Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 3, 1802).djvu/389

367&#93; PER tlons, srKl chiefly for the cure of dysentcfies, asthmas, and such dis- ordiTs as arise from a deblutated state of the solids. — When incor- porated with the yolk of an C'/g, or mixed with any of the syrupy, the dose is fr.mi 10 to 20 drop^. — Externnlly.ius employed for cleans- ing an i 'leiling wounds or idcers, for mftii^ating painfui brui,ses on tetKliiiojs parts, as li'cewi.se in pa- ralytic and rheumatic complaints. The e arc two other s^uxies of tills dhisi;, of a wfiite and red co- lour, boiii of which are obtained by incisi in from ihn same tree with the common or black Balsam of Peru, They possess a greater de- gree of fragrance, resembling that of the Balsam of Gilead, but are very seldom imported. PERUVIAN BARK, or Je- suits' Bark, a well-known me- dicine obtained from the Cinchona, a native of South America and the West Indies. Of this valuable tree, botanists have discovered ten spe- cies J but the follov/ing only de- serve particular notice, viz. 1. The ujficinalii, or Pekuviax Bark-tree, which was introduced into Europe by the Jesuits. — It is of eminent use in fevers, especially in intermittenis, which it seldom falls to remove, provided it be pro- perly administered. The doses vary according to the age of the patient, t}>e violence of the disor- der, and other circumstances : but, in vernal agues, this drug is ofien unnecessarily swallowed, Peruvian bark operates dilTer- ently on various constitutions : som, times it causes vomiiing, in which case it will be advisable to take it in Port-wine, with a v'.ew to check nausea or retching. Jf it induce looseness, such effect may be countera£"led bv combinins; tlic PER [$6j bark ^nth opium; and. should it oppress the stomac'i, tuls inconve- nience may be remedied by the ad- dition of some aromatic. Besirle its use in febrile disorders, lark has frequently been found of service in the confiuent small -pox, by pro- moting the eruption, and suppu- ration of the pustules, while it tends to abate the violence of the fever. Nor has it been found less useful, both internally and exter- UiiHy, in every species of gangrene, if employed in sufficient quantities. Farther, this drug has often been successfully administered iu conta- gious d)'senterjes ; in passive he- morrhages, for obviating the dis- position to nervous or convulsive diseases ; and, when coiubinctl with the vitriolic acid, it has been of essential service in the rickets, scrophula, ill-conditioned ulcers, and the lirst stage of pulmonary consumption : in the last men- tioned cases, Jiowever, it will be advisable to adopt a milk-diet. —, Peruvian bark pays, on importation, a duty of pUi. per lb. '2. The CariLrca v. Janiaict'nsJs^ Cauiblean or Jamaica Bahk.- TREE, grows to the height of lift V feet. — The bark obtained froui the trunk abounds with jibrcs, i d in more Avoody than tiiat from the branches and ro(ts : the latter, v.'hen dried, breaks more easily, and is ]>ulverized with greater faci- lity than the Peruvian. The Ja- maica-bark is produced in the ut- most pcifedtion on the north side of that island, where it is highly esteemed, on account of it:; very agreeable bitter, answering every ])urpose of that imr-ortcd from Peru : nor does the former occa- sion any oppression at the sto- niaih, vom.iling, or nausea, but checks such disagreeable scnsa- tiojis