juice extracted from the seed. [Elaterium, Fée says, is not extracted from the seed, but is the juice of the fruit itself, as Pliny, contradicting himself, elsewhere informs us. Theophrastus commits the same error, which Dioscorides does not; and it is not improbable that Pliny has copied from two sources the method of making it.] To obtain this juice the fruit is cut before it is ripe—indeed, if this precaution is not taken at an early period, the seed is apt to spirt [Meaning the juice and seed combined, probably. Fée thinks that it is to this the medicament owes its name, from ἐλαύνω, to “drive” or “impel.” It is much more probable, however, that the medicine was so called from its strong purgative powers; for, as Galen tells us, ἐλατήριον was a name given to purgative medicines in general.] out and be productive of danger to the eyes. After it is gathered, the fruit is kept whole for a night, and on the following day an incision is made in it with a reed. The seed, too, is generally sprinkled with ashes, with the view of retaining in it as large a quantity of the juice as possible. When the juice is extracted, it is received in rain water, where it falls to the bottom; after which it is thickened in the sun, and then divided into lozenges, which are of singular utility to mankind for healing dimness [Dioscorides, B. iv. c. 154, states to this effect. Fée remarks that, singularly enough, most of the antiophthalmics used by the ancients, were composed of acrid and almost corrosive medicaments, quite in opposition to the sounder notions entertained on the subject by the moderns.] of sight, diseases of the eyes, and ulcerations of the eyelids. It is said that if the roots of a vine are touched with this juice, the grapes of it will be sure never to be attacked by birds.

The root, [Dioscorides says the same; and much the same statements are made by Celsus, Apuleius, Marcellus Empiricus, and Plinius Valerianus. The different parts of the plant, dried, have but very feeble properties, Fée says.] too, of the wild cucumber, boiled in vinegar, is employed in fomentations for the gout, and the juice of it is used as a remedy for tooth-ache. Dried and mixed with resin, the root is a cure for impetigo [A sort of tetter or ring-worm. Celsus enumerates four varieties.] and the skin diseases known as “psora” [Itch-scab, probably.] and “lichen:” [A disease of the skin, in which the scab assumes the form almost of a lichen or moss.] it is good, too, for imposthumes of the parotid glands and inflammatory tumours, [“Panos.” “Panus” was the name given to a wide-spreading, but not deeply-seated, tumour, the surface of which presented a blistered appearance.] and restores the natural colour to the skin when a cicatrix has formed.—The juice of the leaves, mixed with vinegar, is used as an injection for the ears, in cases of deafness.

Chap. 3.—Elaterium; Twenty-seven Remedies.

The proper season for making elaterium is the autumn; and there is no medicament known that will keep longer than this. [Fée says that this is not the fact, as it speedily deteriorates by keeping.] It begins to be fit for use when three years old; but if it is found desirable to make use of it at an earlier period than this, the acridity of the lozenges may be modified by putting them with vinegar upon a slow fire, in a new earthen pot. The older it is the better, and before now, as we learn from Theophrastus, it has been known to keep [Fée says that this is not the fact, as it speedily deteriorates by keeping.] so long as two hundred years. Even after it has been kept so long as fifty [From Theophrastus, Hist. Plant. B. ix. c. 10.] years, it retains its property of extinguishing a light; indeed, it is the proper way of testing the genuineness of the drug to hold it to the flame and make it scintillate above and below, before finally extinguishing it. The elaterium which is pale, smooth, and slightly bitter, is superior [Fée acknowledges the truth of this observation, that of a green colour containing feculent matter, and showing that the juice is not pure.] to that which has a grass-green appearance and is rough to the touch.

It is generally thought that the seed of this plant will facilitate conception if a woman carries it attached to her person, before it has touched the ground; and that it has the effect of aiding parturition, if it is first wrapped in ram’s wool, and then tied round the woman’s loins, without her knowing it, care being taken to carry it out of the house the instant she is delivered.

Those persons who magnify the praises of the wild cucumber say that the very best is that of Arabia, the next being that of Arcadia, and then that of Cyrenæ: it bears a resemblance to the heliotropium, [In reality there is no such resemblance whatever. See B. xxii. c..] they say, and the fruit, about the size of a walnut, grows between the leaves and branches. The seed, it is said, is very similar in appearance to the tail of a scorpion thrown back, but is of a whitish hue. Indeed, there are some persons who give to this cucumber the name of “scorpionium,” and say that its seed, as well as the elaterium, is remarkably efficacious as a cure for the sting of the scorpion. As a purgative, the proper dose of either is from half an obolus to an obolus, according to the strength of the patient, a larger dose than this being fatal. [Fée says that this is an exaggerated account of the properties of the wild cucumber, as it would require a very considerable dose to cause death.] It is in the same proportions, too, that it is taken in drink for phthiriasis [The Morbus pedicularis, or “lousy disease.”] and dropsy; applied externally with honey or old olive oil, it is used for the cure of quinsy and affections of the trachea.

