A Treatise on Tobacco, Tea, Coffee, and Chocolate

by Simon Paulli

I now proceed to consider the peculiar Virtues commonly supposed to reside in Tea, but which I assert are equally to be found in European Plants; for the Chinese are guilty of a fulsome Exaggeration, when they assert that it has a Tendency to prolong Life. The Virtues, then, of the Tea, seem to be most accurately described by Rhodius and Martinius, who seem to have reduced them to three Heads; the first of which, according to Rhodius, is, that it alleviates Pains of the Head, and represses Vapours: The second, that it corroborates the Stomach: And, the third, that it expels the Stone and Gravel from the Kidneys. These Virtues are, by Martinius, recited in the following Order: To the drinking of this warm Liquor, it is said to be owing, that the Chinese are Strangers to the Gout and Stone. When drank after Meals, it removes Crudities and Indigestion. When exhibited to drunken Persons, it affords them Relief, and prevents the bad Consequences of Surfeits; for it is of a drying Nature, carries off superfluous Humours, expels somniferous Vapours, and removes the languid State of Students, who are oppressed by long Application. These Virtues are, at present, to be carefully examined. I shall not here speak of those Qualities, which are the Result of its Temperature; since I before evinced, that the whole Substance of the Tea was grateful to the Brain; but at the same time shewed, from a singular Observation, that Betony was possessed of the same Virtues and Qualities.

First, then, it is asserted of Tea, that it removes the bad Consequences of Surfeits, because it is of a drying Nature, and carries off superfluous Humours: The same Effects are also produced by Betony: But as for the Expulsion of somniferous Vapours, and removing the languid State of hard Students; these Properties are more frequently ascribed to the true Myrtle, than to Betony; which, however, as we shall afterwards shew, is also recommended against Intoxication.

The second Virtue of Tea macerated in warm Water, is, that it corroborates the Stomach; which Effect is also remarkably produced by Betony.

The third Virtue it is said to be possessed of, is, that it frees the Kidneys from Stones and Gravel; for which Reason, according to Martinius, the Chinese are Strangers to nephritic and arthritic Disorders. Betony remarkably produces this Effect, and, at the same time, is a powerful Preservative against the Gout. The other Qualities of Tea, enumerated by other Authors: I shall not here mention, that I may, at more Length, compare it with Betony. The Reader may, however, consult my Quadripartitium, and Antonius Musa, who, in Libell. de Betonica, affirms, that Betony is possessed of so excellent medicinal Virtues, that it cures no less than forty-seven Disorders; which none of the Chinese have ever dared to assert, concerning their Tea: The Asiatic Tea is, therefore, far inferior to the European Betony. The same Author affirms, "That Betony, previously taken, prevents Intoxication." By which Words, Musa insinuates, that it guards against a Surfeit, and, consequently, frees us from Drowsiness; so that the whole Substance of it is equally grateful and refreshing to the Brain with Tea. It were to be wished, that this Physician had directed the Method of preparing Betony, in order to prevent Intoxication; by which Means the Europeans would, in all Probability, have been encouraged to greater Care and Diligence in cultivating, drying, and separating the small from the large Leaves of our Chamelæagnus, a Decoction of whose Flowers would have been as grateful to them as that of the Chinese Tea is to them. But if any should foolishly dread the Use of the Chamelæagnus, which, however, is much used, and greatly extolled in Denmark, and the Lower Saxony; such Persons may, I think, substitute Betony in its Room. But, if a Physician should order an European Cobler, or Day-Labourer, frequently to use a Decoction of Betony, they would sneeringly bid him use his insipid Water himself. But the Custom of drinking Tea only prevails, because it is a new Thing, unknown to the Forefathers of the Chinese, and is imported from Asia into Europe, whose Inhabitants of all Ranks are so excessively fond of it, on account of its grateful Bitter, and sub-astringent Taste: The same may be said of the Indian Chocolate, and the Water impregnated with the Chavva of the Persians, since these three Liquors have generally no more grateful a Taste, than a Decoction of coarse European Pears, or what the Germans call a Pear-souse.

