INTO THE FLORA OF CHINA. 
19 
naturae qui sunt ejus sumptione vitae periculum ad ire solent 
nimium auctis exhindantibusque spjritibiis; debilibus, fatigatis, 
vel morbo diuturniori, aliave de causa exhaustis ad miraculum 
prodest. Moribundis ita vitales quandoque vires reddit. (p. 35). 
Panax Ginesng, O.A. Mey., a plant now confined to Manchuria, not met 
with in the prefecture of Yung ping, as M. asserts. Yung ping fu is 
situated near the Manchurian frontier. It appears however from the 
ancient Chinese records that in former times Ginseng was gathered even 
in the mountains of North China. Comp, also Semedo ii. 
40. Provincia Xensi (Shensi) multa praeclara suppeditat 
, medicamenta, FJieubarbarum imprimis, quod non sylvestre est, 
ut putant quidam, sed diligenti culturae arte indiget. Sinae 
vulgo Tai Jioang vocant. Radix est sat solida,tuberibus hinc inde 
prominentibus, foliorum forma haud ita procul abest a caulibus 
nostratibus, quos tamen magnitudine superant. Radices uno 
pertusas foramine in umbra suspendunt at siccaiih: nam in 
sole suspensae vim amittunt. Ex hac et Suchuen altera 
provincia, est magna ex parte Rheubarbarum, quod ad nos in 
Europam defertnr, nimirum per mare indicum vel Cascar, 
Astracaniam et Russiam vel per Tebet, Mogor et Persidem : 
nemo enim est magnopere rerum peritus (quod equidem sciam) 
qui in illis regionibus nasci Rheubarbarum velit, sed inde nos 
habere asserunt, quia ab illis affertur emiturque nationibus, et 
ex Sina allatum esse ignoratur (p. 4,3. 45). 
M. is correct in Btating, that Rhubarb in its native country is cultivated. 
Prczewalsky reports the same. But it seems that the greater part of the 
drug collected for sale grows wild in the mountains of Si ning fu and those 
surrounding lake* Kukonor. Comp, also above Semedo 10, note.—There is 
in ICircher’s China illustrata (French ed. 1667) p. 249 an engraving re¬ 
presenting the “Rheubarbarum verum.” Kircher states, that this drawing 
has been made from a plant grown in the garden of Mr. Juste Nobelar in 
Leyden at the time when Father Martini, in June 1654 passed through 
this city. He then had declared, that it was the true Rhubarb of China. 
But at the time here spoken of lib. rhaponticum L. was the only Rhubarb 
known and cultivated in European gardens, and Kircher’s drawing seems 
indeed to represent this species.—Dapper in his Description of China 1670 
(see further on) gives a good drawing of a Rhubarb plant, which he terms 
Rhabarlarum Witsoniarum. I know nothing about this name, but the 
plant represented seems also to be Rh. rhaponticum.—The Chinese name 
of Rhubarb is ^ ^ t'ai huang. 
41. Prov. {Suchuen. Vera Radix Sina in hac provincia sola 
reperitur, sylvestris ubique, Folin utramqne Sinae vocant, ac 
fere sola sylvestris ad nos affertur, cujus medulla rubicundiori 
colore quodammodo tincta est, ad verae autem magnitudinem 
non accedit, neque efficaces adeo habet vires, quamvis non 
omnino illius effectu eareat. Vera autem u.ti dixi radix in hac 
sola nascitur provincia, idque sub ipsa terra, uti fere phalli 
