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crowing in a Village about four Leagues from the^ King- dom oV Corca, inhabited by Tartars, cali'd Caica-Tat-ze.
That Father took the occafion to defign the Plant, and Vive an accurate Defcription thereof, with its Virtues, and the manner of preparing it; which, being a great Curiofi- ty we mall here gratify the Reader withal.
The Gin-feng, reprefented Tab+Jtffo^~Mi{£ory, F?g. to. has a white Root, fomewhat knotty, about thrice the Thick- nefs of the Stem, and which goes tapering to the End: At a few Inches from the Head, it frequently parts into two Branches which gives it fome Refcmblancc of a Man, whofe Thighs the' Branches reprefent : And 'tis hence it takes the Denomination Ginfeng.
From the Root rifes a perfectly fmooth, and tolerable round Stem : Its Colour is a pretty deep Red, except to- ward the loot, where, by the Neighbourhood of the Earth, it is turn'd fomewhat whiter. At the Top of the Stem is a fort of Joint, or Knot, form'd by the mooting out of four Branches, which fpread as from a Centre : The under Side of each Branch is green,mix'd with white; and the upper Part, much like the Stalk, of a deep Red : The two Colours gra- dually decreafe, and at length unite on the Sides.
Each Branch has five Leaves, well enough reprefented in the Figure; and 'tis obfervable that the Branches divide equally from each other, both in refpect of themfelves, and ot the Horizon ; and with the Leaves make a circular Fi- gure, nearly parallel to the Surface of the Ground.
The Fibres of the Leaves are very diftinguifhable, and on the upper Side are (ct with fmall whitifh Hairs: The Membrane, or Pellicle between the Fibres, rifes a little in the Middle, above the Level of the Fibres.
The Colour of the Leaf is a dark Green, above, and a fliining, whitifh Green underneath; and all the Leaves are finely jagged or indented.
On the Edges, from the Centre of the Brandies, arifes a fecond Stalk, D E, very ftraight, fmooth, and whitifh, from Bottom to' Top, bearing a Bunch of round Fruit, or a beautiful red Colour. This Bunch, in the Plant viewed by our MifTionary, was compofed of twenty four Berries 5 two. of which are here reprefented <>, 9.
The Red Skin, that covers the Berry, is very thin, and fmooth, and contains within it a white Pulp : As thefe Ber- ries were double- (for they are fometimes fingle) each had, two rough Stones, of the Size and Figure of our Lentils. The Pedicles, whereon the Berries were fupported, all arole from thefune Center; and fpreading exactly like the Ra- dii of a Sphere, made the Bunch of Berries of a circular Form. The Fruit is not good to eat ; and the Stone includes a Kernel : It has alfo a fmall Beard at the Top, diametri- cally oppofite to the Pedicle.
The Plant dies away every Year; the Number of its Tears .may be known by the Number of Stalks it has fhot forth ; of which there always remains fome Mark, as is (hewn in the Figure, by the Letters b b b, 8cc. From whence it ap- pears, that the Root A was leven Years old ; and the Root H fifteer.
A.s to the Flowr, F. Jartonx owns he had never feen it ; and therefore could not defcribe it : Some have affured him, that it is white, and very fmall ; others, that there is no Flower at all, and that no body had ever feen it. He ra- ther inclines to think it fo fmall as to have efcap'd Notice; and, what confirms him in the Opinion, is, that thofe who feek the Gin-feng, having nothing in view but its Root, overlook and defpife the reft as ufelefs.
As they have lowed the Seed in vain, without any Plant ever arifing therefrom ; 'tis probable this might give occafion to the Fable which is current among the Tartars:' — They fay, that a Bird eats it, as foon as in the Earth ; and not be- ing able to digeft it, it purifies in its Stomach, and after- wards fprings up in the Place where it was cart by the Bird with its Dung. — The MifTionary rather believes that the Stone remains a long time in the Ground, before it takes root ; which Opinion appears the more probable, as there are lotne Roots no longer or bigger than ones little Finger, which yet have fhot forth at leaft ten Stalks.
Tho 1 the Plant, here defcribed, had four Branches; yet there are fome which have but two ; others, three ; and others, five, fix, or feven : But each Branch has always five Leaves.
The Heighth of thePiant is proportionable to its Bignefs, and the Number of Branches the Root has : The larger and more uniform it is, and the fewer fmall Strings or Fi- bres it has, the better it is accounted.
'Tis hard, to fay, why the Cbinefe fhould call it Gin-feng, a Word which fignifies Form, or Representation : Neither that Father, nor any he inquir'd of, could ever find that it bore more Refemblance to the Figure of a Man, than is ordinarily feen among other Roots. The "Tartars, with more Reafon, call.it O'bota, that is, tho. fir jl of 'Plants.
