434  Oils  of  Chinese  Pharmacy.  { *■  *A4RM- 
vessels,  and  to  burn  in  ship  lamps.  A  yellow  oil  obtained  from  a 
fish,  called  Hwang-ku-yu,  has  a  strong  fishy  smell,  and  is  used  to  des- 
troy lice.  It  is  much  used  in  veterinary  medical  practice,  a  depart- 
ment of  the  Chinese  medical  art  which  has  been  practised  from  an 
early  period,  and  has  an  ancient  and  respectable  literature  of  its  own. 
Oil  of  Ground  Nuts. — This  pale  yellow  oil,  having  an  agreeable 
flavor,  is  expressed  in  large  quantities  from  the  seeds  of  the  Arachis 
hypogcea,  or  underground  nut.  Hunan  province  supplies  a  good  deal. 
It  is  very  cheap,  and  makes  a  fair  substitute  for  olive  oil.  The 
Chinese  samples  are  much  darker  than  the  Indian,  which  are  said  by 
Dr.  Waring  to  have  a  specific  gravity  of  -916. 
Oil  of  Hemp  Seeds. — Several  hemp  oils,  derived  from  the  seeds  of 
a  variety  of  the  Cannabis  sativa,  are  to  be  met  with  in  Chinese  com- 
merce. Specimens  examined  were  evidently  oils  obtained  from  sesa- 
mum  seeds,  or  those  of  the  flax  plant,  both  of  which  are  confounded 
with  the  hemp  plant  proper. 
Oil  of  Lilies. — This  is  cabbage  oil,  in  which  the  axillary  buds  of  the 
lily  plant  have  been  digested.  The  oil  is  recommended  to  be  applied 
to  vesicular  eruptions.  This  very  same,  or  a  similar,  preparation  was 
once  in  great  repute  in  Europe.  In  fact,  to  read  the  Chinese  Pharma- 
copoeia of  to-day  is  like  reading  the  old  dispensatories  of  the  17th  and 
18th  centuries. 
Oil  of  Linseed. — The  oil  of  the  seeds  of  a  linum  is  used  as  a  leni- 
tive, pectoral,  anthelmintic,  and  alexipharmic  remedy,  and  as  an  ap- 
plication to  scabbed  heads.    This  oil  is  not  easily  procurable. 
Oil  of  Myrrh. — A  reddish  oil,  having  the  smell  of  myrrh,  is  said  by 
Loureiro  to  be  used  in  Cochin  China  to  dress  ulcers.  The  Chinese 
are  fond  of  making  empyreumatic  oils  of  various  substances. 
Oil  of  Pine. — A  sort  of  empyreumatic  oil,  or  coarse  turpentine, 
procured  by  heating  the  wood  or  knots  of  several  species  of  Pinxxs. 
Oil  of  Peppermint. — A  very  good  essential  oil  is  distilled  at  Canton 
from  the  leaves  of  Mentha  piperita,  M.  crispa,  M.  hirsuta,  and  M. 
Canadensis.  -It  is  put  up  in  small  bottles  holding  about  a  drachm. 
It  sells  at  about  30s.  a  pound.  The  Chinese  bottles  are  very  poor, 
and  stand  a  good  deal  in  the  way  of  elegant  pharmaay.  There  are 
several  glass  manufactories  in  the  (northeastern)  province  of  Shan- 
tung and  at  Canton.    The  bottles  are  very  small  and  brittle.  The 