Chap. 4. (2.)—The Anguine or Erratic Cucumber: Five Remedies.

Many authors are of opinion that the wild cucumber is identical with the plant known among us as the “anguine,” and by some persons as the “erratic” [This has been identified by some writers, Fée says, with the Cucumis flexuosus of Linnæus; but, as he observes, that plant comes originally from India, and it is more than probable that it was not known by the ancients; in addition to which, it is possessed of no medicinal properties whatever. He looks upon it as an indigenous plant not identified.] cucumber. Objects sprinkled with a decoction of this plant will never be touched by mice. The same authors [So Dioscorides, B. iv. c. 154.] say, too, that a decoction of it in vinegar, externally applied, gives instantaneous relief in cases of gout and diseases of the joints. As a remedy, too, for lumbago, the seed of it is dried in the sun and pounded, being given in doses of twenty denarii to half a sextarius of water. Mixed with woman’s milk and applied as a liniment, it is a cure for tumours which have suddenly formed.

Elaterium promotes the menstrual discharge; but if taken by females when pregnant, it is productive of abortion. It is good, also, for asthma, and, injected into the nostrils, for the jaundice. [“Morbus regius;” literally, the “royal disease.”] Rubbed upon the face in the sun, it removes freckles [“Lentigo.”] and spots upon the skin.

Chap. 5.—The Cultivated Cucumber: Nine Remedies.

Many persons attribute all these properties to the cultivated cucumber [See B. xix. c.. It is but little appreciated for its medicinal properties by the moderns. Emulsions are sometimes made of the seeds, which are of an oily nature. Fée says that the French ladies esteem pommade of cucumber as an excellent cosmetic; which is, however, an erroneous notion.] as well, a plant which even without them would be of very considerable importance, in a medicinal point of view. A pinch of the seed, for instance, in three fingers, beaten up with cummin and taken in wine, is extremely beneficial for a cough: for phrenitis, also, doses of it are administered in woman’s milk, and doses of one acetabulum for dysentery. As a remedy for purulent expectorations, it is taken with an equal quantity of cummin; [The combination of cummin with cucumber seed is in opposition, Fée remarks, with their medicinal properties, the one being soothing, and the other moderately exciting.] and it is used with hydromel for diseases of the liver. Taken in sweet wine, it is a diuretic; and, in combination with cummin, [The combination of cummin with cucumber seed is in opposition, Fée remarks, with their medicinal properties, the one being soothing, and the other moderately exciting.] it is used as an injection for affections of the kidneys.

Chap. 6.—Pepones: Eleven Remedies.

The fruit known as pepones [As to the several varieties of the pumpkin or gourd, known under this name, see B. xix. c..] are a cool and refreshing diet, and are slightly relaxing to the stomach. Applications are used of the pulpy flesh in defluxions or pains of the eyes. The root, too, of this plant cures the hard ulcers known to us as “ceria,” from their resemblance to a honeycomb, and it acts as an emetic. [Dioscorides states to the same effect, and, as Fée thinks, with a probability of being correct.] Dried and reduced to a powder, it is given in doses of four oboli in hydromel, the patient, immediately after taking it, being made to walk half a mile. This powder is employed also in cosmetics [“Smegmata.”] for smoothing the skin. The rind, too, has the effect [This assertion, Fée says, is utterly untrue.] of promoting vomiting, and, when applied to the face, of clearing the skin; a result which is equally produced by an external application of the leaves of all the cultivated cucumbers. These leaves, mixed with honey, are employed for the cure of the pustules known as “epinyctis;” [From ἐπί, “upon,” and νὺξ, “night.” These are red or whitish pustules, accompanied with sharp pains, which appear on the skin at night, and disappear in the day-time. See c..] steeped in wine, they are good, too, for the bites of dogs and of multipedes, [Or “many-legs.” See B. xxix. c. 39. Probably one of our millepedes or centipedes: though Fée suggests that it may have been a large caterpillar.] insects known to the Greeks by the name of “seps,” [From σηπεῖν, “to rot.”] of an elongated form, with hairy legs, and noxious to cattle more particularly; the sting being followed by swelling, and the wound rapidly putrifying.