But, as Antonius Colmeri de Lodesma has given a distinct Account of Chocolate, and the Method of preparing it, the Reader may expect that I should say something of the Use and Method of preparing the Water of Chavva; and this I shall the more willingly do, because no Physician, or Botanist, so far as I know, has expresly, but only accidentally, and imperfectly, given the History of the Chavva. But I would advise Physicians to order the Use, not only of Chocolate, but also of the Chavva, very sparingly; though both Liquors are highly commended by the high and learned, as well as the low and illiterate Part of Mankind: For Hieronymus Benzo, who, according to Dalechampius, Lib. 18. Histor. General. Plant. calls it, "A Wash rather fit for Hogs, than a Liquor proper for human Creatures." Benzo, after residing above an Year in the Province of Nicariquan, in America, had, all the while, a mortal Aversion to this Liquor; till, falling short of Wine, he learned to imitate the Natives, that he might not be under a Necessity of drinking Water perpetually. This Liquor, by its somewhat bitter Taste, refreshes and refrigerates the Body, without intoxicating those who use it. This is the principal and dearest Commodity of those Countries; nor do the Indians, who use it, esteem any thing more highly, according to Clusius, Lib. 2. Exot. Cap. 29. and Anonym. Auctar. in Dodon. I must own I should, with Benzo, have preferred pure Water to this unnatural Mixture, which, as well as Coffee, and Tea, the Europeans may very well want, without any Loss of Health: And it were to be wished, that the excessive Demands for all these, did not excite People of sordid Tempers, to adulterate them, with Substances of heterogeneous Parts, and such as are unfriendly to Nature. This, as I have before mentioned, with respect to Tobacco, is the Reason why, in our Age, we are seized with Disorders, the Names of which are not so much as mentioned in the Writings of the Antients. Hence Bartholin thinks, "That Aromatics and Spices, which are no less the Causes of Wars in Europe, than of Commotions in the Body, ought to be prohibited; since the Purposes of Life and Health will be far better answered, by cleansing the Blood now and then with the Leaves of the Coluthea, Water-Cresses, or Fumitory. We are also to chuse an Antidote for common Use; but not the Theriaca, of which the Emperor Antoninus took the Bulk of a Bean every Morning, nor the Mithridate; for these are injurious by their Heat, and consequently improper for us. But we are to use Conserve of Roses, Rob. of Elder, Electuaries of Marygolds, the Morus Norvegica, and other indigenous Plants, whose Qualities are best suited to our Temperaments and Constitutions." But the Use of the Herb Tea, if it could be brought fresh and recent from China into Europe, would be more tolerable than that of Chocolate, and Coffee, which is of all others the worst: Since a Decoction of the Chavva surprizingly effeminates both the Minds and Bodies of the Persians; by imitating whom, we shall never arrive at that Vigour and Hardiness, which Julius Cæsar, and Cornelius Tacitus, so much admired in our Forefathers.

We have before observed, that Amurath, the fourth Emperor of the Turks, under Pain of Death, totally prohibited the Use of Tobacco, lest his Subjects should become barren. But we Europeans heedlesly go on by the Abuse of Coffee, to emasculate ourselves like the Persians, who are fond of Sterility, and, according to Olearius, much more salacious than the Europeans; But of this Effect of Coffee we shall afterwards treat.

As the Fruit of the Cacao, or Cacarate, which resemble Almonds, are the Basis of Chocolate, they are found engraved in Tabernemontan. Lib. 3. Cap. 16. So that I shall here give no Cuts of them, since I have done that in Quadripartit. Botan. Class. 3. No. 11, 12. when, describing the Seed Bon, or Ban, which is also called Buna, or Buncho, and Bunea, or the Seed from which is prepared the Coava, Caova, Cavve, Choava, and Cahvve, which, by a Corruption, is, no doubt, the Coffee of the Europeans.

