Affections of the spleen are alleviated by taking the gall of
a wild boar or hog in drink; ashes of burnt deer's horns in
vinegar; or, what is best of all, the dried spleen of an ass, the
good effects being sure to be felt in the course of three days.
The first dung voided by an ass's foal-a substance known as
"polea"[1] by the people of Syria—is administered in oxymel
for these complaints; a dried horse tongue, too, is taken in
wine, a sovereign remedy which, Cæcilius Bion tells us, he first
heard of when living among the barbarous nations. The milt
of a cow or ox is used in a similar manner; but when it is
quite fresh, the practice is to roast or boil it and take it with
the food. For pains in the liver a topical application is made
by bruising twenty heads of garlick in one sextarius of vinegar,
and applying them in a piece of ox bladder. For the same
malady the magicians recommend a calf's milt, bought at the
price set upon it and without any haggling, that being an
important point, and one that should be religiously observed.
This done, the milt must be cut in two lengthwise, and attached
1.
2.