Agriculture Reference
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( ramad ) cures him rapidly, whether this be
the left eye for the left or the right for the
right. To carry one of its teeth about one's
person has an aphrodisiac effect and, if it
is from the left side, it dispels any kind
of shivers ( a ª arīr ). Its fat is a beneficial
ointment for treating otitis and its gall
makes an effective eye-wash for the treat-
ment of albugo. When dried, pulverised
and used in fumigation, its liver alleviates
epilepsy ( ar ) and its dung, extracted from
the intestine and applied as a lotion to the
affected skin of the leper ( bayā ), makes the
disease disappear. In spite of all this, the
crocodile remains, in the opinion of most,
an exceedingly harmful beast, as is shown
by expressions such as a zlam min timsā
“more tyrannical than a crocodile”.
its fangs, fastened to an infant, suppresses
the pain of teething; applied to an epileptic
it brings rapid relief, as does the gall when
dried, pulverised and inhaled through the
nostrils. Its flesh is beneficent in the treat-
ment of elephantiasis ( ¡ u £ ām ), although
Islamic law prohibits its consumption. Its
fat is a useful ointment in the treatment
of gout ( niris ) and otitis ( iltihāb al-u £ un ).
One of its testicles, hung on an infant,
has the same effect as its fang in sooth-
ing teething pain. One of its ears, when
applied to a neck affected by scrofula
( anāzīr ), suppresses them rapidly. Its
testicles, pulverised and dissolved in boil-
ing liquid, have an aphrodisiac property;
its excrement, applied to the penis in the
form of a lotion, has the same effect. The
blood of the fox, smeared on an infant's
head, causes the hair to grow, even if the
child has scabies ( ¡ arab ). Finally, hold-
ing its testicles in the hand dispels all fear
of dogs.
(F. Viré)
Fox
The Arabic º alab is a masculine sub-
stantive (pls. º aālib, º aāl in ) denoting the
fox ( Vulpes vulpes ), carnivore of the canine
tribe, belonging to the class of Canidae
and the family of Vulpinae; in Persian
wāwi, rūbāh , and in Turkish tilki . The vixen
is called º alaba, º uala, º urmula, º ulubān
and the fox-cub is hi ¡ ris and tanfal . Fur-
thermore, the fox bears the nicknames of
Abu l-uayn, Abu l-Na ¡ m, Abu l-Nawfal,
Abu l-Wa º ab , and Abū inbi , while the
vixen is Umm Uwayl .
The guile which is the dominant fea-
ture of the fox is acknowledged by the
expressions amkar min º alab “more cun-
ning than a fox”. According to al-Damīrī,
the fox has certain properties which coun-
terbalance its reputation. The quality of
its pelt has always made it a highly-prized
item of clothing, supplying both warmth
and elegance. Its head, placed in a dove-
cote, drives away all the pigeons. One of
(F. Viré)
Ostrich
Naām (A., singular -a , pl. -āt, naāim ) is
a collective noun designating the ostrich
( Struthio camelus ) without any distinction of
sex.
The only representative of the family
of struthionids, of the sub-class of rati-
ties or runners, the ostrich, sometimes
called “ostrich-camel” (Greek στρουθο -
κάμηλος , Persian u ª turmur “camel-
bird”, Turkish deveku ª u “camel-bird”), at
present lives only in equatorial and south-
ern Africa, although some were still alive
in the deserts of Syria, Irā and Arabia
until the first quarter of our century; it
is said that it was from the most ancient
times familiar to the Arab nomads of
these countries, as it was to the Berber
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