OCIMUM BASILICUM

OCIMUM BASILICUM.—羅勒 (Lo-lê), 香菜 (Hsiang-ts‘ai), 426. The common name at Peking is 矮糠 (Ai-k‘ang). Because it is used in the treatment of opacity of the cornea it is called 瞖子草 (I-tzŭ-ts‘ao). The plant is found everywhere. The Pêntsao distinguishes three varieties: one resembling Perilla ocymoides, and one has large leaves and is very fragrant, its perfume carrying to a distance of twenty paces, and the third can be used as a vegetable. The plant is recommended to be extensively sown in gardens to overcome the bad odors due to the use of fertilizers. Peptic and carminative properties are ascribed to it, and the decoction is used as a wash for ulcers. It is prescribed in vomiting, hiccough, and polypus of the nose. The seeds are specially prescribed in diseases of the eyes, are said to remove films and opacities, and to soothe pain and inflammation. They are also recommended for rodent ulcer (走馬牙疳, Tsou-ma-ya-kan). The Customs Lists give 九層塔 (Chiu-ts‘êng-t‘a) as a term for Ocimum, but this has not been found in the Chinese books.