Digital Grainger

An Online Edition of The Sugar-Cane (1764)

60

  • From foul pollution, and unseemly rot;
  • Much will they benefit thy house and thee.
  • But chief the yellow thistle1 thou select,
  • Whose seed the stomach frees from nauseous loads; [115]
  • And, if the music of the mountain-dove2
  • Delight thy pensive ear, sweet friend to thought!
  • This prompts their cooing, and enflames their love.
  • Nor let rude hands the knotted grass3 profane,
  • Whose juice worms fly: Ah, dire endemial ill!4 [120]
  • How many fathers, fathers now no more;
  • How many orphans, now lament thy rage?
  • The cow-itch5 also save; but let thick gloves
  • Thine hands defend, or thou wilt sadly rue
  • Thy rash imprudence, when ten thousand darts [125]

VER. 114. the yellow thistle] The seeds of this plant are an excellent emetic; and almost as useful in dysenteric6 complaints as ipecacuan.7 It grows every where.

VER. 119. Nor let rude hands the knotted grass profane,] This is truly a powerful vermifuge;8 but, uncautiously administered, has often proved mortal. The juice of it clarified, is sometimes given; but a decoction of it is greatly preferable. Its botanical name is Spigelia.

VER. 123. The cow-itch also save;] This extraordinary vine should not be permitted to grow in a Cane-piece; for Negroes have been known to fire the Canes, to save themselves from the torture which attends working in grounds where it has abounded. Mixed with melasses,9 it is a safe and excellent vermifuge. Its seeds, which resemble blackish small beans, are purgative. Its flower is purple; and its pods, on which the stinging brown Setae10 are found, are as large as a full-grown English field-pea.11

  1. Most likely Argemone mexicana, the seeds of which are purgative. Also known as the Mexican prickly poppy; native to the tropical Americas. ↩︎

  2. May refer to the Zenaida dove (Zenaida aurita), a bird native to the Caribbean. ↩︎

  3. Probably Spigelia anthelmia, a plant known for its ability to rid the body of intestinal parasites, including tapeworms. Its native range is the tropical and subtropical Americas. ↩︎

  4. An endemic disease, meaning one that is habitually prevalent in a certain country or locale. ↩︎

  5. Cowitch (Mucuna pruriens), a viny plant that produces severe itching after contact with skin. Was used on sugar plantations as compost, forage, and cattle feed. Its seeds destroy intestinal parasites. Likely native to tropical Asia and possibly Africa. ↩︎

  6. Having to do with dysentery or diarrhea. ↩︎

  7. Ipecacuanha, an extract that induces vomiting and that comes from the plant Carapichea ipecacuanha, an herbal shrub whose native range is southeastern Nicaragua to Brazil. ↩︎

  8. A substance having the power to expel worms from the intestines; an anthelmintic. ↩︎

  9. Molasses, the thick, brown, uncrystallized syrup drained from raw sugar. ↩︎

  10. Bristles. ↩︎

  11. Pisum sativum, also known as the English pea, garden pea, or green pea. Native to Eurasia. ↩︎