If it should be asked, to what Class of Simples, whether that of Herbs, or Trees, we are to refer the Plant which bears the Seed Bon, from which the Water of Chavve is prepared, and which is also mentioned by Olearius, in Itinerar. Persiæ, Cap. 17. I answer, that some, ignorant of Botany, may take it for an Herb, whose Seeds resemble those of the Turkish Corn, or the Indian Corn, by Bauhine called Mays, or for our Wheat: Whereas, it is no Herb, but a Tree, by Olearius, in the last quoted Passage, described in the following Manner: "The Persians, in smoaking Tobacco, have always the black Water of Chavve present. The Fruit with which they prepare this Liquor is sent from Egypt; and, in the inner Side, resembles the Turkish, though on the outer Side, the European Wheat. This Fruit is of the Bigness of a Turkey Bean, and the Shrub bears a white Flower. The Fruit, or Berries, they burn, or roast, in a dry Pan; after which they grind them, and boil them in Water, which they drink, and which has a Kind of hot, unpleasant Taste. It is esteemed a great Cooler; for which Reason it is drank by most; but if it is used to Excess, it extinguishes the Inclination to Venery, and induces Sterility." The Seed Bon, or Ban, is collected from a Tree bearing its own Name, if we may believe Prosper Alpinus, Lib. de Plant. Egypt. Cap. 16. This Author, after residing some Years in Egypt, saw the Bhon-Tree in the Green-House of Hali Bei, the Turk. An intire Description and Cut of this Tree is also to be found in Tom. 1. Lib. 4. Histor. Plantar. Univers. Cap. 5. Since, therefore, Alpinus compares this Tree to our Euonymus, and says, that the former resembles the latter: Hence Caspar Bauhine, in his Pinax, places it among the Species of Euonymus, and calls it the Egyptian Bon, like the Euonymus, with a Fruit like Bay-Berries, from whose Seeds the Egyptians make their Liquor, called Coava. Though this Fruit, with respect to Figure, Bark, and Colour, is highly similar to Bay-Berries, yet it is far less in Bulk. In my Opinion, it most resembles the Seeds of the admirable Peruvian Tree, Decoctions of which, are used by the Eastern Nations, the Egyptians, Turks, and Persians, for corroborating a cold Stomach, assisting Concoction, and removing Obstructions of the Viscera. They also, with Success, use this Decoction for many Days against old Obstructions, and cold Tumors of the Liver and Spleen. This Decoction, according to Alpinus, seems also appropriated to the Uterus, which it warms, and frees from Obstructions: Thus, the Egyptian and Arabian Women, for the due Evacuation of their Menses, use this Decoction for several Days after they commence. Hence, according to Olearius, the Persians are not afraid, lest the Decoction of Cavve render them cold; unless we should also say, that Agnus Castus which induces Sterility, is also of a cold Temperature: But this Doubt will be cleared by-and-by. It were to be wished, that the celebrated Johannes Weslingius, who also travelled into Egypt, had had an Opportunity of seeing this Tree; since he would have given us a more accurate Description of it, than we have hitherto got; for, in Commentar. in Prosper. Alpin. he tells us, that the Fruit of this Tree is brought from Jamin, or Arabia Felix into Egypt; and, that a Decoction of it is sold in some Thousands of Taverns at Memphis. Prosper. Alpinus also, in Lib. de Medicina Egyptor. Lib. 4. Cap. 3. when treating of the Decoctions used by the Egyptians, whether sick, or in Health, tells us, that, in a particular Manner, they make use of the Decoction called Choava, prepared with the Coats or Husk of the Seeds called Bon. Then he describes the Preparation of Bon, by telling us, that it smells like Corn, Rye, Barley, or Pease, when thrown upon live Coals, and burned a little. Alpinus, however, endeavors to evince, that the Seeds of Bon consist of two Substances, the one thick and earthy, by which they brace up and corroborate, and the other thin and subtile, by which they heat, absterge, and remove Obstructions. That they are highly drying is certain, but I cannot for this Reason comprehend why Prosper Alpinus asserts, that Cold prevails moderately in them; for they act by their whole Substance, both by their Salt and both Kinds of Sulphur: So that it is highly probable they produce these Effects, on account of their ungrateful Taste and Smell. But it is said these Seeds are corrected with Sugar. Thus Weslingius informs us, "that some correct the Bitterness of this Decoction with Sugar, and preserve the whole Kernel of the Fruit incrustated with Sugar. Nor is this only customary in Egypt, but also through all the Provinces of Persia. This renders the Seeds Bon not only dear, but scarce, in Europe." Though Weslingius thinks that these Seeds are useful to the Europeans, yet I am of a different Opinion; for, in like Manner, the Europeans have resolved to sweeten, not only their Coffee, but also their Chocolate and Tea, without having any View to prevent Disorders, or recover Health; but only to follow the Customs of the Asiatics, and indulge themselves in a Liquor, whose Taste is pleasant to them.

