1821.] and Medicinal Virtues of the Common Hop, 201 



have all in turn been used ; but all of them are so far inferior, 

 both in their flavour and in their antiseptic or preservative pro- 

 perties, that the use of all vegetables in the manufacturing of 

 beer, excepting malt and hops, is by law forbidden. By the 

 improvement which is now proposed, so great would be the 

 diminution in the price of the hop, from its being made an 

 article of easy and cheap transportation, that there would be little 

 inducement for using any other article in its stead. 



6, The lupuhn is exceedingly bitter, but not unpleasant, 

 whereas the nauseous extractive matter of the leaves which, by 

 boihng, is imparted to the beer, is unpleasant to the taste, and, 

 when highly concentrated, is frequently ungrateful to the sto- 

 mach. It is believed that few persons ever relished the peculiar 

 bitter of the strong beer, until, by drinking it habitually, their 

 taste becomes vitiated, as is the case in the use of opium and 

 tobacco. Soon after hops were introduced into use in brew- 

 ing in England, the citizens of London petitioned parliament to 

 forbid their use in the kingdom, as they were a nuisance, 

 " and spoiled the taste of their drink." The leaves then are not 

 only useless, but prejudicial to the flavour of beer. 



On the virtues of this substance as a medicine, I shall at pre-.. 

 sent be very brief, as it will probably be made a subject for 

 future consideration. It has already been observed thatthehop 

 has long been regarded as a medicine of some value. In France 

 it has been used as a tonic, and prescribed in dyspepsia and 

 scrofula. In this country it has been most valued for its narco- 

 tic powers, and used in cases when opium was inadmissible. 

 The most common preparation is a saturated tincture of the 

 leaves. To this there are tvv^o important objections : 1. To give 

 enough of the tincture of the leaves to induce sleep, the quantity 

 of alcohol is necessarily so great as sometimes to do injury to 

 the patient. 2. When given m large doses, it frequently produces 

 nausea, and sometimes vomiting. The first of these objections 

 requires no proof; the second is conhrmed by my own observa- 

 tion, and by the experiments of Dr. Bryorley, in his inaugural 

 dissertation on the hop. This last effect is probably owing to the 

 extractive matter in the leaves, for I have never seen it produced 

 by the lupulin. I have prescribed the powder in substance, the 

 infusion, decoction, alcoholic tincture, and the extract. As its 

 aromatic and bitter properties are imparted to water, the infusion 

 is an eligible preparation as a tonic and stomachic ; but if given 

 with a desire to produce sleep, the tincture is the best prepara- 

 tion. As it has been demonstrated, both by positive and nega- 

 tive testimony, that the narcotic principle exists in the i^esin only, 

 the tincture should always be made with alcohol and not with 

 proof spirit. It is more difficult and expensive to prepare the 

 extract than the tincture, and the latter, in most instances, is the 

 most eligible preparation. 



Its virtues are aromatic, tonic, and narcotic; and it is, j 



