492 CHINESE MATERIA MEDICA. 



called H ^ (Lung-hsii), and it is said that when Huangti. 

 ascended to Heaven on a dragon, his ministers held on to the 

 latter' s moustaches, pulling them out, and they dropped to the 

 earth and produced this plant. There are also other legends in 

 the books referring to it. The plant is still cultivated in 

 China for the manufacture of mats. The rush is considered 

 to be diuretic, carminative, tonic, and anthelmintic. It is 

 prescribed in gravel, rheumatism, and indigestion, especially 

 that produced by intestinal worms. Old mats are considered 

 to be a good remedy for suppression of urine. 



H ^ ^ (Lung-ch'ang-ts'ao) is a gramineous plant grow- 

 ing by river sides. It has a salty taste, and is used in rheumat- 

 ism. 



jv} ^ ^ (Kou-wei-ts'ao) is a gramineous weed found 

 growing in grain fields. Another name is ^ (Yu). It may be 

 Setaria viridis^ as the latter Chinese name is applied to this 

 plant at Peking, where it grows plentifully. Or, it may be 

 Setaria glaiica^ as Henry thought to identify Kou-wei-ts''ao in 

 Hupeh. It is used as a decoction in diseases of the eye, such 

 as swelling of the lids, trichiasis, entropium, hordeolum, and 

 the like. 



\m. H -J- (K'o-t'eng-tzit). The plant is a creeper growing 

 in the south of the Kuang provinces. Its fruit ripens once in 

 three years, the pod being sac-shaped, and the seeds about the 

 size of a hen's egg, purplish-black on the outside, and lustrous. 

 The kernel is used in medicine, in the treatment of hemor- 

 rhoids, dysentery, and as a general counter-poison. The seed is 

 also called ^S (Hsiang-tou), "elephant-bean," in reference 

 to its size. 



M 39J "F (Yii-chih-tzu). This is evidently a leguminous 

 plant, the pods resembling those of Gymnocladus^ and the 

 beans being a very dark red. Both the seeds and the root are 

 used in medicine, the former as an anthelmintic, tonic, diuretic, 

 and prophylactic remedy. It is directed to be used in epidem- 

 ics, and locally in all sorts of bites and stings. The root is 

 regarded as a sovereign remedy in the Kii poison. 



^ 3^ (Huang-huan), |g {^ ^ (Lang-po-tzil). This is a 

 leguminous plant which grows in Szechuan. The first name 

 seems to refer to the root and the second to the seeds. The 



