Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 1.djvu/249

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fcented gums copal \ and the word iba, or ha, is the name for a tree; by which the etymology of copaiva e?Xi]y appears. Jt was firft imported into Europe towards the clofc of the fix- teenth century. The Portuguefe learned its virtues from the practice of the natives, whom they faw anoint their wounds with it ; or, as fome fay, from the beafts, efpccially bears, which, when wounded, by a natural inftinct rub themfelves againft the tree. Burggr. Lib. cit. p. 1459, *" ec l- It is a great cleanfer of the urinary pafiages ; on which account it obtains much in gonorrhceas, and all obit ructions and ulce- rations in thofe parts. It is alfo reputed a powerful balfamic, and, as fuch, ufed in many diftempers of the breaft. 3$uincy, Difpenf. P- 2. §. 284:

But its heat and acrimony render it hurtful in inflammatory cafes, phthifes, diforders of the kidneys, &c. Vid. Junck. Confp. Thcrap. tab. 5. p. 188, feq.

The balfam of 'copaiva is frequently adulterated with oiloffweet almonds, and oil of turpentine; the near refemblance it bears to this laft, has occafioncd them to be fometimes confounded. They may be diftinguifhed by the confiftence as well as by co- lour ; turpentine being thicker, and of a vitreous caft, the bal- fam being whiter, and more inclining to a yellow : add, that it is more odorous, as well as ftiarper and bitterer to the tafte. Burggr. Lib. cit. p 1459.

Balsam of Peru, is an oily, refinous liquor, of a pungent, bit- terifh tafte, and a fweet, fragrant fmell, collected from a tree called by the native Peruvians hoitziloxHt. Burggr. Lex. Med. p. 1465, feq. _

This balfam. is called by Pifo cabureiba, and by Marggravius cabui-iha ; by us, commonly, from the country, Peruvian bcilfam. Its heat renders it hurtful in certain cafes, and apt to create an inflammation ; particularly in phthifes, afthmas, ulcers of the kidneys, &c. Vid. 'Junck. Confp. Therap. Tab. 5. p. 189. Its genuincnefs is known by this, that, when poured into wa- ter, it finks to the bottom, turns of a whitilh colour, but does not mix or diffufe at all in the water.

The way to make an intimate mixture of this balfam with wa- ter, is by means of the yolk of an egg. Vid. Junck. Confp. Chir. p. 255. 336.

If mixed with turpentine, or any other liquor, it prefently lofes its fmell. It unites with difTolved fugar, but, upon the applica- tion of cold water, the ba'fam readily feparates again. If eva- porated over the coals, a thick fediment is left at the bottom of the vevTel, refembllng colophony. If melted with wax, it pre- fently fubfides. And hence an ufeful pharmaceutical rule, viz. that balfam of Peru may be retained in cerats while cold, but that, if melted, it prefently feparates itfelf, and fettles to the bottom. Burggr. Lex. Med. p. 1468, feq.

Balsam of Tolu, Is an oily, refinous liquor, of a ruddy colour, tending to a yellow ; of a middle confiftence, between a fluid and a folid ; extremely glutinous, fo that wherever laid it flicks firmly; of a fweet and grateful tafte. It does not, like other balfams, excite a naufea ; yielding a moft excellent fragrance, not unlike that of lemons '. It is an excellent balfamic and reftorative; and good in all decays, efpccially of the lungs. It foftens and thickens the blood, and cures cattarrhs, and coughs, from tickling defluxions, &c. Its healing virtues extend even to the feminal parts, where it is good in old gleets, CSV. There is a iyrup of it in the mops ; but the heft form of adminiltring it is in pills, or in afolution in fome fpirituous menftruumA — ■ [' Burggr. Lex. Med. p. 1474. k ^iiinc. Difpenf. P. 2. §. 207.]

The balfam of Tolu comes neareft to the true or cajlern halfem ; and, in effect, exhibits moft of the marks and charactcriftics of it: whence Bartholin makes it the beft fubftitute, where the other cannot be had. Bartb. DiiT. 2. de Thcriac. p. 2. §. 25. It takes its denomination from a place called Tolu, fituated be- tween Carthagena and Nombre de Dios.

Hungarian Balsam, Baifamum Carpathicum, or Hungaricum, is a fpecies of oil, or liquid refm, oozing from a coniferous tree growing on the Carpathian mountains, to which the Hunga- rians attribute many virtues. Vid. Ephem. Acad. N. C. Cent. 7. Obf. 3 p. 4.

This balfam bears a near refemblance to oil of turpentine. It was difcovercd in 165 c, by Chr. abHortis, a phvfician of the country, who was ennobled by the emperor Ferdinand II. for his difcovery. The firft diftindt account we had of it in thefe parts, was from M. Breynius. Ephem. Acad. N. C. 1 c. The Carpathian balfam is the produce both of a fhrub and a tree ; though the juice of the latter is preferred, both as more fragrant, and of greater virtue. Breynius wiil have the tree to be the Pinajhr of Bellonius, or Pinm fylvejlris ?nontana tertia C. Bauhin. Some have given it the denomination of Libanum Ccrpatbicum-

There are two ways of gathering it; one by wounding the branches of the tree, and faftening glafs velTels exactly thereto, fo as to clofc the orifices, and prevent the exhalation of the finer parts of the balfam ; the juice trickling out in the fpring- time, being received in thefe glafles, is the balfam. The fecond is by expreffion from the branches of the tree, firft cut off for the purpofe. But this kind is of inferior value to the former. The very wood, by diftillation, yields a fragrant balfamic oil, which has all the virtues of the balfam itfelf. Burggr. Lex. Med. p. 1453. Suppl. Vol. I.

