2Z

fweetned with double-refin'd Sugar j 'tis avery good Stomachick Water, helps Dige-ftion, and is an Antidote againft the Piague,or any malignant Difeafe. A Tincture drawnfrom it in Tin&ure of Salt of Tartar, is ex-cellent againft the Stone, Strangury, or Stop-page of Urine. Dofe from two Drams tohalt an Ounce.

30. Of the Black Curnmin-feecl

Pomet, TH H E Black Cummin, is the Seed•*■ of a Plant, about two Footbigh, having little green Leaves indented andfnip'd deep ; after which they bear whiteblewiih Flowers, and then Husks or Pods,in which are contain'd a longifli Seed of agrey Colour, picquant Tafte, a ftrong andarotnatick Smell.

Chufe the neweft, plumped Seed, of afine bright Yellow, of the moft aromatickSmell, as well as Tafte, that you can pof-fibly meet with : That which comes fromItaly is the beft, and more efteem'd than thatwhich grows among our Corn. TheUfe ofthis Seed is to kill Worms, correct Wind,and fome Perfons affirm it to be a very goodAntidote ; they reckon it likewife very ufefulto create Milk in Nurfes.

There are feveral other forts of this Seed,which I fhall forbear to mention ; fome ofwhich the Indians ufe in the Plant to feedtheir Horfes with, and the Seed in Phyfickto cure Fevers, as we may fee in the IndianHiftory. There is another fort, as yet veryfcarce, which the Turks ufe, as feveral Per-fons of Quality in France do, to clean theirTeeth. Another kind there is, call'd ChinaAnife, which ferves the Eaftern People, in

General Hiftory o/DRUGGS.

Imitation of the Chinefe, to prepare theirThen and their Sorbec.

This Seed is entirely like that of the Colo-quintida, as well becaufe it is of a dun Co-lour, as that it fhines and is of an agreeableSmell: It is contain'd in fmall Pods, thickand hard. 'Tis with this Seed, and the RootN//J, that the Dutch make their Drink ofThe a and Sorbec more agreeable than inFrance : The Quantity is two Drams of Niji,four Ounces of boiling Water, half an Ounceof Ted, and a Dram of China Annifeed. Thereare a great many other Seeds worth the Drug-gift's Knowledge, as well as others; but theybeing fo common, it wou'd be counted fuper-fluous to name them, as Lettuce, Violet, Suc-cory, Poppy, Mallows, Turmp, Radifh, Holly-oak, Fleabane, &c.

There are other Seeds commonly in Ufe,and as commonly known, as the four coldSeeds, Citruls or Water-Melons, Gourd, Me-lons, and Cucumber, which are chiefly us'dfor Emulfions, and fometimes to exprefs acooling Oil from them for the Skin, andother Things of the like Nature, that tendto the Ornament of the Complexion, &c.The Method of making all forts of Oils byExpreifion, is fo univerfally known, it wou'dbe loft Labour to expatiate upon the Method,there being no more in it than blanching theSeed, beating in a Mortar, and prefling theOil from it cold : After the fame way ismade the Oil of Ben, White Pine, Poppy,Sweet or Bitter Almonds, Piftacea Nuts, &c.

Authors have given the Name of a Seedto a fort of Plant which has neither Leavesor Root, which is what we call Dodder ofTime, whofe Defcription you will find in theChapter of Epthymum.

The End of the Firft <BqqK of SEEDS.

BOOK