Hortus americanus: containing an account of the trees, shrubs, and other vegetable productions, of South-America and the West-India Islands, and particularly of the island of Jamaica; interspersed with many curious and useful observations, respecting their uses in medicine, diet, and mechanics / By the late Henry Barham ; to which are added, a Linnaean index, &c. &c. &c.
- Henry Barham
- Date:
- 1794
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Hortus americanus: containing an account of the trees, shrubs, and other vegetable productions, of South-America and the West-India Islands, and particularly of the island of Jamaica; interspersed with many curious and useful observations, respecting their uses in medicine, diet, and mechanics / By the late Henry Barham ; to which are added, a Linnaean index, &c. &c. &c. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![a large fquare rough ftalk, and globulous head full of fmall blue flowers. It hath a very flrong feent, like fpikenard > and if you fquees^e the tops in your handj^ a clammy or oily fubllance will flick to it, and give ic a flrong feent like the beft oil of fpike. It is an an« nual plant, and in its greatefl; perfedion about Chrifl-' mas ; in a little time after, none of it is to be feen. It is one of the greatefl provokers of urine and ftone- breakers that ever I experienced : I was once fent for to a perfon that lay in a ftrange condition, like hyfteric fits, who, upon nice enquiry, I found was much troubled with the flone and gravel; and, near upon the time of voiding them, ufed to be fo until (lie voided a flone or grave], and then' came out of thefe fits; upon which, I ordered a flrong beverage or fherbet, with' lemons, fugar, and a little fpirk of vitriol, and then added an oily fpirit made from tin's plant, and gave it to her to drink of plentifully like punch, telling them, that if it fuddled her it was no matter, ic would do her no harm, for fhe had no fever. She followed my diiedlions,; drank plentifullv of it, and fell into a found fleep; and, as loon as fhe awaked, made a great quan- tity of urine, with (mail. Hones and gravel; in a few dajs,’there were brought away as-many fmali ftones as could be held in the hollow part of 000*^5 hand ; Sind fhe was free from thofe fits, nor ever cornplained‘ of any gravel or flone, as long as fhe lived after, wdiich was many years. I have often relieved perfons that have had a total floppage of urine, and-have been-in fuch agonies and pain that great fweats and fainting fits have' attended them, and death expedled every minute,- by their only drinking of the aforefaid compofition, which made them evacuate wdth great violence and in great quantities, bringing away gravel or flime along witlv their urine, which would fmell very flrong of the oily fpirit®' It aifo expels poifon, and drives out all ma- lignancies.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b29319870_0194.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
