In the opinion of most medical men, the medicinal properties of the Rose are about the same in all the kinds, while some writers assert that the Rosa Gallica is superior to all others in a greater or less degree. We will mention those principally used in medicine, and the properties which are especially attributed to each.
The most valuable properties of the Rose reside in its[Pg 199] petals6, and in order to preserve these properties, it is highly essential that the petals should be quickly and perfectly7 dried. Those of the Provence Rose (Rosa Gallica) have an astringent8 and somewhat bitter taste, and are tonic9 and astringent in their effects.
According to an analysis recently made in France, they contain, besides vegetable matter and essential oil, a portion of gallic acid, coloring matter, albumen, tannin, some salts, with a base of potash or of chalk, silex, and oxide10 of iron. A small dose in powder strengthens the stomach and assists digestion11. Their prolonged use will sometimes cause a slight constipation of the bowels12, while in a much stronger dose they act as purgatives13.
The conserve15 of the Provence Rose has much reputation in France for the treatment of all chronic16 affections of the bowels, caused by weakness and inactivity of the digestive organs; it is also employed in colic, in diarrh?a, in cases of hemorrhage and leucorrh?a.
The conserve of any variety of roses is considered excellent in cases of cold or catarrh. It is prepared by bruising17 in a mortar18 the petals with their weight in sugar, and moistening them with a little rose-water, until the whole forms a homogeneous mass. Some receipts prescribe powdered petals mixed with an equal part of sugar; others direct to use two layers of sugar, and only one layer of pulverized19 petals.
Opoix, a physician of Provence, states that the true Rose of Provence has a more sweet and penetrating20 fragrance than the same rose grown elsewhere, and even goes so far as to say that it has acquired properties which it does not possess in its native country, the Caucasus. On account of the supposed superior qualities of this rose, the citizens of Provence, in 1807, addressed a petition to government to encourage in their territory the cultivation21 of the true Provence Rose, by giving it the preference in all the hospitals and military dispensaries. This gave rise to a[Pg 200] discussion between two French chemists, but without deciding the fact whether the Rosa Gallica was superior in medical properties to any other rose. It seems to be acknowledged that those cultivated at Provence were superior to the same kind grown elsewhere, and this superiority is attributed by some to the presence of iron in the soil about that city. It was probably owing, also, to the very careful cultivation practiced there. The petals are used extensively in several medical preparations, as the sugar of roses, the ointment22 of roses, the treacle23 of roses, etc. Rose-water is, however, more extensively used in medicine than any other preparation of the rose. This water, when manufactured from Rosa Gallica, or any other of the section of Centifoli?, is employed internally as an astringent, and is sometimes mixed with other medicines to destroy their disagreeable smell and taste. In external applications, it is used principally for affections of the eyes, either alone or with some ointment.
The alcoholic24 tincture of roses, or spirit of roses, before mentioned, which was formerly25 given as a stimulus26 in many cases, has now fallen very much into disuse, medical opinion being very much against the employment of any alcoholic medicines excepting in very rare cases.
The syrup27 of roses, manufactured from the pale or Damask Rose, is sometimes employed as a purgative14, and was once highly esteemed28 and recommended as a mild laxative. It is now, however, scarcely considered purgative, and its laxative properties are probably owing in a great measure to the senna and other articles which enter into its preparation.
The electuary of roses, which is now no longer used, was also probably indebted for its medical qualities to the addition of scammony, a very strong purgative.
Vinegar of roses is made by simply infusing dried rose-petals in the best distilled29 vinegar, to which they communicate their perfume. It is used for cooking and[Pg 201] for the toilet, and for headaches, when applied30 in the same way as common vinegar. The ancients prepared this vinegar, and also the wine and oil of roses, which are no longer used.
Honey of roses is made by beating up rose-petals with a very small portion of boiling water; the liquid, after being filtered, is boiled with honey. This is esteemed for sore throats, for ulcers31 in the mouth, and for anything that is benefited by the use of honey.
The fruit of the rose is said also to possess some astringent properties; the pulp32 of the fruit of the wild varieties, particularly of the dog rose, after being separated from the seeds and beaten up in a mortar with sugar, makes a sort of conserve, formerly known in medicine under the name of Cynorrhodon.
