The berries, which to the taste are gratefully acid, and moderately restringent, have been given with good success in bilious fluxes, and diseases proceeding from heat, acrimony, or thinness of the juices.
315. BETONICA officinalis. WOOD BETONY. The Leaves.—These and the flowers have an herbaceous, roughish, somewhat bitterish taste, accompanied with a very weak aromatic flavour. This herb has long been a favourite among writers on the Materia Medica, who have not been wanting to attribute to it abundance of good qualities. Experience does not discover any other virtue in betony than that of a mild corroborant: as such, an infusion or light decoction of it may be drunk as tea, or a saturated tincture in rectified spirit given in suitable doses, in laxity and debility of the viscera, and disorders proceeding from thence.
316. BETULA alba. BIRCH TREE. The bark and Sap.—Upon deeply wounding or boring the trunk of the tree in the beginning of spring, a sweetish juice issues forth, sometimes, as is said, in so large quantity, as to equal in weigth to the whole tree and root: one branch will bleed a gallon or more a day. This juice is chiefly recommended in scorbutic disorders, and other foulnesses of the blood: its most sensible effect is to promote the urinary discharge.
317. BORAGO officinalis. BORAGE. The Flowers.—An exhilarating virtue has been attributed to the flowers of borage, which are hence ranked among the so called cordial flowers: but they appear to have very little claim to any virtue of this kind, and seem to be altogether insignificant.
318. BRYONIA alba. WHITE BRYONY. The Roots.—This is a strong irritating cathartic; and as such has sometimes been successfully exhibited in maniacal cases, in some kinds of dropsies, and in several chronical disorders, where a quick solution of viscid juices, and a sudden stimulus on the solids, were required.
319. CALENDULA officinalis. MARIGOLD. The Flowers.—These are supposed to be aperient and attenuating; as also cardiac, alexipharmic, and sudorific: they are principally celebrated in uterine obstructions, the jaundice, and for throwing out the small-pox. Their sensible qualities give little foundation for these virtues: they have scarcely any taste, and no considerable smell. The leaves of the plant discover a viscid sweetishness, accompanied with a more durable saponaceous pungency and warmth: these seem capable of answering some useful purposes, as a stimulating, aperient, antiscorbutic medicine.
320. CANNABIS sativa. HEMP. The Seeds.—These have some smell of the herb; their taste is unctuous and sweetish; on expression they yield a considerable quantity of insipid oil: hence they are recommended (boiled in milk, or triturated with water into an emulsion) against coughs, heat of urine, and the like. They are also said to be useful in incontinence of urine; but experience does not warrant their having any virtues of this kind.
321. CARTHAMUS tinctorius. SAFFLOWER. The Seeds.—These have been celebrated as a cathartic: they operate very slowly, and for the most part disorder the bowels, especially when given in substance; triturated with aromatic distilled waters, they form an emulsion less offensive, yet inferior in efficacy to more common purgatives.
322. CENTAUREA Cyanus. BLUE-BOTTLE. The Flowers.—As to their virtues, notwithstanding the present practice expects not any from them, they have been formerly celebrated against the bites of poisonous animals, contagious diseases, palpitations of the heart, and many other distempers.
323. CENTAUREA rhapontica. GREATER CENTAURY. The Root.—It has a rough somewhat acrid taste, and abounds with a red viscid juice; its rough taste has gained it some esteem as an astringent; its acrimony as an aperient; and its glutinous quality as a vulnerary: the present practice takes little notice of it in any intention.