If it should be said, that Tulpius informs us, that the Chinese dissolve a few Grains of Salt, or Sugar, in their Infusions of Tea, I answer, we here enquire not what is done, but what ought to be done; not what is palatable, but what is conducive to preserve Health, and restore it when lost. Though I do not altogether disapprove of Salt in Tea, yet I absolutely condemn Sugar. How ill the Europeans, especially those of the Northern Countries, consult their Health, by mixing their Mustard, and their Sauces of Vinegar, and Horse-Radish, designed as a Preservative against the Scurvy, with Sugar, I have already shewn, in Class. 3. Quadripartit. Botan. For the same Reason, Sugar, mixed with an Infusion of Tea, infringes and impairs its Virtues; so that, by this means, we drink, not a medicated Water, but little more only than simple European Water, edulcorated with Sugar. This, no doubt, is an excellent Remedy against Intoxication; but certainly if we read both antient and modern Authors, we shall find, that Drunkenness may be removed by drinking cold Water. Besides, an Intoxication, next to Madness, may be greatly alleviated by wrapping up the Scrotum in Cloths dipped in cold Water. Hence we have but little Reason to bring Tea from China, Tartary, and Japan, at an extravagant Price, which might be far better laid out, in relieving poor indigent Families at Home. But the present Europeans are vastly different from what they were before the Asiatic Effeminacy was known among us. The Europeans might, perhaps, be indulged in the perpetual Use of Tea, provided their Regimen was the same with that of the Asiatics. Now, Regimen includes all the five Non-Naturals, which are Air, Meat and Drink, Excretion and Retention, Motion and Rest, Sleep and Watching, and the Passions of the Mind. Now, all these, in Europe, are vastly different from what they are in the Indies, as is obvious from the faithful and impartial Accounts, given us by Martinius, and Mandelslo. This Subject is excellently handled by Hippocrates, in Tr. de Aere, Aquis, & Locis, who joins these three together, with great Judgment, and for very sufficient Reasons; since each of the three has Atoms, in a manner, peculiar to itself, which it continually sends forth, and diffuses even to a great Distance: So that some Bodies, according to Bartholine, may, by means of the Atoms they emit, propagate the Sphere of their sympathetic Actions, to the Distance of a Thousand Miles. About the Equinoxes, and Solstices, the sudden Changes of the State of the Atmosphere, and the Variety of Vapours exhaled from the Earth, produce surprizing Alterations in Health. And these Exhalations rise sometimes in such large Quantities, as to be condensed, and by their own Weight to fall down, in the Form of sulphureous Showers: A memorable Instance of this we had in Norway, where, on May 19, 1665, a violent Tempest, accompanied with uncommon Thunder, and thick Clouds, broke out: During this Storm, there fell from the Clouds, a Substance, highly similar to Sulphur, which not only floated on the Water, but also seemed to cover the Earth. When Stobæus subjected this Matter to an Examination, he found, after drying, and passing it through a Sieve, that when it was become moderately warm, on an heated Tile, it emitted a fetid Smoak of the same Colour with that of the Spirit of Nitre, in Distillation. But this Matter could not be fused by the strongest Fire; by which Means, however, it became inodorous, and like small Sand, though before it resembled a fetid, coarse Sulphur, reduced to Powder. The same Author, in his Letters also, informs me, that, when about as much of the recent Matter, as would lie on the Point of a Knife, was laid upon a red hot Tile, it was spontaneously kindled, made a Kind of Noise, and emitted a reddish fetid Smoak. Next Day Stobæus endeavoured to sublime this crude and sulphureous Matter, by itself, without any Addition, in order to discover, whether Flowers of Sulphur could be obtained from it; but his Labour was in vain; for though the Matter became red hot by due Degrees of Fire, yet no Flowers appeared; only the first Steam, which, in the Alembic, appeared reddish, in the Water, assumed a dark ferruginous Colour: Then, by augmenting the Fire, a whitish Spirit appeared, which gave a similar Colour to the Water. This Steam and Spirit appeared in Distillation to be of an acrid Taste; so that Stobæus justly concluded them to contain a volatile Salt, of a particular Kind. The same Author informs me, in his Letter, that the Rain which fell, during the Thunder, smelled of Sulphur: And from this Observation, he thinks, the Chemists Doctrine, concerning the Generation of Thunder, may be confirmed. As every Substance does not act upon every other Substance, nor sulphureous Things on those of the same Nature, he put this Matter into Spirit of Turpentine, and digested it by a gentle Fire; by which Means, it gave the Liquor a a yellowish Colour, and a Smell, very like that of Balsam of Sulphur: But of these I shall not treat at greater Length, since I am perswaded that Miracles have ceased, and that Providence disposes of second Causes according to wise and stated Laws. Hence it is, that about the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes, or Solstices, all Sorts of Diseases, and especially those of the endemial or epidemical Kind, rage; such as the Scurvy, Measles, and Small-Pox, as also the Plague, though often these Disorders are confined to one City. A memorable Instance of this, we have in the Cities of Hambourg and Amsterdam, which, in 1663, and 1664, were afflicted with a Pestilence, which, however, did not spread itself to Denmark, Sweden, Britain, France, and