Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-08-22
GINSENG AND IT'S USES.


GINSENG AND IT'S USES.
A Wonderful Root Valued by the Chiness
and Its Fabulous Qualities.
NsENG Is VEGETABLE OF MYSTERY
" and wonder, according TO Chinese belief.
lis not like any ordinary plant. without con-
| seriousness, but has q mind Of its own and is
even endowed with the power of locomotion.
Being capable OF volition and desiring al
ways to elude capture, this much-prized
wild root seeks to control itself and il con-
sequently very difficult to find. Moreover it
is guarded by the tiger, the leopard, the
wolf and the snake, who have been
specially appointed by the gods to protect it
and watch over its safety in the wooded glens
among the mountains where it makes its home
In 1882 the Empress Regent Hsi-tai-ho lay sick
nearly unto death, and q few of her trusty
friends made an expedition into Quantung,
where the most valued species grows, and Sc
cured some Of it for administering to her i'm
perial majesty, although they were obliged to
encounter mnny frighful terrors and dangers
in the course Of the enterprise.
Quantong ginseng is so rare and precious
that i.s use is practically limited to the i'm
Perlal family. Search is undertaken for it I'M
der government auspices by bold persons who
are furnished FOR the purpose with explicit di-
roctlons and rations for fortnight Most OF
the seekers fall victims to the wild animals,
perish OF fatigue or succumb to famine. A
Few, however, who have natures sufficiently
chaste and pure are permitted at night to see
the spiritual essence or halo which the heavenly
and DEMONSTRATING root puts forth. When day
dawns the treasure is unearthed. and If in one
piece weighing three or four ounces the lind is
lucky one such specimen selling readily
for 200 taels of silver. The yearly amount thus
obtained does a fpw
special variety bears a wonderful resemblance
In form to the figure Of man, which fact
in itself goes to show its supernatural origin.
The moisture o. the body is properly regu-
lated by the incidentally prepared ginseng. the
Chinese say, which prevents the wits from be-
coming dried up, keeps all the organs in their
normal state OF saturation and permits one to
enjoy q natural flow of spirits. Rich men, with
nothing to think of but their health, use it in
the hope that it will insure them a long life.
Folks keeping up appearances have usually
cup OF it on brew in the drawing room to give
visitors the impression that the means of the
family are such to afford an expensive
luxury: People buy it ut the beginning
keep it by them against emergencies.
Physicians rarely prescribe it for the poor,
because the latter. not being used to il, might
te killed by dose which could be jpdiciously
administered 10 u wealthy person. Its useful
ness in cases of debility and pulmonary dis
X
important value as medicine lies In the power
it possesses to sustain life for while when the
vital candle Is Pickering and about 10 expire.
This gives the dying man time to settle his
property on relations or friends, thus gaining
for him q contentment OF mind which enables
him to view with calnness the wave of oblivion
that Is about to overwhelIn him.
In the preparation OF ginseng a small china
pot without a nozzle is used Into it pieces of
the sliced root are put together with lump of
sugar; boiling water is poured on. and few
grains OK rice are sprinkied over tho top of the
cover. The pot is then set to simmer in an
iron cooking pan half filed with water. When
the grains Of rice are steamed through and fiji to
eat the ginseng brew will also have reached
the desired stage. One thus avoids let
repeated openings Of the pot to see il it is
done. The root is also taken in pills and in
the shape of a CONNECTION. Nearly every apothe-
cary shop in China has displayed upon its door
posts the announcement that ginseng and
young deers horn pills are an article of ready
supply The latter substance is esteemed
valuable tonic, while the two combined
will cure almost any disease.
Ginseng loves moisture and the densest parts
OF the forest on the slopes of hills it nestes in
recesses where the rays Of the sun have never
penetrated and which are as painless now as in
the days when the Golden Tartars were dwell
ing in and cultivating the plains The genuine
Manchurian plant consists of stem from which
the leaves spring, OK a center root, and OF two
roots branching off from the same point from
each side of the center root. The stem some
what resembles the head and neck and the side
roots the shoulders and arms of q man. The
main root represents the body, and q
fork, which the main root frequently
forms, the legs. 1t is believed that
the precious qualities of this marvellous vege-
table are increased and intensified by age, and
plant is of no great value until it has been
growing and gathering strength for at least
nifty years. The age, and consequently the
worth. OF a specimen are ascertained by care
full examination of the upper portions OF the
root. which should be covered with rings, and the
thicker and more numerous the rings the
greater the age. It is the upper part Of the
root that possesses the greater healing power;
but the stem which appears above ground is
baneful rather than beneficial and should be
avoided. An old one, of very human shape
and with head and limbs complete, is
supposed to have lived and grown for 100 or
200 years and fetches from 200 to 400 taels per
ounce weight. Wild ginseng is sought for on
mountains, the searchers beating the tall
grass on every side until they find a patch of
ground that is bare. There they expect to find
the plants and at once proceed to dig for them.
The difficulty OF getting It is thought to be
increased by the fact that IL has the power Of
travelling from place to place underground
like living animal. Cultivated ginseng,
grown for market, is of much less value.