4?6 
rifes 
be ftill diitended with refin, out of the bag, and, after bruifmg fr 
expofing it to the fun, or boiling it gently in water ; the drug then 
appears floating upon the furface, and is fki mined off and fhaped into 
fmall cakes. The inferior fort of dragon's blood is that which 
from the crude fruit after being long boiled', and ; is ufually formed 
into very large cakes,, or maffes, in which the membranous parts of 
the fruit, and other impurities, are intermixed. It is alfo brought: 
to us adulterated, or artificially compofed, in various ways. Both 
the fmall globules, and the large maffes, which we have noticed, are 
imported here, and found to vary widely in goodnefs and purity. 
The belt kind of this gummy refmous fubftance breaks fmooth, is of 
a dark red colour, and when powdered changes to crimfon; it readily 
melts, and catches flame. It is not acl:ed upon by watery liquors, 
but it totally diffolves in pure fpirit, and foluble likewife in expreffed 
It has no fmell, but to the tafle difcovers fome degree of 
oils. 
warmth and pungency. 
The Cinnabris and Sanguis Draconis appear to 
<r 
■i 
ngnified the 
fame thing with the. Ancient Greeks,* who were well acquainted with, 
the aftringent power of this medicine ; and in this character it has 
fince been much employed in haemorrhages and alvine fluxes. At 
prefent however it is rarely ufed internally, being fuperfeded by more 
certain and effectual remedies of this numerous clafs ; and it enters 
no officinal compofition but that of emplaftrum thuris of the London* 
Pharmacopoeia. 
t 
#-■ 
Kwxfiagt, atiA,<X($g<xKo&ro$* 
i 
CUCUMIS COLOCYNTHIS 
• 
BITTER CUCUMBER, 
Or,COLOQUINTIDA* 
STNONTMJ. Colocynthis. Pbarm. Lond.tf EdM. Gerard 
Emac. p, 915. Cam. Epit, p. 982. Rait Htft. p. 642. 
Colo- 
cynthis fru&u rotundo minor. Bauh. Pin. p. 313. Colocynthis 
vulgaris. Park. Theat. p. 160. 
flq/s Monoecia. Ord. Syngenefia. Lin. Gen. Plant. 1092. 
Ef Gen. Ch. 
