4 
Oriental  Notes. 
f  Am.  Jour,  Pharm, 
t      Jan.,  1883. 
ORIENTAL  XOTES. 
By  Professor  X.  Landerer. 
Oriental  tea  plants,  called  tsai,  are  quite  numerous  (see  also  '^Araer, 
Jour.  Phar./^  1875,  p.  498,  532;  1876,  193;  1877,  155),  some  of  the 
most  important  being  the  following : 
Tilia  argentea.y  Desf. — The  flowers,  deprived  of  the  leafy  bracts,  are 
sent  from  Macedonia  and  yield  a  tea  of  an  agreeable  taste,  which  is 
usually  mixed  with  Hymethus  or  Thymari  honey,  collected  near  the 
Hymettus  mountain,  where  the  bees  visit  the  flowers  of  Thymus 
(Satureja)  Thymbra.  In  the  ancient  Hellenian  times  Apollo  was 
regarded  as  the  protector  of  bees,  and  in  the  temple  was  adorned  with 
a  wreath  of  thymbra. 
Betonica  officinalis  is  collected  by  the  monks  of  Agion  Oras  on  Mount 
Athos.  It  was  called  kestron  by  Dioscorides,^  and  was,  and  is  stilly 
highly  valued  as  a  remedy  in  many  complaints,  and  as  such  is  fre- 
quently sent  to  friends  as  a  present. 
Adiantum  Capillus  Veneris,  Lin.,  is  known  in  Oriental  countries  as 
polytrichi,  and  is  highly  valued  for  promoting  menstruation  and  in 
nearly  all  diseases  of  women.  The  name  Adiantum  is  derived  from  oUy. 
not,  and  diaino,  to  moisten,  the  plant  growing  on  rocks  in  moist  locali- 
ties and  brooks  without  being  wetted,  the  water  not  adhering.  It  was- 
formerly  also  called  polytrichon  and  kalliphyllon. 
Greek  tvines  are  now  extensively  exported  to  all  parts  of  Europe  in 
consequence  of  the  devastation  of  numerous  vineyards  by  the  phyllox- 
era, which  thus  far  has  not  made  its  appearance  in  Greece.  It  is  more 
particularly  the  volcanic  island  of  Santorin  where  many  wines  are  pro- 
duced, closely  resembling  those  of  Spain,  Sicily,  Southern  France  and 
the  Cape  wines;  these  sweet  wines  are  called  vino  santo.  The  concen- 
trated, unfermented  grape  juice,  known  in  Turkey  as  hetmese  (see 
Amer.  Jour.  Phar.,''  1875,  p.  534)  is  now  largely  exported  to  Central 
Europe,  where  it  is  fermented  with  the  juice  of  the  native  grapes,  and 
thus  employed  for  improving  the  more  acidulous  wines  of  more  northern 
latitudes. 
Viverra  Civetta  is  known  in  Abyssinia  as  zebad.  This  ferocious  and 
rapacious  animal  is  caught  by  snares  and  kept  in  a  cage  for  the  pur- 
pose of  obtaining  the  civet,  which  is  removed  by  means  of  a  small 
^  Kestron  of  Dioscorides  is  generally  referred  to  Betonica  Alopecurus,  Xm., 
which  is  rather  common  in  Southern  Europe.  Editor. 
