1886 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



:^07 



CATNIP. 



Its Value for Medicine as well as for Bees. 



ALSO SOME GENERAL THOUOHTS IN REGARD TO 

 THE MEDICAL PROPERTIES Of" PLANTS. 



fHIS very common plant grows all over our 

 country, yet very little is known about its 

 real value, because it g-rows at almost every 

 ^ man's doorstep. Somethinj^ far fetched and 



dear bought is considered to bo very valua- 

 ble, while we have as good, and perhaps better, all 

 about us; and if the one at home were carofullj- 

 studied, our introduction would lead us to say, 

 "We wish a better acquaintance." The medical 

 properties of this plant arc anodyne, carminative, 

 diaphoi'etic, anti-spasmodic, and nervine. The in- 

 fusion given cold is a mild tonic; so also is the fluid 

 extract. It has been used in febrile diseases as a 

 diaphoretic, and to promote the action of other 

 remedies; also to allay spasmodic action, and pro- 

 duce sleep; and right here its value has beei; tested 

 thousands of times, when the fever has run high, 

 and the poor sulfercr has rolled from side to side, 

 wild from feverish mania, the eyes glaring and 

 bloodshot, pulse 133 per minute, temperatme 104, 

 respiration 30. Now, here is a case that any physi- 

 cian would regard with alarm, and well he might, 

 for danger is near if this condition is allowed to re- 

 main, or can not be removed. With (he danger- 

 signals all up, give four ounces of a fresh infusion 

 of catnip, warm as can be drank com fort abli', every 

 hour, for (5, 8, or 10 hours, and, lo! your signals 

 are all down, or, at least, at half-mast. Every indi- 

 cation is chanurd fur onod. It has been given as a 

 carminative .-ind anti-spasmodic in the flatulent 

 colic of little children. Many times I have seen the 

 little sufferer soothed down to rest and a long sweet 

 sleep, by the use of a few teaspoonfuKs of catnip 

 tea; a gentle moisture would spread o\er the whole 

 system; the irritation or cold, as the case might be, 

 would fly out of the windows (the rela.xcd pores), 

 and the little one would be well. 



It is of great value as a iitcri)H' tonic, and has 

 proved very beneficial in amenorrhea and dysmen- 

 orrhea, and has been employed in nervous head- 

 ache, hysteria, and nervous irritability. The proof 

 can be furnished, if the proof of the action of any 

 medicine can be furnished, that it has restored the 

 menstrual secretion after other means have failed. 



As a convenient domestic remedy it has no supe- 

 rior in recent colds, coughs, febrile and eruptive 

 forms of diseases, which infants and young chil- 

 dren are subject to. The leaves and flowers are the 

 most valuable part of the plant, and the virtues 

 thereof are set free by boiling water, except the 

 essential oil, which can be procured only by distilla- 

 tion. It contains that variety of tannic acid which 

 strikes a green color with the ferruginous salts that 

 are set free by heat. Restlessness, arising from 

 overwork, anxiety of mind, and many other nerv- 

 ous conditions, are soon improved by the use of 

 this remedy. The fluid extract of catnip, ladies'- 

 plipper, and skullcap, equal parts, forms a splendid 

 remedy for chronic nervous headache. 



But with all the other good qualities, it is a splen- 

 did honey-plant, supplying a large secretion of 

 nectar for the busy bees every year, and sometimes 

 the amount of honey gathered from it is astonish- 

 ing. And while it is good for the bipeds and good 

 jfor the bees it is also good for Tftbby. A few year? 



ago I had a very fine puss that began to be stupid, 

 and dumped about for several days, refusing all 

 food, even milk. One day she had a terrible fit, 

 frothed at the mouth, jerked, and convulsed terri- 

 bly for a few minutes, and then a faint moan es- 

 caped the poor creature, and my sympathy was 

 stirred beyond further endurance. I got some cat- 

 nip, made some tea, and gave it immediately; and 

 as soon as it touched her mouth, the greatest plea- 

 sure was manifest, working her mouth and trying 

 to get every drop. In a few moments she revived, 

 and lay quiet and resting. After a little while she 

 moaned again and I gave some more tea, when she 

 took greedily all I gave her. She took several 

 drinks of it during the day, with the greatest possi- 

 ble relish; and the day after, she began to take a 

 little food, and recovered rapidly, without having 

 any more convulsions. If my horse had been sick, 

 and recovered as nicely and speedilj- as did 1133' pet 

 Tabby, I should have regarded the remedy used, 

 whatever it was, as vei-y wisely applied. 



The physician who does not deal truthfully with 

 suffering humanity, especially when he knows that 

 death is but a step before them, is very unkind and 

 cruel. Ignorance or dishonesty onli' can be attrib- 

 uted to such conduct. If ignorant, he is unfit lor a 

 professional position; if dishonest, he is just as un- 

 fit. N. L. HIGBIE, M. D. 



Elsie, Mich. 



I presume, doctor, the above was called 

 forth liy my questioning whether catnip 

 really possesses the medical value that it 

 usually has credit for. No doubt you are 

 right, and I thank you for the information 

 you have given us in the matter ; but please, 

 doctor, excuse me, and 1 would also ask the 

 rest of the brethren who belong to the med- 

 ical profession to bear with me a little, if I 

 ask for a little more light on the subject. 

 Suppose I should drink a gallon of the strong- 

 I est catnip tea that could be made, inside of 

 ! 2-1 hours, would it do me any harm V I pre- 

 \ sume that all would agree that it would not. 

 ! Now, is it not possible that the warm drink, 

 many times, does the work, when the catnip 

 has 'the credit ? A good big dose of hot 

 water, just as hot as you can possibly swal- 

 I low it, will, many times, do wonders. " When 

 I am out in the rain, and get chilled, and I 

 can feel the premonitions of a tremendous 

 cold coming on, I have often rushed for the 

 kitchen stove. If nothing else is handy, 

 I get a good dipperful of hot water from 

 the reservoir, then I get my feet in the 

 oven, and drink and drink. Now, it 

 may be that an infusion of catnip in this 

 hot water would help it, but I can't feel 

 qnite sure of it, unless the matter has been 

 carefully tested by earnest searchers after 

 the truth. 1 did not think of (luestioning 

 the truthfulness of our medical men, nor 

 have I been so uncharitable as to suppose 

 that any reliable physician would fail to do 

 his honest duty whenever his services were 

 called for, unless, indeed, it were one of the 

 kind of doctors who sometimes get intoxi- 

 cated; and if I were taken sick when none 

 but the liitter kind could be obtained, I 

 think I should feel safer with the dipperful of 

 hot water. — In regard to catnip as a honey- 

 plant, we raised it on our grounds quite ex- 

 tensively ; but the cultivated plants, for 

 gome reason pj- otjier, died aiul went to seed 