The smell of the cucumber itself is a restorative [This, Fée says, is untrue: but it is hard to say on what grounds he himself asserts that the smell of the cucumber is faint, and almost nauseous.] in fainting fits. It is a well-known fact, that if cucumbers are peeled and then boiled in oil, vinegar, and honey, they are all the more pleasant eating [This, probably, is not conformable to modern notions on the subject.] for it.

Chap. 7. (3.)—The Gourd: Seventeen Remedies. The Somphus: One Remedy.

There is found also a wild gourd, called “somphos” by the Greeks, empty within (to which circumstance it owes its name), [From the Greek σομφὸς, porous, spongy, or hollow.] and long and thick in shape, like the finger: it grows nowhere except upon stony spots. The juice of this gourd, when chewed, is very beneficial to the stomach. [It is supposed by some naturalists that this gourd is the variety Pyxidaris of the Cucurbita pepo of Linnæus, the Colocynthis amara of C. Bauhin. Fée remarks, however, that this designation is arbitrary; as this plant never grows wild in Europe, and its pulp is so bitter, that instead of proving beneficial to the stomach, it would cause vomiting. From the fact of its comparison to the human finger, he doubts if it really was one of the Cucurbitæ at all.]

Chap. 8.—The Colocynthis: Ten Remedies.

There is another variety of the wild gourd, known as the “colocynthis:” [The Cucumis colocynthus of Linnæus, or Coloquintida, so remarkable for its bitterness.] this kind is full of seeds, but not so large as the cultivated one. The pale colocynthis is better than those of a grass-green colour. Employed by itself when dried, it acts as a very powerful [It is an extremely drastic, and indeed violent purgative.] purgative; used as an injection, it is a remedy for all diseases of the intestines, the kidneys, and the loins, as well as for paralysis. The seed being first removed, it is boiled down in hydromel to one half; after which it is used as an injection, with perfect safety, in doses of four oboli. It is good, too, for the stomach, taken in pills composed of the dried powder and boiled honey. In jaundice seven seeds of it may be taken with beneficial effects, with a draught of hydromel immediately after.

The pulp of this fruit, taken with wormwood and salt, is a remedy for toothache, and the juice of it, warmed with vinegar, has the effect of strengthening loose teeth. Rubbed in with oil, it removes pains of the spine, loins, and hips: in addition to which, really a marvellous thing to speak of! the seeds of it, in even numbers, attached to the body in a linen cloth, will cure, it is said, the fevers to which the Greeks have given the name of “periodic.” [Recurring at stated times. The absurdity of this statement does not require discussion.] The juice, too, of the cultivated gourd [The cultivated cucumber, Fée says.] shred in pieces, applied warm, is good for ear-ache, and the flesh of the inside, used without the seed, for corns on the feet and the suppurations known to the Greeks as “apostemata.” [Or “aposthumes,” a kind of abscess, probably.] When the pulp and seeds are boiled together, the decoction is good for strengthening loose teeth, and for preventing toothache; wine, too, boiled with this plant, is curative of defluxions of the eyes. The leaves of it, bruised with fresh cypress-leaves, or the leaves alone, boiled in a vessel of potters’ clay and beaten up with goose-grease, and then applied to the part affected, are an excellent cure for wounds. Fresh shavings of the rind are used as a cooling application for gout, and burning pains in the head, in infants more particularly; they are good, too, for erysipelas, [“Ignis sacer,” literally “sacred fire.” It is sometimes called “St. Anthony’s fire.” Celsus, in describing it, distinguishes it, however, from erysipelas, and divides it into two kinds.] whether it is the shavings of the rind or the seeds of the plant that are applied to the part affected. The juice of the scrapings, employed as a liniment with rose-oil and vinegar, moderates the burning heats of fevers; and the ashes of the dried fruit applied to burns are efficacious in a most remarkable degree.

Chrysippus, the physician, condemned the use of the gourd as a food: it is generally agreed, however, that it is extremely good [On the contrary, Fée says, the pulp of the gourd is tough and leathery, extremely insipid, and destitute of any salutary qualities.] for the stomach, and for ulcerations of the intestines and of the bladder.

Chap. 9.—Rape; Nine Remedies.

Rape, too, has its medicinal properties. Warmed, it is used as an application for the cure of chilblains, [A decoction of rape or turnips is still recommended for chilblains at the present day. Fée remarks that ground mustard is much preferable.] in addition to which, it has the effect of protecting the feet from cold. A hot decoction of rape is employed for the cure of cold gout; and raw rape, beaten up with salt, is good for all maladies of the feet. Rape-seed, used as a liniment, and taken in drink, with wine, is said to have a salutary effect [This, as Fée remarks, he says of nearly all the vegetable productions known.] against the stings of serpents, and various narcotic poisons; and there are many persons who attribute to it the properties of an antidote, when taken with wine and oil.

