PLINY : NATURAL HLSTOIIY 



119 LXXI. lunci radix in tribus heminis aquae 

 decocta ad tertias tussi medetur. semen tostum 

 et in aqua potum sistit et alvum et feminarum 

 menses. capitis dolores facit qui vocatur holo- 

 schoenus. qiiae proxima sunt radici commandu- 

 cantur adversus araneorum morsus. invenio etiam- 

 num iunci genus quod euripicen vocant. huius 

 semine somnum adUci, set modum servandum ne 

 sopor fiat. 



120 LXXII. Ol)iter et odorati iunci medicinae di- 

 centur, quoniam et in Syria Coele, ut suo loco rettu- 

 Hmus, nascitur. laudatissimus ex Nabataea cogno- 

 mine teuchitis, proximus Babvlonius, pessimus ex 

 Africa ac sine odore. est autem rotundus, vinosae ^ 

 mordacitatis ad Hnguam. sincerus in confricando 

 odorem rosae emittit rubentibus fragmentis. dis- 

 cutit inflationes, ob id stomacho utilis bilemque 

 reicientibus. singultus sedat, ructus movet, urinam 

 ciet, vesicae medetur. ad muHebres usus deco- 

 quitur. opisthotonicis cum resina arida inponitur 

 excalfactoria vi. 



121 LXXIII. Rosa adstringit, refrigerat. usus eius 

 dividitur in foHa et flores et capita. foHorum partes 



^ vinosae cum codd. Mayhoff: virosae Urlichs, Detlefsen. 



" See XII. § 104. Many editors (Sillig, Jan, MayhofF) 

 with the Plinian critic Urlichs) consider the text to be corrupt 

 here and would emend in some way or other. But the se- 

 quence of the thought is natural enough. Pliny has already 

 mentioned one place where the fragrant rush is to be found, 

 and he here goes on to give the others. 



" Pliny has expressed himself carelessly, for how can a 

 fragrant rush be without scent ? Dioscorides has (I. 17) 



248 



