20i COLTSFOOT. 



the healing art, Coltsfoot has been esteemed useful in coughs and 

 other pectoral affections. Hippocrates * recommended the root 

 mixed with honey in ulcerations of the lungs. Dioscorides +, 

 Pliny X, and Galen §, relate that the smoke of the leaves, re- 

 ceived into the mouth through a funnel or reed, is efficacious in 

 coughs and laborious breathing ; and, by the testimony of Lin- 

 naeus, it is to this day, in Sweden, a popular remedy for coughs. 

 Boyle II added flowers of sulphur and powdered amber to the 

 dried leaves for the same purpose, but the propriety of this ad- 

 dition is rather questionable. According to Fuller ^ a decoc- 

 tion of the leaves is a valuable medicine in scrofula ; and Dr. 

 Cullen ** states that he employed it in scrofulous cases with ap- 

 parent success. The expressed juice of the fresh leaves, taken to 

 some ounces every day, in several instances, occasioned the heal- 

 ing up of scrofulous sores, and a strong decoction of the dried 

 leaves seemed to answer the same purpose ff. Dr. Alibert, of 

 the Hospital St. Louis, Paris, has tried it in scrofula, but with 

 very little benefit. Dr. Percival H found it useful in hectic diar- 

 rha?as. The herb has been occasionally applied in form of a ca- 

 taplasm to inflamed surfaces, and, parboiled in wine, it was recom- 

 mended by Hippocrates as a useful application to ulcerated luxa- 

 tions. Its fumes have also been deemed efficacious in tooth- 

 ache. 



The root, flowers, and leaves of Coltsfoot have been employed 

 for medical purposes, the latter most commonly. Both the 

 distilled water and the conserve of the flowers are said to be in- 

 ert, and the syrup is thought to owe its reputation to the sugar 

 it contains, but it is agreeable to the palate, and may be prepared 

 like other syrups. Of the expressed juice of the fresh leaves 

 from one to four ounces may be administered daily. The de- 



• Lib. de Iiueriiis affectionitms, Ed. Foes. 1. 34, p. 532. 



-j- Lib. iii. c. 126. 



J Lib. xxvi. c 6, p. 651. 



§ Simpl. lib. vi. p. 414. 



II De Util. Phil. Nat. 



^ Medicina Gymnastica, p. 87. 



** Mat. Med. vol. ii. p. 460. 



+-j- Loco cit. 



:{:4: Essays Med. and Exper. vol. ii. p. 224. 



