100 CHINESE MATERIA MEDICA. 



a diuretic. If taken in excess, sleep will be prevented. No 

 authority is given for the above identifiction ; the plant is not 

 mentioned in the Index Florae Sinensis, nor has it been found 

 in any other work consulted. 



CEDRELA SINENSIS. — ;j$ (Ch'un). In the classics 

 the character is written (j^. The Pentsao includes this with 

 Ailant/ms glandulosa under the common heading of ^ \% 

 (Ch*un-ch'u). External resemblances led the Chinese to con- 

 found these trees of perfectly distinct orders. The leaves of 

 the Cedrela are edible, and on account of their fragrance the 

 tree is sometimes called ^ ^ (Hsiang-ch'un), while the 

 Ailanthus receives the name of ^ ;|^ (Ch'ou-ch'un) because of 

 the bad odor of its leaves, which for the same reason are not 

 eaten. The wood of the Cedrela resembles mahogany, and is 

 used in cabinet work. The parts of the plant entering 

 commerce are the twigs (^ ;j^ ;f^, Hsiang-ch'un-chih), 409, 

 and the root (^ ^ :|^, Hsiang-ch'un-ken), 409. 



It is evident that the Chinese regard the medical properties 

 of Aila7ithus and Cedrela as similar, if not identical. There- 

 fore it is a little difficult to determine if either is put to any 

 peculiar use. Reference to the article on Ailanthus glattdnlosa 

 is made for the general uses of these drugs. The tender leaves 

 of the Cedrela are in the spring boiled and eaten as a vegetable, 

 and are regarded as carminative and corrective. They are also 

 fed to silkworms. In combination with the leaves of Caialpa^ 

 they are decocted and used as a remedy for scald head and 

 baldness. The inner bark of the trunk and that of the root are 

 used in the treatment of the % (Kan) disease of children, 

 intestinal fluxes, menorrhagia, and post-partum hemorrhage. 

 It is also used in gonorrhoea in both male and female. The 

 fruits (5^, Cilia) are regarded as astringent, and are used also in 

 aflfections of the eye. 



CELOSIA ARGENTEA.— ^ 5^(Ch'ing-hsiang). This 

 is also called ^ %^ (Yeh-chi-kuan), "wild cock's-comb," 

 and %^ ^% (K'un-lun-ts'ao), "plant from Kunlun." The 

 seeds are called [^ ^ nj (Ts'ao-chueh-ming), and are therefore 

 both theoretically and practically confounded with those of 