Democritus has entirely repudiated the use of rape as an article of food, in consequence of the flatulence [It is only suited as an aliment to a strong stomach, and it is owing to the property here mentioned that the School of Salerno says,— Ventum sæpe capis, si tu vis vivere rapis. and Rapa juvat stomachum, novit producere ventum.] which it produces; while Diocles, on the other hand, has greatly extolled it, and has even gone so far as to say that it acts as an aphrodisiac. [Dioscorides and Galen say the same, but this property is not recognized in modern times.] Dionysius, too, says the same of rape, and more particularly if it is seasoned with rocket; [“Eruca:” a plant itself of a very stimulating nature.] he adds, also, that roasted, and then applied with grease, it is excellent for pains in the joints.

Chap. 10.—Wild Rape: One Remedy.

Wild rape [The Brassica napus, var. α of Linnæus, the Brassica asperifolia, var. α of Decandolles, the “navette” of the French. An oil is extracted from the seed, very similar to the Colza oil, extracted from the Brassica oleracea.] is mostly found growing in the fields; it has a tufted top, with a white [It is in reality of a blackish hue without, and white within.] seed, twice as large as that of the poppy. This plant is often employed for smoothing the skin of the face and the body generally, meal of fitches, [See B. xxii. c.. Dioscorides speaks of the use of the wild rape for this purpose, B. ii. c. 135.] barley, wheat, and lupines, being mixed with it in equal proportions.

The root of the wild rape is applied to no useful purpose whatever.

Chap. 11. (4.)—Turnips; Those Known as Bunion and Bunias: Five Remedies.

The Greeks distinguish two kinds of turnips, [See B. xviii. c., and B. xix. c..] also, as employed in medicine. The turnip with angular stalks and a flower like that of anise, and known by them as “bunion,” [Dalechamps remarks that Pliny here confounds the bunion with the bunias; the first of which, as Fée says, is an umbellifera, either the Bunium bulbocastanum of Linnæus, or the Peucedanum silaus of Linnæus, and the second is the Brassica napo-brassica of Linnæus. Dioscorides says that the stalks of the bunion are quadrangular. M. Fraas thinks that the bunion is the Bunium pumilum of modern Botany, and says that the Bunium bulbocastanum, usually supposed to be the bunion of Dioscorides, is a stranger to Greece.] is good for promoting the menstrual discharge in females and for affections [These properties, Fée says, are not to be found in the Bunium bulbocastanum of modern botanists.] of the bladder; it acts, also, as a diuretic. For these purposes, a decoction of it is taken with hydromel, or else one drachma of the juice of the plant. [Sillig is of opinion that there is an hiatus here in the text, and that the meaning is that a drachma of the juice is taken with something else: honey possibly, he suggests.] The seed, parched, and then beaten up, and taken in warm water, in doses of four cyathi, is a good remedy for dysentery; it will stop the passage of the urine, however, if linseed is not taken with it.

The other kind of turnip is known by the name of “bunias,” [The Brassica napo-brassica of Linnæus.] and bears a considerable resemblance to the radish and the rape united, the seed of it enjoying the reputation of being a remedy for poisons; hence it is that we find it employed in antidotes.

Chap. 12.—The Wild Radish, or Armoracia: One Remedy.

We have already said, [See B. xix. c..] that there is also a wild radish. [The Cochlearia Armoracia of Linnæus.] The most esteemed is that of Arcadia, though it is also found growing in other countries as well. It is only efficacious as a diuretic, being in other respects of a heating nature. In Italy, it is known also by the name of “armoracia.”

Chap. 13.—The Cultivated Radish: Forty-three Remedies.

