354 chinesp: materia mrdica. 



kernel of the seed, 466, has been mistaken for the almond. 

 But the fact is that the kernels of the apricot and of the peach 

 are used in China instead of the almond, which is more or 

 less rare. The kernel is considered to be somevviiat deleterious, 

 and it is said tiiat a double kernel will kill a man, and may be 

 used to poison a dog-. Ordinarily, the cahx of the apricot 

 flower is five-parted, but it a six-parted one is found, the seed 

 will contain a double kernel. Sedative, tnssic, antispasmodic, 

 demulcent, pectoral, vulnerary, and anthelmintic properties are 

 ascribed to these kernels, and a number of nostrums are 

 prepared with them, and they are prescribed in a great variety of 

 difficulties. A kind of fatty confection, called ^ gf;; (Hsing-su), 

 is made from the kernels, and they are also used together with 

 peach and other kernels in producing a kind of bland oil, called 

 -rf fc ?Hl (Hsing-jen-yu). One form of the confection, in which 

 oinger and licorice are combined with the kernels, is used 

 as a tnssic and expectorant remedy, while the other, which 

 is prepared by a process of fermentation, is more especially 

 used as a prophylactic and tonic. A decoction, called :^ {z '/# 

 (Hsing-jen-t'ang), is made by crushing the blanched kernels in 

 boiling water, with the addition of other drugs and flavoring 

 ingredients. This is sold in the streets of some Chinese towns, 

 much as sassafras tea is in European cities, as a kind of ptisan. 

 It is given in coughs, asthma, and catarrhal affections. The 

 juice of apricot kernels is added to rice-congee, and given in 

 hemorrhages, the kernels being sometimes parched beforehand. 

 They are also crushed and made into a paste, which is applied 

 to the eye in inflammations of that organ. Apricot flowers are 

 considered to be tonic and are a woman's remedy, promoting 

 fecundity. They are also used in cosmetic preparations. The 

 leaves are recommended in decoction for plethora, the branches 

 in injuries, and the root is said to be antidotal to the poison of 

 the kernels. This latter illustrates a popular belief of the 

 Chinese doctors, who regard the root of a plant as the polar 

 antagonist of the stem and all that is borne upon it, so that if 

 one is poisonous, the other will furnish the antidote. 



PRUNUS COMMUNIS, Amygdala communis. — '^ _£ :^ 

 (Pa-tan-hsing). This is brought from Mohammedan countries, 



