42 FAMILY HERBAL. 



tops of the branches, and they grow out of scalv 

 heads. The seeds arc beautiful, hard, white, and 

 shining. 



The leaves which grow on the stalks of the 

 blue-bottle, fresh gathered and bruised, will stop 

 the bleeding of a fresh wound, even if a large 

 vessel be cut. They are not sufficiently known 

 for this purpose, but they exceed all other things : 

 and may save a life where a surgeon is not to be 

 had in t ; me for such an accident A distilled 

 water of the flowers used to be kept in the shops, 

 but it was of no value. An infusion of them 

 works gently by urine. 



There is a large kind of this plant in gardens, 

 which is called a vulnerary or wound herb. But it 

 is not so good as this. 



The Box Tree. Kuxus. 



A COMMON little shrub in our gardens, 

 and a native of our own country, though not 

 common in its wild state. With us it grows but 

 to a small height ; in some other parts of Europe, 

 it is a tolerably large shrub. The bark is whitish, 

 the wood yellow ; the leaves small, roundish, 

 smooth, of a very dark green colour, and very 

 numerous. The flowers are small and greenish 

 yellow ; the fruit is litfcle, round, and furnished 

 with three points. 



The wood of the box-tree, and particularly 

 of the root, is an excellent medicine in all foul- 

 nesses of the blood ; it has the same virtues with 

 the guiacum, but in a greater degree. It is to bo 

 given in decoction not made too strong, and con- 

 finned a long time. There have been instances 

 of what were called leprosies cured entirely by 

 this medicine. There is an oil made from it by 



