A S B 



A S C 



Medicinal Properties. T!ie lenvvs aiul roots of afarabacca 

 are ftrongly emetic and cathartic ; tlie latter indeed has been 

 obferved to excite vomiting fo invariably, that they have been 

 propofed as a lubftitute for ipecacuanha. At prefent, however, 

 this plant is ftldom given internally, as the evacuations cx- 

 pcfted from its ufe, may be procured with more certainty 

 and I'afety by various other medicines: it is now chiefly 

 employed as an errhine or fterniitatorv, and is f.iund to be 

 the moll ufeful and convenient in the Materia Medica. For 

 this purpofe the leaves, being lefs acrid than the roots, are 

 preferred. A few grains inuffcd up the nofe fcveral evenings 

 produce a confiderable watery difcharge, which fometimes 

 continues for feveral days, by which head-ache, tooth-ache, 

 ophthalmia, and fome paralytic and foporific complaints, have 

 been effeclually relieved. The college dirctto a pulvis afari 

 compofitus. See Woodv. Med. Bot. p. 238. 2. A. cana- 

 thtife, Canadian afarabacca. Mill. ^. 53. 1. 6. " Leaves 

 kidney-ihaped, niucronate ;" the leaves of this are much lar- 

 ger than thofe of the preceding; their foot-llalks are alfo 

 longer ; in this fpecies the leaves are pointed and hairy, and 

 the flower grecnilh on the outfide. A native of Canada, cul- 

 tivated by iVIiller in 1731. It flowers from April to July. 

 3. A. i''ir^inicuni, fweet-fcented afarabacca. I^our. Cocliinch. 

 292. Pluk.. Aim. t. 78. f. 2. Mor. t. 7. f. 3. " Leaves 

 hcart-lhaped, blunt, fmooth, petiuled;" the leaves of this are 

 veined and fpotted on their upper furface, like thofe of the 

 autumnal cyclamen. The flowers are fliaped like the others, 

 but Hand on longer peduncles, and are of a darker purple. 

 A native of Virginia and Carolina ; alfo of feveral provinces 

 in China. Both this and the fecond fpecies were found in 

 Japan by Thunberg. Cultivated by ^lil!er in 1759. 



Propagation and Culture. Thefe plants delight in a moift 

 fliady fituation, and may be increafed by parting thf roots in 

 autumn. Much wet in winter will rot the Canadian fpecies, 

 and the laft fpecies will not bear too much fun. See Maityn's 

 Miller's Dift. 



AsARUM Hypoa/I'is. See Cytinus. 



ASASI, a name given by the people of Guinea to a 

 tree, the leaves of which being boiled in water, and held to 

 the mouth, cure the tooth-ach. This tree in its form and 

 manner of growing refembles the laurel ; the leaves are very 

 hard and ftiff, and grow alternate on the ftalks ; they have 

 Jhort pedicles, and the branches are blacklfh and rugged, but 

 they are variegated with fmall reddifli fpangks, or fcaly pro- 

 tuberances. Phil. Tranf. N° 232. 



ASAWNLLY, in Geography, a town of Hindoftan, in 

 the circar of Oudipour, eighteen miles fouth-weft of Oudi- 

 pour. 



ASBAMtEA, in ylricicnt Geography, a fountain dedicated 

 to Jupiter, near Tyana in Cappadocia. Philoftratns, in his 

 life of ApoUonius, fays, that the waters, though in a Hate 

 of ebullition, were cold, and that they were plealaut and re- 

 frefliing to thofe who obferved their oaths, but poifonous 

 and fatal to liars and perjured perfons. Jupiter had a tem- 

 ple near this fountain. 



ASBANIKEI, a town of Afia, in Mawaraluaher Tranf- 

 Oxana, or Zagatai. 



ASBECK, in Geography, a town of Germany, in the 

 circle of Weftphalia, four miles fouth-eall of Ahauz. 



ASBESTINE, fom.ething incombuftible, or that par- 

 takes of the nature and qualities of the lapis afoejlos. Such 

 as afbeftine paper and cloth. See Asbestus. 



ASBESTINITE and Asbestrid of Kirwan, in Mine- 

 ralc^x. See Strahlstein. 