The virtues of this balfam, internally taken, or externally ap- plied, are faid to be very great, and not inferior to thofe of the oriental balfam. But whether either deferve the commendation beftowed on them, and how far they excel the common tur- pentine, is a queftion which muft be left to impartial practi- tioners.

The bifhop of Cloyne afferts, that tar-water has all the virtues of thefe balfams, without their bad effects See Tar -w ati r.

Balsam is alfo applied to a mineral fubftance, of a fragrant^ healing quality ; extracted from a kind of ftcnes difcovered in a mine near Bergamo in Italy. Vid. Phil. Tranf. N" 70. p. 3059.

This is mote peculiarly called, by way of diftinction, the mi- neral balfam.

The difcoverer was Sig. Caftagna. Its chief ufe Is in diforders of the uterus ; on which account it is in great efteem among the Gcnoefe, to reftorc women after labour '. Some have alfo found it of great benefit in the phthifis m. — [' Phil. 7"ranf. N* 127. p. 674. m Nenter, Fund. Medic. T. 1. P. 2. p. 379 ]

Artif'cial Balsams are, by fome. divided into fimple and com- pound : to the clafs effimpk, belong the rectified oils of wax, turpentine, linfecd, hypericum, rofes, folanum, and trifolium odoratum ; to which Boerhaave adds frelh butter. \id. Boerb. De Mat. Med. p. 49.

Co77ifound balfams are numerous ; the difpenfatory writers fur- nifh a great number of forms, as magifterial, chalybeat, para- lytic, nephritic, and polychrcft balfams ; red, green, SDanifb, and Samaritan balja?ns ; balfams bf arceus, of amber, of pitch, £sV. Vid. Boerh. de Mat. Med. Pharm. CoIIeg.Lond. Le Mort. Collect. Chym. Leid. c. 82, feq.

Befidcs thefe, chymifts and alchymifts fpeak of balfams of an- timony, cf life, &c.

Balsam of Antimony, a famousMnedicine defcribed by Eafil Va- lentine in bis Currus ant'vnonii triumphalis. This author has related many incredible things in its praife ; but Kerkring, in his commentaries on that work, declares, that all he has faid of it, is fliort of its real praife ; and that, in particular, cancers were to be cured by it; bimfelf having, as he informs us, per- formed a perfect cure on a breaft condemned to be cut off, by anointing it with this balfam, and giving the common inter- nals.

Balsam of Life. The firft medicine known by this pompous name, was the preparation of antimony, (o highly extolled by Bafil Valentine, and, after him, by Kerkring. Thefe gentle- men are very cautious of giving the proceffes for this and the like medicines, in intelligible terms; but they acknowledge, that it contains all the virtues of antimony, and all that can be done by the fpagyric art.

The famous Frederick Hofman fpeaks of a balfam of life, of his own invention, to which he afcribes great virtues ; but we know not if ever he publifhed the procefs for making it. That given in the Strafburg and Ratifbon Difpenfatories, under the name of Balfaraum vita Hofmanni, is taken from die notes on Poterius, and is not the fame with that balfam, which the late learned Fred. Hofman prepared in his own houfe.

Balsam is alfo applied to certain preparations of fpiritof wine, with balfamic and aromatic fpices, fragrant refins, and the like. Thefe are otherwife called elixirs. Among thefe, the elixir balfamicum Hofmanni, otherwife called bis baifamum vita, is fa- mous; but its preparation feems not known. Vid. fupra.

Odoriferous Balsams are a fragrant kind of unguents, generally of a thick confiftence, compofed of fome fatty, denfe juice, joined with fome diftilled oils of divers kinds. Burggr, Lex. Med. p. 1477.

Thefe are alfo caNedjiueet-f-ented, or apoplectic balfams. The Italians are fuppofed to excell in the preparation of apo- pleclic balfams. But, perhaps, they may be as well prepared ac- cording to Boerhaave's method, which is this : Melt an ounce of fine pomatum, in a china veflel, over a fmall and perfectly clear fire ; then gradually add a dram of white wax, ihaved in- to thin pieces. After thefe are perfectly blended together, re- move the vefiel from the fire; and, when the matter be- gins to thicken in cooling, drop in, by flow degrees, a dram of any of the fragrant efiential oils ; keep the whole continually ftirring all the the time the oil is dropping in, that it may per- fectly mix. After which, fet the vcftel in cold water, that the whole matter, immediately condenfing by the cold, may keep in the oil and fpirit. When the balfam is thoroughly cold, put it immediately up in veffels of lead or pewter ; and, if thefe are clofe covered, it will keep perfect a great many years. Inftead of pomatum and wax, the exprefTed oil of nutmeg may be ufed in this procefs, after it has been warned in wattr s till perfectly infipid, white, and inodorous. If thefe balfams are required to be of any colour, it may be eafily given at plcafure. A fcruple of cochineal, in fine pow- der, will tinge the balfam to a fine purple ; or the fame quantity of the infpiitated juice of buckthorn berries, to a fine green; a little native cinnabar will turn it fcariet ; turmcrick, yellow ; and fmalt, to a beautiful blue. Any of .thefe may be ufed at pleafure, provided that they have no ill fmell, or hurtful pro- perties.

Thefe balfams are prepared as rich perfumes, to raife the lan- guid fpirits ; and the nobleft and richer! of the effential oils ihould therefore be ufed In them. 7 he oils principally direc- 4 D tci