=Spreading Dogbane= (_Apocynum androsaemifolium_ L.) “wesaˈ wûckwûn”
[nearly blue flowers] or “magosîñeˈ cnakwûk” [needle-like].[94]
Bearskin, Flambeau medicine man, said that the stalk and root of this
plant are steeped to make a tea for women to drink. It keeps the
kidneys free during pregnancy. Other Flambeau Ojibwe agreed with the
use but cited the second name as more correct for it. Under the Ojibwe
name of “mîdewîdjiˈbîk” [medicine lodge root], the Pillager Ojibwe
declared it to be one of the sacred roots that is eaten during the
medicine lodge ceremony. They use it also for throat trouble. When one
has a coated tongue and is afflicted with headache, the root is also
used. In the case of headache, the root is placed upon live coals and
the incense is inhaled.
AQUIFOLIACEAE (HOLLY FAMILY)
=Winterberry= (_Ilex verticillata_ [L.] Gray), “aweˈnîsibûg”
[wintergreen leaf], and “anîmûˈcîmînûn” [dog berry]. The bark of this
native holly is medicine among the Flambeau Ojibwe, but the use could
not be discovered, other than that it might be used for diarrhea.
Winterberry has been employed by eclectic practitioners as a tonic
and astringent. It has been substituted for quinine in the treatment
of periodical fevers, and also used in the treatment of diarrhea. The
eclectic practitioner has also used it in treating malignant ulcers and
chronic skin eruptions.
=Mountain Holly= (_Nemopanthus mucronata_ [L.] Trel.), “mîckimînûˈ
nîmîc” [red berry tree], shown in plate 65, fig. 2. This bush is very
common around the reservation of the Flambeau Ojibwe and the berries
are used as medicine, but the writer was unable to discover for what
disease or how used. There is no record of its use among the whites.
ARACEAE (ARUM FAMILY)
=Sweet Flag= (_Acorus calamus_ L.) “naˈ bûgûck” [something flat]. The
root of Sweet Flag is a quick acting physic, supposed to act in half
a day. Bearskin cautioned the writer that no more than one and a half
inches was to be used, as more would make one ill, and even this much
is quite harsh. The Pillager Ojibwe recognize the Sweet Flag under the
name “weˈke”, which is the same word used by another tribe for the
Yellow Water-lily, and by another for the Blue Flag. John Peper said
that the root was used for curing a cold in the throat or for curing a
cramp in the stomach. In earlier days, among the whites, slices were
candied to create a more popular form of medication. It was formerly
used among the white men as a tonic for dyspepsia and for correcting
flatulent colic. It was also supposed to be beneficial as a mild
stimulant in typhoid cases.
=Indian Turnip= (_Arisaema triphyllum_ [L.] Schott.), “cacaˈ
gomîn.”[95] The root of Indian Turnip was said by John Peper, Bear
Island Ojibwe, to be used in treating sore eyes, but he did not know
how to use it. One wonders if the calcium oxalate crystals so firefull
to the mouth lining were equally so to the delicate membranes of the
eye.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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