Children in the country sometimes eat these fruits after they have attained33 perfect maturity34, and have been somewhat mellowed35 by the frost; they then lose their pungent36 taste, and become a little sweet. Belanger, a French writer, who traveled in Persia in 1825, found in that country a rose whose fruit was very agreeably flavored. The apple-bearing rose (R. villosa pomifera) produces the largest fruit of all, and is the best adapted for preserving; but an English writer remarks that the fruit of R. systyla and R. arvensis, although of a smaller size, bears a higher flavor than that of any other species. Rose-buds, like the fruit, are also frequently preserved in sugar, and pickled in vinegar. Tea is sometimes made of the leaves of the rose, which are also eaten readily by the domestic animals.
The ends of the young shoots of the sweet-brier, deprived of their bark and foliage37, and cut into short pieces, are sometimes candied and sold by the confectioners.
The Dog Rose takes its name from the virtue4 which the ancients attributed to its root as a cure for hydrophobia. The heathen deities38 themselves, according to Pliny,[Pg 202] revealed this marvelous property, in dream, to a mother whose son had been bitten by a dog affected39 with this terrible disease.
The excrescences frequently found on the branches of the Rose, and particularly on those of the wild varieties, known to druggists by the Arabic name of bédeguar, and which resemble in form a little bunch of moss40, partake equally of the astringent properties of the Rose. These excrescences are caused by the puncture41 of a little insect, known to naturalists42 as the Cynips ros?, and, occasionally, nearly the same effects are produced by other insects.
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1
ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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abounding
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| adj.丰富的，大量的v.大量存在，充满，富于( abound的现在分词 ) | |
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3
fragrance
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| n.芬芳，香味，香气 | |
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4
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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5
virtues
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| 美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处 | |
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6
petals
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| n.花瓣( petal的名词复数 ) | |
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7
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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8
astringent
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| adj.止血的，收缩的，涩的；n.收缩剂，止血剂 | |
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tonic
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| n./adj.滋补品，补药，强身的，健体的 | |
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oxide
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| n.氧化物 | |
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11
digestion
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| n.消化，吸收 | |
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12
bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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13
purgatives
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| 泻剂( purgative的名词复数 ) | |
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14
purgative
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| n.泻药；adj.通便的 | |
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15
conserve
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| vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭 | |
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chronic
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| adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的 | |
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17
bruising
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| adj.殊死的；十分激烈的v.擦伤(bruise的现在分词形式) | |
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18
mortar
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| n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合 | |
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19
pulverized
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| adj.[医]雾化的，粉末状的v.将…弄碎( pulverize的过去式和过去分词 )；将…弄成粉末或尘埃；摧毁；粉碎 | |
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20
penetrating
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| adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的 | |
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21
cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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22
ointment
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| n.药膏，油膏，软膏 | |
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23
treacle
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| n.糖蜜 | |
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24
alcoholic
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| adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者 | |
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25
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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26
stimulus
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| n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物 | |
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27
syrup
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| n.糖浆，糖水 | |
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28
esteemed
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| adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 )；敬重；认为；以为 | |
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29
distilled
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| adj.由蒸馏得来的v.蒸馏( distil的过去式和过去分词 )；从…提取精华 | |
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30
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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31
ulcers
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| n.溃疡( ulcer的名词复数 )；腐烂物；道德败坏；腐败 | |
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32
pulp
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| n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆 | |
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33
attained
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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34
maturity
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| n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期 | |
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35
mellowed
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| （使）成熟( mellow的过去式和过去分词 )； 使色彩更加柔和，使酒更加醇香 | |
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36
pungent
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| adj.（气味、味道）刺激性的，辛辣的；尖锐的 | |
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37
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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38
deities
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| n.神，女神( deity的名词复数 )；神祗；神灵；神明 | |
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39
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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40
moss
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| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
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41
puncture
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| n.刺孔，穿孔；v.刺穿，刺破 | |
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42
naturalists
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| n.博物学家( naturalist的名词复数 )；（文学艺术的）自然主义者 | |
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