The cultivated radish, too, in addition to what we have already said [In B. xix. c..] of it, purges the stomach, attenuates the phlegm, acts as a diuretic, and detaches the bilious secretions. A decoction of the rind of radishes in wine, taken in the morning in doses of three cyathi, has the effect of breaking and expelling calculi of the bladder. A decoction, too, of this rind in vinegar and water, is employed as a liniment for the stings of serpents. Taken fasting in the morning with honey, radishes are good [Fée says that the medicinal properties recognized by the moderns in the several varieties of the Raphanus sativus are, that their action is slightly stimulating when eaten raw, and that boiled and eaten with sugar they are soothing, and act as a pectoral.] for a cough. Parched radish-seed, as well as radishes themselves, chewed, is useful for pains in the sides. [“Lagonoponon.” Nearly all these asserted virtues of the radish, Fée says, are illusory.] A decoction of the leaves, taken in drink, or else the juice of the plant taken in doses of two cyathi, is an excellent remedy for phthiriasis. Pounded radishes, too, are employed as a liniment for inflammations [“Phlegmoni.” Stagnation of the blood, with heat, redness, swelling, and pain.] under the skin, and the rind, mixed with honey, for bruises of recent date. Lethargic persons [“Veternosi.” Fée says that, rigorously speaking, “veternus” was that state of somnolency which is the prelude to apoplexy.] are recommended to eat them as hot as possible, and the seed, parched and then pounded with honey, will give relief to asthmatic patients.

Radishes, too, are useful as a remedy for poisons, and are employed to counteract the effects of the sting of the cerastes [The Coluber cerastes of Linnæus. See B. viii. c. 35.] and the scorpion: indeed, after having rubbed the hands with radishes or radish-seed, we may handle [Poinsinet warns us not to place too implicit faith in this assertion.] those reptiles with impunity. If a radish is placed upon a scorpion, it will cause its death. Radishes are useful, too, in cases of poisoning by fungi [Dioscorides says the same, but the assertion is quite destitute of truth.] or henbane; and according to Nicander, [Nicander, in his “Alexipharmaca,” ll. 430 and 527, says that the cabbage, not the radish, is good for poisoning by fungi and henbane; and in l. 300 he states that the cabbage is similarly beneficial against the effects of bullock’s blood. Pliny has probably fallen into the error by confounding ῥάφανος, the “cabbage,” with ῥαφανίς, the “radish.”] they are salutary against the effects of bullock’s blood, [Themistocles is said to have killed himself by taking hot bullock’s blood. It is, however, very doubtful.] when drunk. The two physicians of the name of Apollodorus, prescribe radishes to be given in cases of poisoning by mistletoe; but whereas Apollodorus of Citium recommends radish-seed pounded in water, Apollodorus of Tarentum speaks of the juice. Radishes diminish the volume of the spleen, and are beneficial for maladies of the liver and pains in the loins: taken, too, with vinegar or mustard, they are good for dropsy and lethargy, as well as epilepsy [“Morbus comitialis”—literally the “comitial disease.” Epilepsy it is said, was so called because, if any person was seized with it at the “Comitia” or public assemblies of the Roman people, it was the custom to adjourn the meeting to another day.] and melancholy. [From μέλας, “black,” and χολή, “bile.” Melancholy, or bad spirits, was so called from a notion that it was owing to a predominance of an imaginary secretion called by the ancients “black bile.”] Praxagoras recommends that radishes should be given for the iliac passion, and Plistonicus for the cœliac [The cœliac flux, Fée says, is symptomatic of chronic enteritis; and is a species of diarrhœa, in which the chyme is voided without undergoing any change in passing through the intestines.] disease.

Radishes are good, too, for curing ulcerations of the intestines and suppurations of the thoracic organs, [“Præcordiorum.”] if eaten with honey. Some persons say, however, that for this purpose they should be boiled in earth and water; a decoction which, according to them, promotes the menstrual discharge. Taken with vinegar or honey, radishes expel worms from the intestines; and a decoction of them boiled down to one-third, taken in wine, is good for intestinal hernia. [“Enterocele.”] Employed in this way, too, they have the effect of drawing off the superfluous blood. Medius recommends them to be given boiled to persons troubled with spitting of blood, and to women who are suckling, for the purpose of increasing the milk. Hippocrates [De Morb. Mulier. B. ii. c. 67.] recommends females whose hair falls off, to rub the head with radishes, and he says that for pains of the uterus, they should be applied to the navel.

Radishes have the effect, too, of restoring the skin, when scarred, to its proper colour; and the seed, steeped in water, and applied topically, arrests the progress of ulcers known as phagedænic. [Eating or corroding ulcers.] Democritus regards them, taken with the food, as an aphrodisiac; and it is for this reason, perhaps, that some persons have spoken of them as being injurious to the voice. The leaves, but only those of the long radish, are said to have the effect of improving the eye-sight.

When radishes, employed as a remedy, act too powerfully, it is recommended that hyssop should be given immediately; there being an antipathy [Hippocrates, De Diætâ, B. ii. cc. 25, 26, says that radishes are of a cold, and hyssop of a warm, nature.] between these two plants. For dulness of hearing, too, radish-juice is injected into the ear. To promote vomiting, it is extremely beneficial to eat radishes fasting.