Thofe who gather the Gin-feng, preferve only the Root; and all they can get of it in ten, or fifteen Days time, they bury together in Tome Place under Ground. Then they take
care to wa/li it well, and fcour it with a Brufh : Then dip it in fcalding Water, and prepare it in the Fume of a fort of yellow Milet, which gives it Part of its Colour.
The Milet is put in a Veffel, with a little Water, and boil'd over a gentle Fire ; the Roots being laid over the Veffel upon (mall, tranfverfe Pieces of Wood, being firft co- ver'd with a linen Cloath, or fome other Veffel, plac'd over them.
They may alfo be dried in the Sun, or by the Fire ; but then, tho' they retain their Virtue well enough, they have not that yellow Colour, which the Cbinefe io much admire. When the Roots are dried, they muft be kept clofc in fome very dry Place; othcrwife they are in danger of corrupting, or being eaten by Worms.
As to the Place where this Root grows, it is between the thirty ninth and forty feventh Degree of North Latitude, and between the tenth and twentieth Degree ot'Eaft Longi- tude, reckoning from "the Meridian of ^Peking. Here is found a long TracT: of Mountains, which the thick For- reffs that cover and enconipafs them, render almolt unpaf- fable. It is upon the Declivities of thefe Mountains, and in thefe thick Forrefts, upon the Eanks of Torrents, or about the Roots of Trees, and amidft a thoufand other different Sorts of Plants, that the Gin-feng is found. It is not to be met with in Plains, Vallies, Marfhes, the Bottoms of Ri- vuiets, or in Places too much expofed and open.
If the Foreft take fire, and be confumed, this Plant does not appear till two or three Years after : It alfo lies hid from the Sun as much as poffible, which fhews that Heat is an Enemy to it.
The Places where the Gin-feng grows, are on every Side feparated from the Province of fthian-tong, by a Barrier of wooden Stakes, which incompaffes this whole Province, and about which Guards continually patrol], to hinder the Cbi- nefe from going out, and looking after this Root.
Yet, how vigilant foever they are, their Greedinefs after Gain incites the Cbinefe to lurk about privately in thefe De- ferts, fometimes to the Number of two or three thoufand; at the hazard of loofing their Liberty, and all the Fruit of their Labour, if they are taken, either as they go out of, or come into the Province.
The Emperor having a mind that the "Tartars fhould reap all the Advantage that is to be made of this Plant, ra- ther than the Cbinefe., gave Orders, in 1709, to ten thoufand Tartars, to go and gather all that they could of the Gin- fe?2g, upon Condition that each Perfon mould give him two Ounces of the beft, and that the reft fhould be paid for Weight for Weight, in pure Silver.
It was computed that by this means the Emperor would get this Year about twenty thoufand Cbinefe Pounds of it, which would not coft him above one fourth Part of its Value.
We met, by chance, with fome of thefe Tartars, in the Midfl of thofe frightful Deferts; and their Mandarins, who were not far out of our Way, came one after another, and offcr'd us Oxen for our Subfiftance, according to the Com- mands they had received from the Emperor.
This Army of Herbarifts obferved the following Order: After they had divided a certain TracT: of Land among their feveral Companies, each to the Number of an hun- dred Perfons, fpread itfelf out in a Right Line, to a certain fix'd Place, every ten of them keeping at a diflance from the reft.
Then they fearch'd carefully for the Plant, going on lei- furely in the fame Order; and in this manner, in a certain Number of Days, they run over the whole lpace of Ground appointed them.
When the Time is expired, the Mandarins, who are en- camp'd with their Tents in fuch Places as arc proper for the Subfiftance of their Horfes, fend to view each Troop, to give them frefh Orders, and to inform themfelves if their Number is compleat.
If any one of them is wanting, as it often happens, either by wandring out of the way, or being attack'd by wild Beafts, they look for him a Day or two, and then return again to their Labour, as before.
The Gin-feng, we have obferv'd, is an Ingredient in moft of the Medicines which the Cbinefe Phyficians prefcribe to the better fort of Patients: They affirm that it is a iovcreign Remedy for all Weakneffes occafion'd by exceflive Fa- tigues, either of Body, or Mind; that it attenuates and car- ries off pituitous Humours ; cures Weaknefs of the Lungs, and thePleurify; flops Vomitings ; ftrengthens the Stomach, and helps the Appetite; dilperfes Fumes, or Vapours; for- tifies the Breaft ; is a Remedy for fhort and weak Breath- ing ; ftrengthens the vital Spirits, and is good againft Diz- zinefs of the Head, and Dimnefs of Sight, and that it pro- longs Life to extreme old Age.
No body can imagine, that the Cbinefe and Tartars would fet fo high a Value upon this Root, if it did not conftantly produce a good Effect : Thofe that are in Health, often make ufe of it to render themlelves more vigorous and ftrong ; and I am pcrfuaded it would prove an excellent
Medicine
