VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 361 



taken from the west half of a tree over twenty years old. Its 

 action is said to be antifebrile and astringent, and is prescribed 

 in dysentery, anasarca, and conjunctivitis. The leaves are 

 used locally in eroding ulcers. 



PUERARIA. — H (K^o)- See Pachyrhizus thunbergianus. 



PULSATILLA. — See Anemone cerjiua. 



PUNICA GRANATUM.— ^ ;5 ^ (An-shih-liu). The 

 pomegranate is not indigenous to China, but was introduced by 

 the famous general Chang Chien (circa B.C. 120), from Kabul 

 or Parthia, as indicated by the first two characters. The last 

 character is explained by ^, a tumor or wen, and refers to the 

 appearance of the fruit when burst open. Three kinds are 

 spoken of in the Penisao^ a red-flowered, a yellow-flowered, 

 and a white-flowered, bearing sweet, sour, and bitter fruits 

 respectively. The last is called llj ^ ^ (Shan-shih-liu), 

 whicli name is also referred to under the article on Rhododen- 

 dron indicum^ and may refer to that shrub. Several varieties 

 are also mentioned, and the plant is much cultivated by 

 Chinese gardeners for its flowers ; some very beautiful ones 

 being produced, among which is one bearing large white 

 flowers. The red fruit, bursting open and revealing its 

 numerous seeds, is compared to a grinning mouth showing the 

 teeth. The fruit is much relished by the Chinese, who 

 always seem to have spare time enough to devote to the 

 ingestion of pomegranates and melon seeds. The sweet 

 pomegranate, if eaten in excess, is said to injure the lungs. 

 It is thirst-relieving, and is prescribed in caked-breast and 

 worms. The fruit of the sour kind is used in fluxes from the 

 bowels, colic, menorrhagia, and leucorrhcea. The peel, 1155, 

 is astringent, and is used in dysentery, seminal losses, paralyses, 

 incoordination in the muscles, intestinal worms, prolapse of 

 the rectum, and fluxes of all kinds. The eastward-extending 

 root is anthelmintic and astringent. It is used in diseases of 

 the month or gums, in the diseases for which the peel is used, 

 and in dyes for the hair or whiskers. The flowers, 1154, if 

 dried, pulverized, mixed with iron, and taken for a year, cause 

 the hair to turn white. They are also styptic and astringent. 



