“ This plant has of late years been generally ufed as a falad-herb in the fpring of the year, and is by many
** preferred to all other forts of fail ads, for its agreeable warm bitter tafte, and being accounted an excellent
f l remedy for the fcurvy. and to cleanfe the blood, as .alfo a good diuretic, it ha$ greatly obtained a preference
f‘ to molt other forts for winter and fpring ufe with many people.. This is generally gathered in the ditches
and other (landing waters near London, to fupply the markets; but whoever has a mind to cultivate it, may
a, eajily do it, by taking fome of the plants from the places of their natural growth early in the fpring, being
“ careful to preserve their roots as entire as poffible and plant them into mud, and then let the water in on
" them by degrees; when they have taken root, they will foon flourilh and lipread over a large compafs of
#* water: they Ihould not be cut the firft feafon, but Tuffered to run to feed, which will fall into the water, and
furnifh a fufficjent fupply of plants afterwards; but where the water is. fo deep that it will not be eafy to plant
“ them ; the beft method will be, to get a quantity of the plants, juft as their feeds are ripening, and throw
, f‘ them on the furface of the water, where they are defigned to grow, and their feeds will ripen and fall to the
*• bottorn, where they will take root and produce a fufficiency o f thefe plants.” M il l e r ’s Gard. Di£l.
The leaves of the Water-crefs have a moderately pungent tafte, and when rubbed between the fingers, emit
a quick penetrating fmell, like that of muftard feed, but much weaker. Their pungent matter is taken up
both by watery and fpirituous menflrua, and accompany the aqueous juice, which ilfues copioufly on expreffion •
jt is very volatile, fo as to rife in great part in diftillation wi'th re&ified fpirit as well as with water, and almoft
totally to exhale in drying the leaves, or infpiffating by the gentleft neat, to the confidence of an extrafl,
either the exprelfed juice, or the watery or fpirituous tinftures. Both the infpiflated juice and the watery
extraft, difcover to the tafte a faline impregnation, and, in keeping, throw up cryftalline efflorefcences to the
furface. On diftilling with water confiderable quantities of the herb, a fmall proportion of a fubtle, volatile
and very pungent effential oil is obtained.
This herb is one of the milder acrid aperient antifcorbutics, o f the fame general virtues with the Cochlearia
-but confiderably lefs pungent, and, in a great meafure, free from the peculiar flavour which accompanies
that plant. H offman has a great opinion of it, and recommends it as of lingular efficacy for ftrerigthenin?
the vifcera, opening obftru&ions of the glands, promoting the fluid feCretions, and purifying the body of
humours : for thefe purpofes, the herb may be ufed as a dietetic article, or the exprefled juice, taken in doles
of from one to four ounces twice or thrice a day. L ew is ’s Materia Medica.