192 PLINY'S NATURAL HISTORY. [Book XXVI. 



tain plant, a man has been enabled, in the sexual congress, to 

 repeat his embraces as many as seventy times even ! The 

 name and genus, however, of this plant, he has omitted to 

 mention^ 



CHAP. 64. REMEDIES FOR THE GOUT AND DISEASES OF THE 

 FEET. 



Sideritis, 19 attached to the body as an amulet, reduces vari- 

 cose veins, and effects a painless cure. Gout used to be an 

 extremely rare disease, not in the times of our fathers and 

 grandfathers only, but within my own memory even. Indeed, 

 it may justly be considered a foreign complaint ; for if it had 

 been formerly known in Italy, it would surely have found a 

 Latin name. It should, however, by no means be looked 

 upon as an incurable malady ; for before now, in many in- 

 stances, it has quitted the patient all at once, and still more 

 frequently, a cure has been effected by proper treatment. 



For the cure of gout, roots of panaces 20 are used, mixed with 

 raisins ; juice of henbane, or the seed, combined with meal ; 

 scordion, 21 taken in vinegar ; iberis, as already mentioned ; 22 

 vervain, beaten up with axle-grease ; or root of cyclaminos, 23 

 a decoction of which is good also for chilblains. 



As cooling applications for gout, root of xiphion 24 is used ; 

 seed of psyllion ; 25 hemlock, with litharge or axle-grease ; 

 and, at the first symptoms of red gout, or, in other words, hot 

 gout, the plant aizoiirn. 26 For either kind of gout, erigeron, 27 

 with axle-grease, is very useful ; leaves of plantago, beaten up 

 with a little salt ; or argemonia, 28 pounded with honey. An 

 application of vervain is also remedial, and it is a good plan 

 to soak the feet in a decoction of that plant in water. 



CHAP. 65. LAPPAGO OR MOLLUGO : ONE REMEDY. ASPERUGO I 



ONE REMEDY. 



Lappago 29 is employed also for this disease ; a plant 

 similar to the anagallis, 30 were it not that it is more branchy, 



19 See B. xxv. c. 19. 20 See B. xxv. c. 11, et seq. 



21 See B. xxv. c. 27. 



22 In B. xxv. c. 49. None of these so-called remedies are now employed. 



23 See B. xxv. c. 67. 24 See B. xxv. cc. 88, 89. 

 25 See B. xxv. c. 90. 26 See B. xxv c. 102. 



27 See B. xxv. c. 106. M See B. xxv. c. 66. 



20 See B. zsiv. c. 116. 30 See B. xxv. c. 92. 



