Page:Leaves from my Chinese Scrapbook - Balfour, 1887.djvu/82

 it is quite unique. It is said, however, to be an infallible cure for smallpox, measles, scarlet fever, and, in fact, all diseases which arise from blood-poisoning and break out in cutaneous eruptions. The strengthening qualities of the preparation are said, even on European testimony, to be quite remarkable; and the old Jesuits who flourished here during the early part of the present dynasty deliberately affirm that they have seen men snatched from the last convulsions of death by its judicious use. Another famous remedy is called kû chiu, or bitter wine. This reminds one of the bitter cup sold by chemists in England some five-and-twenty years ago. The preparation seems to be a strong and invigorating tonic; it is said to have great efficacy in cases of bile, indigestion, colic, and intermittent fevers, and to be an excellent preservative of health if taken, much as Europeans take the nauseous waters of Carlsbad and Aix, the first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Its ingredients are neither so indigestible nor so expensive as those of the other. It is composed of spirit, aloes, myrrh, frankincense, and saffron. These are to be mixed and exposed to the sun for one month; the bottle to be well shaken from time to time, and the fluid used when it is perfectly clear, and yet impregnated with the various contents. These two remedies are not of Chinese origin. They are said to have been brought from India, where they were originally discovered. Readers of the Hung Lou Meng, one of the most charmingly written novels in the whole world, will remember the burlesque prescription proposed by a Buddhist priest for the ailments of Mademoiselle Pao-chai. It consisted of the pistils of a white moutan-flower or peony which had