CUSSO, COUSSO, KOUSSO 123 



of pontage granted in 1305 by Edward I, to aid in re- 

 pairing and sustaining the Bridge of London, and 

 authorizing toll on various articles, mentions among 

 groceries and spices, cubebs as liable to impost. Cubebs 

 occur in the German lists of medicines of Frankfort 

 and Nordlingen, about 1450 and 1480; they are also 

 mentioned in the Confectbuch of Hans Folcz of Nurem- 

 berg, dating about 1480. 



"It cannot, however, be said that cubebs were a com- 

 mon spice, at all comparable with pepper or ginger, or 

 even in such frequent use as grains of paradise or galan- 

 gal. Garcia de Orta, (1563), speaks of them as but 

 seldom used in Europe; yet they are named by Sala- 

 dinus as necessary to be kept in every apotheca. In a 

 list of drugs to be sold in the apothecaries' shops of the 

 city of Ulm, A. D. 1596, cubebs are mentioned as 

 Fructus carpesiorum vel cubebarum, the price for half 

 an ounce being quoted as 8 kreutzers, the same as that 

 of opium, best manna, and amber, while black and 

 white pepper are priced at 2 kreutzers." 



CUSSO, COUSSO, KOUSSO (Kousso) 



Introduced as Brayera in Secondary List of 1860. It retained 

 this name in the editions of 1870 and 1880. It was official as 

 Cusso in the editions of 1890 and 1900, but was neglected alto- 

 gether in 1910. 



The cousso tree (Hagenia abyssinica) is native to 

 Abyssinia, where it is generally planted about the 

 villages on the high tablelands, from 3,000 to 8,000 

 feet above the sea level. Bruce (105) observed its 

 uses, 1768-1773, during his expedition to discover the 

 sources of the Nile, and Willdenow (385), 1799, de- 

 scribed it under the name Hagenia. Its use as a vermi- 

 fuge was derived from Abyssinian domestic practice, 



