PEDIPALPI — SCORPIONS. 32 Y 



Men say that houseleek hath so soveraign a might-, 

 AVho carries but that, no Scorpion can him bite." ^ 



The natives of South Africa, when bitten by a Scorpion, 

 apply, as a remedy, a living frog to the wound, into which 

 animal it is supposed the poison is tranferred from the 

 wound, and it dies; then they apply another, which dies 

 also : the third perhaps only becomes sickly, and the fourth 

 no way affected. When this is observed, the poison is con-, 

 sidered to be extracted, and the patient cured. Another 

 method is to apply a kidney, scarlet, or other bean, which 

 swells; then apply another and another, till the bean ceases 

 to be affected, when they consider the poison extracted.^ 



There is a vast desert tract, says Pliny, on this side of the 

 Ethiopian Cynaraolgi — the ** dog-milkers" — the inhabitants 

 of which were exterminated by Scorpions and venomous 

 ants.^ 



Navarette tells us, in the account of his voyage to the 

 Philippine Islands, that there was there in practice a good 

 and easy remedy against the Scorpions which abound in that 

 country. This was, when thejwent to bed, to make a com- 

 memoration of St. George. He himself, he says, for many 

 years continued this devotion, and, "God be praised," he 

 adds, "the Saint always delivered me both there and in 

 other countries from those and such like insects." He con- 

 fesses, however, they used another remedy besides, which was 

 to rub all about the beds with garlic* 



Navarette^ and Barbof' both tell us that a certain remedy 

 against the sting of a Scorpion, is to rub the wound with a 

 child's private member. This, the latter adds, immediately 

 takes away the pain, and then the venom exhales. The 

 moisture that comes from a hen's mouth, Barbot says, is 

 also good for the same. 



The Persians believe that Scorpions may be deprived of 

 the power of stinging, by means of a certain prayer which 

 they make use of for that purpose. The person who has the 

 power of "binding the Scorpion," as it is called, turns his 



1 Moufet's Theatr. Ins., 210-215. Topsel's Hist, of Beasts and Ser- 

 pents, p. 1053-7. 



2 Campbell's Travels in S. Africa, p. 325. 



3 Nat. Hist., Yiii. 29 (43). 

 * Churchill's Col. of Voy. and Trav., 1. 212. 

 6 Ibid. « Ibid., V. 221. 



