CHAP. 16.—REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE WEASEL.
There are two varieties of the weasel; the one, wild, [Note] larger
than the other, and known to the Greeks as the "ictis:" its
gall is said to be very efficacious as an antidote to the sting of
the asp, but of a venomous nature in other respects. [Note] The
other kind, [Note] which prowls about our houses, and is in the
habit, Cicero tells us, [Note] of removing its young ones, and
changing every day from place to place, is an enemy to serpents. The flesh of this last, preserved in salt, is given, in
doses of one denarius, in three cyathi of drink to persons who
have been stung by serpents: or else the maw of the animal is
stuffed with coriander seed and dried, to be taken for the same
purpose in wine. The young one of the weasel is still more
efficacious for these purposes.
