2 34 £* r - Plukenett'j Obfervations y 



Carting my Eye upon your moil curious Index at 

 the latter End, which is ifadeed of neceflary Ufe both 

 as to the Virtues of thofe Plants contained in the Sy- 

 nopfis, as alfo in refpeft of thofe References you make 

 from the lefs to their more proper Denominations, I 

 found in your Account of the Cannabis fativ. the re- 

 ceiv'd Opinion of an untoward Faculty it has of emaf- 

 culating Mankind, and making impotent by extin- 

 guifliing the fluid Principles of Generation, and which 

 in fome degree hath ftagger'd your Refolution what 

 to determine about the Bangue Indorum. This from 

 the Teftimony of Okarius Acojta^ and others, being 

 of frequent Ufe, both among Per/tans and Indians , 

 to exftimulate and incite to Fenery y and therefore 

 very unlikely to be of the Cannahine Order. I con- 

 fefs I cannot determine how far it may conduce to 

 this Purpofe, or the other to the contrary Effed : But 

 fo much I know of the Bangue^ (the Seed whereof I 

 have by me, and is very little differing from that of 

 our Hemp) that it will certainly caufe a Dementia^ or 

 frantick and ludicrous Sort of Madnefs, which runs the 

 Body into all the idle Gefiiculations and Poftures of the 

 mofi lafciviouS) when in the mean time they are only 

 the Effe£hof prefent Diftemper, and not any luftful 

 Pruritations : And that Nature is in Diftrefs, and un- 

 der Diftemper, till the Force and Powers of the Seed 

 be diflipated, and vanquifh'd, will appear by this, that 

 if you over dofe your Patient, it will certainly kill. 

 I have known where upon too liberal a Dofe the Ef- 

 fe£ts have continu'd for almoft: a Week, and had like 

 to have put the poor Soul to have fought for a Beth- 

 lem in another World. And why may not the Can- 

 nabis prove an Incentive in the fame unlucky Senfe, 

 efpecially if that be true, as Authors have alledged, 

 that its Seed, if freely taken, will induce an dQ£o<rvvq 9 

 and as Herodotus attefts, a Fumigation of the Seed 

 being caft upon hot Coals, is faid to affe<5fc the Scy- 

 thians with Raving, and a Sort of Phrenzy> thai 



was 