ASBESTINUM, in Natural Hijlcry, a fpecies of Alcv- 

 ONiuM, defcribed by Pctiver, Pallas, and others. It inha- 

 bits the American fcas, is very porous, white, and rofy 



Txithin; the fpecific character is, ftem rather fimple, round 

 iiTi, with largiih, oblong pores fcattered on every part- 

 Cimelin, S:c. Petiver calls this kind Porus fpongoides Ameri- 

 cana, Gaz. t. 23. f. 2. 2. 



ASBESTOS,_/ajj^, is a name given to plume-alum.. See 

 Alum. 



ASBESTOS, in Chemijlry, formed of the priv. a, and 

 (rSiJvuij.1, to extingui/h, Ajbejl non mur. Fr. AJbeJlus imma- 

 turus of the old mineralogifts. Gemeiner a/befl. Germ. 

 Talcum q/btjlus vulgaris. Werner. The moll ufual colour 

 of albeftus is leek-green ; fometiines mountain or olive-green, 

 more rarely greenilh or yellowifh grey. It occurs in mafs. 

 Hcxahedral prifiriatic cryllals of afbeftus are alfo mentioned 

 as having been found at Griefbach near Paffau, and rhom- 

 boidal prifms of the fame at Gemundt in Carinthia, and at 

 Bngneres; according, however, to Emmerling and Lenz, 

 thefe are not cryflials of albcllas, but of ftrahlif tin. Inter- 

 nally it is (hining, or little fliining with a filky or waxy 

 luflre. Its frafture is parallel fibrous, either fl:raight or 

 curved, fometimes alfo fpiiutcry. It generally flies, when 

 broken, into long fplintery fragments. It is tranflucid at 

 the edges ; is tender, palling into half-hard ; is brittle, 

 flig'ntly elaftic ; fomewhat unftuous to the touch. Sp. gr. 

 according to Kirwan, 2.547. 



Afbeftus does not effervefcc with acids; before the blow- 

 p'pe it fufes without addition, but very difficultly, into a 

 greyiib black flag: at 160° of Wedgewood, it forms a grey 

 porous porcelain, of fufficient hardnefs to give fire with 

 fteel. 



The rtfults of the analyfis of this mineral are as yet but 

 little fatisfaftory. Bergman analyfed three fpecimens, from 

 which it appears, that afbeftus coufifts of 60.. 67 per. cent, 

 of files, 1 3... 1 6 carbonated magncfia, 6... 12 carbonated lime, 

 and a very variable proportion of alumiue and iron. Weigleb 

 on the other hand, found in the afbeftus of Zobhtz 48.45 

 magnefia, 46.66 filex, 4.79 iron. It is fo lately, however, 

 that the art of chemical analyfis has been brought even to 

 an approximation of certainty, and the caufes of error are 

 ftill fo numerous, that, with the exception of Klaproth, 

 Vanquelin, Chenevix, and perhaps a few others, hardly any 

 authority is to be attached to the various chemifts who have 

 been engaged in this very important but moft difficult 

 branch ol mineralogical fcience. 



Afbeftus is found in ferpentine rock, and, in general, in 

 the fame fitiiations as amianthus. It is fometimes mixed 

 with indurated talc and magnetic iron. 



The more flexible varieties have been applied to the ma- 

 nufacture of incombuftible cloth, in the fame manner as 

 Amianthus; which fee. Kirvs-an's Mineralog. vol. i. 159. 

 Brochant. Mineralog. v. i. 497. Widenmann. Handbuch. 

 der Mineral, p. 451. Lenz. Verfuch, S:c. v. i. p. 373. 



ASBISI, in Geography, a fmall kingdom of Africa, in 

 Guinea, on the gold coaft. 



ASBOTUS, in Ancient Gccgraphv, a town of Greece, in 

 Thefl"aly. Steph. Byz. 



ASBROIT, in Geography, a town of Sweden, in South 

 Gothland, fix miles north of Wardberg. 



ASBURG, a town of Germany, in the circle of Weft- 

 phalia, and county of Meurs, two leagues eatt of Meurs, and 

 fix weft of Duifhurg. 



ASBYST.(E, ill Ancient Geography, a people of Africa, 

 in Libya, placed by Herodotus above Cyrene. Euftathius 

 places them near the temple of Jupiter Ammon, and the 

 fountain of the fun. 



ASCA, in Geography, the name of a town of Arabia 

 Felix. 



ASCAGNE, AscANius, in Zoology, a new fperies of 



StMlA 



