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Sneezewort Yarrow
Description. The root is long and fibrous, slender, and hung with many fibres. The stalk is round, upright, and two feet and a half high, of a pale green, and branched. The leaves are long, narrow, of a deep green, rough on the surface, sharp-pointed, and serrated at the edges. The flowers are very numerous, small, and white, and they terminate the branches. The seed is oval. Place. It is common on ditch-banks.
Time. It flowers in August.
Government and virtues. Venus governs this useful but neglected plant. The leaves dried and powdered, and snuffed up the nose, occasion sneesing, and are excellent against inveterate head-achs. The young tops are of a sharp but pleasant taste, and may be eaten in salads. This plant, though at present not much regarded, deserves more notice than the present practice takes of it. It is a very good vulnerary, both inwardly, taken in infusion, decoction, &c. and outwardly, applied in fomentations. For it is a drier and astringent, and therefore proper to be used in all immoderate fluxes, whether of the bowels or other parts, especially of the menses, and in female weaknesses. YEW.
Description. It grows to be an irregular tree, spreading widely into branches. The leaves are long, narrow, and placed with a beautiful regularity. The flowers are yellowish, and the berries are surrounded with a sweet juicy matter.
Place. We have it growing in woods, and in the gardens, but its usual ancient residence is the church-yard: conjectures upon the aufiquity and origin of which plantation, has brought forth much pedantic nonsense; Gray observes this in the Grave, a Poem, when he says, "Well do I know thee by they trusty Yew, "Shading for years thy gloomy church-yard view; "Cheerless, unsocial plant, that loves to dwell "Where scatter'd bones man's dissolution tell."
Government and virtues. This is a tree of Saturn. The leaves are said to be poisonous; but the wood, if it grew with more regularity, would be very valuable. This tree, though it has no place among physical plants, yet does not deserve (at least in our climate) so bad a character as the ancients give it, viz. a most poisonous vegetable, the berries of which threaten present death to man and beast that eat them: many in this country having eaten them and survived. However that be, it has very powerful poisonous qualities, that rise by distillation. In this form it is the most active vegetable poison known in the whole world: for in a very small dose it instantly induces death without any previous disorder; and its deleterious power seems to act entirely upon the nervous system, and without exciting the least inflammation in the part to which it more immediately enters. It totally differs from opium and all other sleepy poisons, for it does not bring on the lethargic symptioms, but more effectually penetrates and destroys the vital functions, without immediately affecting the animal. These observations would not have been made, or the article inserted here, but to caution against any rash application of it, for though it is sometimes given usefully in obstructions of the liver, and bilious complaints, those experiments seem too few to recommend it to be used without the greatest caution. The deleterious qualities of laurel-water are more than equalled by this.
YUCCA, or JUCCA.
Description. This Indian plant has a thick tuberous root, spreading in time into many tuberous heads, whence shoot forth many long, hard, and hollow leaves, very sharp pointed, compassing one another at the bottom, of a greyish green colour, abiding continually, or seldom falling away, with sundry hard threads running in them, and being withered, become pliant to bind things. From the midst thereof springs forth a strong round stalk, divided into several branches, whereon stand divers somewhat lar e white flowers, hanging downwards, consisting of six leaves, with divers veins, of a weak reddish or blueish colour, spread on the back of the outer leaves from the middle to the bottom, not reaching to the edge of any leaf, which abide not long, but quickly fall away.
Place. It grows in divers places of the West-Indies, as in Virginia and New-England.
Time. It flowers about the latter end of July.
Virtues. It has no properties, as yet known of, for physical use. The natives in Virginia use the roots for bread. The raw juice is dangerous, if not deadly, and it is supposed the Indians poisoned the heads of their darts therewith.
I NOW enjoy the heartfelt satisfaction of laying before you a new and elegant improvement of CULPEPER'S HERBAL. You have herein a Complete Family Physician, together with the best remedies for every disease incident to the Human Body; for seeing that our frail mortal bodies are subject to a vast multitude of diseases, both internal and external, it hath most graciously pleased Almighty God, of his infinite mercy, goodness, and compassion to sinful man, to plant remedies in our gardens, before our doors, and even on every side of our paths, in order that we might (with our hearts full of gratitude and thanksgivings) put forth our hands, and duly receive the healing balm, in the day of pain and most grievous affliction. We must really stand astonished, and be even lost in admiration, when we find that all these plants are impregnated with, and do possess, such an healing property as is found to overcome and vanquish every disease incident to the human body; and the plain reason thereof is this, because they are governed, made rich, preserved, and are every way made proper and fit to heal the body of man, under all his various diseases, sickness, and infirmities, by the celestial ministers of Heaven, acting under the great power authority of the most glorious Creator of the Universe, in order that those who were wise enough, might duly receive the benefit and advantage of the same, in the day of need and necessity. How to make the most profitable use of this Book:
The herbs, plants, &c. are here arranged under their proper planets; therefore, First consider the symptoms and progress of the disease. Secondly, What part of the body is afflicted, and whether it doth lay in the flesh, or blood, or bones, or ventricles.
Thirdly, You have likewise, in this book, the various herbs for the cure, appropriated to the several diseases, and the said diseases are all set down under each part, whereby you may strengthen and comfort the afflicted part of the body by its like; as the brain by herbs of Mercury; the breast and liver by herbs of Jupiter; the heart and vitals by herbs of the Sun, &c. Hereby you see what reason may be given for medicines, and also what great necessity there is for every physician to be an astrologian. Now nothing remains but that you daily labour to glorify God, and see that you also duly answer the great end of your creation, in your several stations and situations in life, and to do good to yourselves first, by daily increasing your knowledge; and afterwards by healing the sickness and bodily infirmities of your neighbours.