Chap. 19.] 
EEMEDTES POE DTSENTEEY. 
441 
as being called the oniscos," is a cure for these pains, 
taken, in doses of one denarius, in two cyathi of wine. 
The magicians recommend an earth-worm to be put in a 
wooden dish, which has been split and mended with iron 
wire ; which done, some water must be taken up with the dish, 
the worm drenched with it and buried in the spot from 
which it was taken, and the water drunk from the dish. 
They assert, also, that this is a marvellously excellent cure for 
sciatica. 
CHAP. 19. (7.) — EEMEDIES EOE DYSEOTEEY. 
Dysentery is cured by taking the broth of a leg of mutton, 
boiled with linseed in water; by eating old ewe-milk cheese; 
or by taking mutton suet boiled in astringent wine. This 
last is good, too, for the iliac passion, and for inveterate coughs. 
Dysentery is removed also, by taking a spotted lizard from 
beyond seas, boiled down till the skin only is left, the head, 
feet, and intestines, being first removed. A couple of snails 
also, and an egg, are beaten up, shells and all, in both cases, 
and made lukewarm in a new vessel, with some salt, three 
cyathi of water, and two cyathi of raisin-wine or date-juice, 
the decoction being taken in drink. Ashes, too, of burnt snails, 
are very serviceable, taken in wine with a modicum of resin. 
The snails without shells, which we have.^^ mentioned as 
being mostly found in Africa, are remarkably useful for dy- 
sentery, five of them being burnt with half a denarius of gum 
acacia, and taken, in doses of two spoonfuls, in myrtle wine or 
any other kind of astringent wine, with an equal quantity of 
warm water. Some persons employ all kinds of African snails 
indiscriminately in this manner ; while others, again, make use 
of a similar number of African snails or broad- shelled snails, 
as an injection, in preference : in cases, too, where the flux is 
considerable, they add a piece of gum acacia, about the size of 
a bean. For dysentery and tenesmus, the cast-off slough of a 
snake is boiled in a pewter vessel with oil of roses : if pre- 
pared in any other kind of vessel, it is applied with an instru- 
ment made of pewter. Chicken-broth is also used as a remedy 
for these affections ; but the broth of an old cock, strongly 
salted, acts more powerfully as a purgative upon the bowels. 
A pullet's craw, grilled and administered with salt and oil, has 
95 In B. xxix. c. 36. 
