BOOK XXVII. V. 14-17 



wounds, the freshly gathered leaves," or the juice, 

 having a wonderful power of uniting. For this 

 reason it is planted in conical jars, as is the greater 

 aizoiim. Some, before the seed ripens, make an 

 incision in the stem to get the juice ; some do so in 

 the leaves as well. Drops too form spontaneously 

 on it, and adhere. Some therefore recommend that 

 the ground where the aloe has been planted should 

 be beaten down hard, so as to prevent ^ absorption. 

 Some have reported that in Judaea beyond «^ Jeru- 

 salem can be found mineral aloes. This however is 

 the most inferior kind of all, and no other is darker or 

 more moist. So the best aloes will be fatty and 

 shiny, of a ruddy ** colour, friable, compact Uke Hver,« 

 and easily melted. The kind to be rejected is dark 

 and hard, gritty, and adulterated with gum and 

 acacia, the adulteration being easily detected by the 

 taste. The nature of an aloe is bracing, astringent,/ 

 and gently warming. There are many uses for it, 

 but the chief is to relax the bowels, for it is almost the 

 only laxative that is also a stomach tonic, no ill 

 eifects whatever resulting from its use. A drachma 

 is taken in drink, but for fluxes of the stomach a 

 spoonful in two cyathi of warm or cold water is taken 

 twice or three times a day at intervals, as cii'cum- 

 stances require ; but for purging the bowels the 

 maximum dose is three drachmae, which is more 

 effective if food is taken after the draught. With a 

 dry wine it prevents the hair from faUing out, the 



'^ Dioscorides III 22, has vnoiavdov. 



" Dioscorides has (.vOpvTnov Kal rjTTaTi^ovaav. 



f Spissare and densare are difficult words. Dioscorides 

 has : BvvafMV 8' e;^ei arvTTTLK^qv, ^rjpavTLK-qv, TTVKVo}Tt,Kfjv tuiv 

 awfidTcov. 



399 



