BOOK XX. iii. 5-iv. 9 



elaterium is whether its appHcation makes a flame 

 tlicker up and down betbre putting it out. The pale, 

 smooth variety is better than the grass-green and 

 rough, and is sHghtly bitter. It is thought that 

 conception is aided by cucumber seed if a woman 

 keeps it fastened to her body without its having 

 t(Hiched the ground ; while labour is easier if, with- 

 out her knowlcdge, the seed, wrapped in ram's 

 wool, be tied to her loins ; but it must be hastily 

 carried out of the house immediately after delivery. 

 As to this cucumber itself, those who sing its praises VarieHft oj 

 tell us that the best variety grows in Arabia, and '^'"^" '"'"''' 

 the next best in Arcadia ; some report that in 

 Cyrene grows a cucumber Hke the heHotrope, of the wua 

 size of a wahiut, appearing between the leaves and '^'^'^"^•" 

 the branches ; its seed is curled back Hke a scorpion's 

 tail but white in colour. Moreover, some call this 

 cucumber " scorpion " ; both its seed and elateriura 

 are most effective antidotes to the sting of the 

 scorpion. The regular dose as purge or emetic is 

 from half to one obolus, according to the idiosyncrasy 

 (if the patient, a larger dose being fataL Similar are 

 tlie doses when taken in drink as a remedy for 

 phthiriasis and dropsy. Mixed with honey or old oHve 

 oil it is used to cure quinsy and tracheal atfections. 



IV. Many authorities hold that this cucumber 

 is the same as that known among us as the serpentine, 

 and by some as the stray cucumber, a decoction of 

 which spread over things prevents mice from touch- 

 ing them. The same authorities say that a decoction 

 of it in vinegar applied externallv gives immediate 

 reHef to gout and to diseases of the joints; that 

 hnnbago is cured by the seed dried in tiie sun, then 

 pounded, and administcred in doses of twenty denarii 



7 



VOL. Vt 



B 