Germany. But, as the Plague is imported from Africa, it is probable, that the Salubrity of the Atmosphere, in those Countries which escaped, checked the sulphureous, saline, and pestilential Atoms, which first contaminated the Air of Amsterdam, and then that of Hambourg. But all Countries differ so widely, with respect to Air, Water, and Situation, that none of them, even the most contiguous, are exactly alike, and conspire in producing the same Effects. Thus, among the German Wines, the Rhenish is the best; though it also differs in Goodness, according to the particular Parts in which it is produced. The like holds in the French Wine, the worst of which is reckoned that of Orleans; for which Reason, Quercean, in his Diæticum, Cap. 6. tells us, "That in the Oeconomy of the King of France's House, it is enacted, by a domestic Law, that the Steward shall give the King no Orleans Wines;" which, however, has a very grateful Taste. The same holds, not only in Ales, but also in other Things: Thus, the Noremberg Cakes, on account of the peculiar Qualities of the Water with which the Meal and Aromatics are made up, are far better, and more pleasant to the Taste, than those prepared in the same Manner, in any Part of Europe. This is what the Philosophers have been at so much Pains to account for. The Air, Water, and Situation, also constitute the Reason, why Tea in Europe does not produce the same Effects it does among the Asiatics, especially the Chinese. Many Persons of Rank and Distinction have informed me, that they could never be sensible of the so-much-extolled Virtues of Tea, nor perceive that it prevented Sleep, or rendered them more brisk, and fit for Business. One or two Persons, however, subject to Catarrhs, have confessed to me, that they have become far better by the long Use of Tea. Thus, I have heard, that a certain Ambassador to the Dutch, who before laboured under a Difficulty of Hearing, had his Disorder totally removed, by the large Quantities of Tea he drank at the Hague. I, myself, have found Tea to be diuretic. I own, two or three Persons who have travelled, not only through Europe, but also through the East Indies, have affirmed to me, that in Japan, the drinking of Tea infallibly removes Intoxication, and prevents Sleep; but this Effect is not at all produced by it in Europe. Thus, I have been informed, that Strangers, upon their Arrival in Muscovy, can drink such large Quantities of Brandy, as would put an End to their Lives in other Countries. Thus, it may happen, that the Chinese, or Japonese Tea, with the Assistance and Concurrence of other Things, may produce a particular Effect, which Tea will not do in Europe. But all these Effects are produced by Betony, an Herb universally known in Europe: Thus, it is certain, that our Chamelæagnus is the Tea of the Chinese, or Japonese. But to illustrate my Subject the better, I shall make a few Remarks on the peculiar Genius, Regimen, and Method of living used among the Indians and Chinese. The Indians then are fond of moistening Aliments, which guard against the Heat of the Sun; such as Cherries, Fruits of all Kinds, Pot-Herbs, Fishes, Oysters, Crabs: Besides, Michael Boym, a learned Jesuit, in his Flora Sinensis, mentions various Fruits which are not produced in Europe; whereas Nature has furnished the Chinese with others, either like to, or exactly the same with, those of the Europeans. The former of these, and the other similar Delicacies of the East Indies, do, in all Probability, give rise to new Diseases in Europe. This Jesuit speaks of China in the following Manner: "The Kingdom of China is, as it were, a Compound of the whole Globe, or rather, a Gem, in which more Riches are to be found than in all the rest of the World besides. In the Southerly Parts of the Country, the Heats are most intense, and produce large Quantities of all the Indian Fruits, such as Dates, Mangas, Ananas, and others: Whereas the Northern Parts produce Figs, Chesnuts, Nuts of all Kinds, Peaches, Apricots, and Pears of various Kinds." Thus provident Nature has furnished the Southermost Parts of China with Fruits intirely unknown to the Europeans; whereas, the Northern Parts produce such as are known in Europe, and suited to its Soil and Climate: Since, in the former, the Heats are very intense, but not so in the latter. Thus Nature seems to have prohibited us the Use of the former of these Fruits, by placing us at such a Distance from them, and to have indulged us in the Use of the latter, by placing us so near them; for the Precept, of sometimes using Things to which we are not habituated, does not hold in this Case: Since, being Europeans, we ought to use the Regimen, Aliments, and Drinks, peculiar to Europe; for it is no less generally than justly observed, that the natural Produce of any Country is best suited to the Constitution of its Inhabitants. Thus Tea seems by Nature adapted to the Inhabitants of China, Coffee to those of Persia, Chocolate to those of America, and Ale and Wine to those of the different Parts of Europe. Thus the antient Inhabitants of Saxony and Megapolis, before they became fond of foreign Delicacies, used to say proverbially, Drink Wine, and reap Benefit from it; drink Ale, and become fat; drink Water, and die. It is also certain, that in former Times, the Inhabitants of Iceland and Norway, when they used a simple Regimen, and were Strangers to foreign Luxury, enjoyed good Health to an incredible Age; whereas, their Posterity are not only weaker, but hardly live beyond the thirtieth, fortieth, or fiftieth Year of their Age: So that the Lyric Poet seems to have made a just Prophecy of our own Generation, in the following Lines: