Chapter XI: Part 11

An infusion or decoction of the Juniper wood is sometimes given for the same affections, but less usefully, because the volatile oil becomes dissipated by the boiling heat. A "rob," or inspissated juice of the berries, is likewise often employed. Gerard said: "A decoction thereof is singular against an old cough." Gin is an ordinary malt spirit distilled a second time, with the addition of some Juniper berries. Formerly these berries were added to the malt in grinding, so that the spirit obtained therefrom was flavoured with the berries from the first, and surpassed all that could be made by any other method. At present gin is cheaply manufactured by leaving out the berries altogether, and giving the spirit a flavour by distilling it with a proportion of oil of turpentine, which resembles the Juniper berries in taste; and as this sophistication is less practised in Holland than elsewhere, it is best to order "Hollands," with water, as a drink for dropsical persons. By the use of Juniper berries Dr. Mayern cured some patients who were deplorably ill with [293] epilepsy when all other remedies had failed. "Let the patient carry a bag of these berries about with him, and eat from ten to twenty every morning for a month or more, whilst fasting. Similarly for flatulent indigestion the berries may be most usefully given; on the first day, four berries; on the second, five; on the third, six; on the fourth, seven; and so on until twelve days, and fifteen berries are reached; after this the daily dose should be reduced by one berry until only five are taken in the day; which makes an admirable 'berry-cure.'" The berries are to be well masticated, and the husks may be afterwards either rejected or swallowed.

Juniper oil, used officinally, is distilled from the full-grown, unripe, green fruit. The Laplanders almost adore the tree, and they make a decoction of its ripe berries, when dried, to be drunk as tea, or coffee; whilst the Swedish peasantry prepare from the fresh berries a fermented beverage, which they drink cold, and an extract, which they eat with their bread for breakfast as we do butter.

Simon Pauli assures us these berries have performed wonders in curing the stone, he having personally treated cases thus, with incredible success. Schroder knew a nobleman of Germany, who freed himself from the intolerable symptoms of stone, by a constant use of these berries. Evelyn called them the "Forester's Panacea," "one of the most universal remedies in the world to our crazy Forester." Astrological botanists advise to pull the berries when the sun is in Virgo.

We read in an old tract (London, 1682) on _The use of Juniper and Elder berries in our Publick Houses_: "The simple decoction of these berries, sweetened with a little sugar candy, will afford liquors so pleasant to the eye, so grateful to the palate, and so beneficial to the [294] body, that the wonder is they have not been courted and ushered into our Publick Houses, so great are the extraordinary beauty and vertues of these berries." "One ounce, well cleansed, bruised, and mashed, will be enough for almost a pint of water. When they are boiled together the vessel must be carefully stopt, and after the boiling is over one tablespoonful of sugar candy must be put in."

From rifts which occur spontaneously in the bark of the shrubs in warm countries issues a gum resembling frankincense. This gum, as Gerard teaches, "drieth ulcers which are hollow, and filleth them with flesh if they be cast thereon." "Being mixed with oil of roses, it healeth chaps of the hands and feet." Bergius said "the lignum (wood) of Juniper is _diureticum, sudorificum, mundificans_; the _bacca_ (berry), _diuretica, nutriens, diaphoretica_." In Germany the berries are added to _sauerkraut_ for flavouring it.

Virgil thought the odour exhaled by the Juniper tree noxious, and he speaks of the _Juniperis gravis umbra_:--

"Surgamus! solet esse gravis cantantibus umbra;
Juniperis gravis umbra; nocent et frugibus umbrae."
_Eclog. X. v._ 75.

But it is more scientific to suppose that the growth of Juniper trees should be encouraged near dwellings, because of the balsamic and antiseptic odours which they constantly exhale. The smoke of the leaves and wood was formerly believed to drive away "all infection and corruption of the aire which bringeth the plague, and such like contagious diseases."

Sprays of Juniper are frequently strewn over floors of apartments, so as to give out when trodden down, their agreeable odour which is supposed to promote [295] sleep. Queen Elizabeth's bedchamber was sweetened with their fumes. In the French hospitals it is customary to burn Juniper berries with Rosemary for correcting vitiated air, and to prevent infection.

On the Continent the Juniper is regarded with much veneration, because it is thought to have saved the life of the Madonna, and of the infant Jesus, whom she hid under a Juniper bush when flying into Egypt from the assassins of Herod.

Virgil alludes to the Juniper as Cedar:--

"Disce et odoratam stabulis accendere cedrum."
_Georgic_.

"But learn to burn within your sheltering rooms
Sweet Juniper."

Its powerful odour is thought to defeat the keen scent of the hound; and a hunted hare when put to extremities will seek a safe retreat under cover of its branches. Elijah was sheltered from the persecutions of King Ahab by the Juniper tree; since which time it has been always regarded as an asylum, and a symbol of succour.

From the wood of the _Juniperus oxycoedrus_; an empyreumatic oil resembling liquid pitch, is obtained by dry distillation, this being named officinally, _Huile de cade_, or _Oleum cadinum_, otherwise "Juniper tar." It is found to be most useful as an external stimulant for curing psoriasis and chronic eczema of the skin. A recognised ointment is made with this and yellow wax, _Unguentum olei cadini_.

In Italy stables are popularly thought to be protected by a sprig of Juniper from demons and thunderbolts, just as we suppose the magic horseshoe to be protective to our houses and offices.

[296] KNAPWEED (The Lesser).

Black Knapweed, the _Centaurea nigra_, is a common tough-stemmed composite weed growing in our meadows and cornfields, being well known by its heads of dull purple flowers, with brown, or almost black scales of the outer floral encasement. It is popularly called Hard heads, Loggerheads, Iron heads, Horse knob, and Bull weed.

Dr. Withering relates that a decoction made from these hard heads has afforded at least a temporary relief in cases of diabetes mellitus, "by diminishing the quantity of urine, and dispelling the sweetness."

Its chief chemical constituent _enicin_, is identical with that of the Blessed thistle, and the Blue bottle, and closely resembles that of the Dandelion. It has been found useful in strengthless indigestion, especially when this is complicated with sluggish torpor of the liver. From half to one ounce of the herb may be boiled in eight fluid ounces of water, and a small wineglassful be taken for a dose twice or three times a day. In Bucks young women make use of this Knapweed for love divination:--

"They pull the little blossom threads
From out the Knotweed's button beads,
And put the husk with many a smile
In their white bosoms for a while;
Then, if they guess aright, the swain
Their love's sweet fancies try to gain,
'Tis said that ere it lies an hour
'Twill blossom with a second flower."

LAVENDER.

The Lavender of our gardens, called also Lavender Spike, is a well-known sweet-smelling shrub, of the Labiate order. It grows wild in Spain, Piedmont, and [297] the south of France, on waysides, mountains, and in barren places. The plant was propagated by slips, or cuttings, and has been cultivated in England since about 1568. It is produced largely for commercial purposes in Surrey, Hertfordshire, and Lincoln. The shrub is set in long rows occupying fields, and yields a profitable fragrant essential oil from the flowering tops, about one ounce of the oil from sixty terminal flowering spikes. From these tops also the popular cosmetic lavender water is distilled. They contain tannin, and a resinous camphire, which is common to most of the mints affording essential oils. If a hank of cotton is steeped in the oil of Lavender, and drained off so as to be hung dry about the neck, it will prevent bugs and other noxious insects from attacking that part. When mixed with three-fourths of spirit of turpentine, or spirit of wine, this oil makes the famous _Oleum spicoe_, formerly much celebrated for curing old sprains and stiff joints. Lavender oil is likewise of service when rubbed in externally, for stimulating paralysed limbs--preferring the sort distilled from the flowering tops to that which is obtained from the stalks. Internally, the essential oil, or a spirit of Lavender made therefrom, proves admirably restorative and tonic against faintness, palpitations of a nervous sort, weak giddiness, spasms, and colic. It is agreeable to the taste and smell, provokes appetite, raises the spirits, and dispels flatulence; but the infusion of Lavender tops, if taken too freely, will cause griping, and colic. In hysteria, palsy, and similar disorders of debility, and lack of nerve power, the spirit of Lavender will act as a powerful stimulant; and fomentations with Lavender in bags, applied hot, will speedily relieve local pains. "It profiteth them much," says Gerard, "that have the palsy if they be washed with the distilled water [298] from the Lavender flowers; or are anointed with the oil made from the flowers and olive oil, in such manner as oil of roses is used." A dose of the oil is from one to four drops on sugar, or on a small piece of bread crumb, or in a spoonful or two of milk. And of the spirit, from half to one teaspoonful may be taken with two tablespoonfuls of water, hot or cold, or of milk. The spirit of Lavender is made with one part of the essential oil to forty-nine parts of spirit of wine. For preparing distilled Lavender water, the addition of a small quantity of musk does much to develop the strength of the Lavender's odour and fragrance. The essential oil of _Lavandula latifolia_, admirably promotes the growth of the hair when weakly, or falling off.

By the Greeks the name Nardus is given to Lavender, from Naarda, a city of Syria, near the Euphrates; and many persons call the plant "Nard." St. Mark mentions this as Spikenard, a thing of great value The woman who came to Christ having an alabaster box of ointment of Spikenard, very precious "brake the box, and poured it on His head." In Pliny's time blossoms of the nardus sold for a hundred Roman denarii (or L3 2s. 6d.) the pound. This Lavender or _Nardus_, was likewise called Asarum by the Romans, because not used in garlands or chaplets. It was formerly believed that the asp, a dangerous kind of viper, made Lavender its habitual place of abode, so that the plant had to be approached with great caution.

Conserves of Lavender were much used in the time of Gerard, and desserts may be most pleasantly brought to the table on a service of Lavender spikes. It is said, on good authority, that the lions and tigers in our Zoological gardens, are powerfully affected by the smell of Lavender-water and become docile under its influence.

[299] The Lavender shrub takes its name from the Latin _lavare_, "to wash," because the ancients employed it as a perfume. Lavender tops, when dried, and placed with linen, will preserve it from moths and other insects.

The whole plant was at one time considered indispensable in Africa, _ubi lavandis corporibus Lybes ea utuntur; nec nisi decocto ejus abluti mane domo egrediuntur_, "where the Libyans make use of it for washing their bodies, nor ever leave their houses of a morning until purified by a decoction of the plant."

In this country the sweet-smelling herb is often introduced for scenting newly washed linen when it is put by; from which custom has arisen the expression, "To be laid up in Lavender." During the twelfth century a washerwoman was called "Lavender," in the North of England.

A tea brewed from the flowers is an excellent remedy for headache from fatigue, or weakness. But Lavender oil is, in too large a dose, a narcotic poison, and causes death by convulsions. The tincture of red Lavender is a popular medicinal cordial; and is composed of the oils of Lavender and rosemary, with cinnamon bark, nutmeg, and red sandal wood, macerated in spirit of wine for seven days; then a teaspoonful may be given for a dose in a little water, with excellent effect, after an indigestible meal, taking the dose immediately when feeling uneasy, and repeating it after half-an-hour if needed. An old form of this compound tincture was formerly famous as "Palsy Drops," it being made from the Lavender, with rosemary, cinnamon, nutmeg, red sandal wood, and spirit. In some cases of mental depression and delusions the oil of Lavender proves of real service; and a few drops of it rubbed on the temples will cure nervous headache.

[300] Shakespeare makes Perdita (_Winter's Tale_) class Lavender among the flowers denoting middle age:

"Here's flowers for you,
Hot Lavender: Mints: Savory: Marjoram;
The Marigold that goes to bed with the sun,
And with him rises, weeping: these are the flowers
Of middle summer, and I think they are given
To men of middle age."

There is a broad-leaved variety of the Lavender shrub in France, which yields three times as much of the essential oil as can be got from our narrow-leaved plant, but of a second rate quality.

The Sea Lavender, or Thrift (_Statice limonium_) grows near the sea, or in salt marshes. It gets its name Statice from the Greek word _isteemi_ (to stop, or stay), because of its medicinal power to arrest bleeding. This is the marsh Rosemary, or Ink Root, which contains (if the root be dried in the air) from fourteen to fifteen per cent. of tannin. Therefore, its infusion or tincture will prove highly useful to control bleeding from the lungs or kidneys, as also against dysentery; and when made into a gargle, for curing an ulcerated sore throat.

LEMON.

The Lemon (_Citrus Limonum_) is so common of use in admixing refreshing drinks, and for its fragrancy of peel, whether for culinary flavour, or as a delightful perfume, that it may well find a place among the Simples of a sagacious housewife. Moreover, the imported fruit, which abounds in our markets, as if to the manner born, is endowed with valuable medicinal properties which additionally qualify it for the domestic _Herbarium_. The Lemons brought to England come chiefly from Sicily, [301] through Messina and Palermo. Flowers may be found on the lemon tree all the year round.

In making lemonade it is a mistake to pour boiling water upon sliced Lemons, because thus brewing an infusion of the peel, which is medicinal. The juice should be squeezed into cold water (previously boiled), adding to a quart of the same the juice of three lemons, a few crushed strawberries, and the cut up rind of one Lemon.

This fruit grows specially at Mentone, in the south of France; and a legend runs that Eve carried two or three Lemons with her away from Paradise, wandering about until she came to Mentone, which she found to be so like the Garden of Eden that she settled there, and planted her fruit.

The special dietetic value of Lemons consists in their potash salts, the citrate, malate, and tartrate, which are respectively antiscorbutic, and of assistance in promoting biliary digestion. Each fluid ounce of the fresh juice contains about forty-four grains of citric acid, with gum, sugar, and a residuum, which yields, when incinerated, potash, lime, and phosphoric acid. But the citric acid of the shops is not nearly so preventive or curative of scurvy as the juice itself.

The exterior rind furnishes a grateful aromatic bitter; and our word "zest" signifies really a chip of lemon peel or orange peel used for giving flavour to liquor. It comes from the Greek verb, "_skizein_," to divide, or cut up.

The juice has certain sedative properties whereby it allays hysterical palpitation of the heart, and alleviates pain caused by cancerous ulceration of the tongue. Dr. Brandini, of Florence, discovered this latter property of fresh Lemon juice, through a patient who, when suffering [302] grievously from that dire disease, found marvellous relief to the part by casually sucking a lemon to slake his feverish thirst. But it is a remarkable fact that the acid of Lemons is harmful and obnoxious to cats, rabbits, and other small animals, because it lowers the heart's action in these creatures, and liquifies the blood; whereas, in man it does not diminish the coagulability of the blood, but proves more useful than any other agent in correcting that thin impoverished liquidity thereof which constitutes scurvy. Rapin extols lemons, or citrons, for discomfort of the heart:--

"Into an oval form the citrons rolled
Beneath thick coats their juicy pulp unfold:
From some the palate feels a poignant smart,
Which, though they wound the tongue, _yet heal the heart_."

Throughout Italy, and at Rome, a decoction of fresh Lemons is extolled as a specific against intermittent fever; for which purpose a fresh unpeeled Lemon is cut into thin slices, and put into an earthenware jar with three breakfastcupfuls of cold water, and boiled down to one cupful, which is strained, the lemon being squeezed, and the decoction being given shortly before the access of fever is expected.

For a restless person of ardent temperament and active plethoric circulation, a Lemon squash (unsweetened) of not more than half a tumblerful is a capital sedative; or, a whole lemon may be made hot on the oven top, being turned from time to time, and being put presently when soft and moist into a teacup, then by stabbing it about the juice will be made to escape, and should be drunk hot. If bruised together with a sufficient quantity of sugar the pips of a fresh Lemon or Orange will serve admirably against worms in [303] children. Cut in slices and put into the morning bath, a Lemon makes it fragrant and doubly refreshing.

Professor Wilhelm Schmole, a German doctor, has published a work of some note, in which he advances the theory that fresh Lemon juice is a kind of _elixir vitae_; and that if a sufficient number of Lemons be taken daily, life may be indefinitely prolonged. Lemon juice is decidedly beneficial against jaundice from passive sluggishness of the biliary functions; it will often serve to stay bleedings, when ice and astringent styptics have failed; it will prove useful when swallowed freely against immoderately active monthly fluxes in women; and when applied externally it signally relieves cutaneous itching, especially of the genitals.

Prize-fighters refresh themselves with a fresh cut Lemon between the rounds when competing in the Ring. Hence has arisen the common saying, "Take a suck of the Lemon, and at him again."

For a relaxed sore throat, Lemon juice will help to make a serviceable gargle. By the heat of the sun it may be reduced to a solid state. For a cold in the head, if the juice of a ripe Lemon be squeezed into the palm of the hand, and strongly sniffed into the nostrils at two or three separate times, a cure will be promoted. Roast fillet of veal, with stuffing and lemon juice, was beloved by Oliver Cromwell.

For heartburn which comes on without having eaten sweet things, it is helpful to suck a thin slice of fresh Lemon dipped in salt just after each meal.

The Chinese practice of rubbing parts severely neuralgic with the wet surface of a cut Lemon is highly useful. This fruit has been sold within present recollection at half-a-crown each, and during the American war at five shillings.

[304] The hands may be made white, soft, and supple by daily sponging them with fresh Lemon juice, which further keeps the nails in good order; and the same may be usefully applied to the roots of the hair for removing dandriff from the scalp.

The Candied Peel which we employ as a confection is got from one of the citrons (a variety of the lemon); whilst another of this tribe is esteemed for religious purposes in Jewish synagogues. These citrons are imported into England from the East; and for unblemished specimens of the latter which reach London, high prices are paid. One pound sterling is a common sum, and not infrequently as much as seventy shillings are given for a single "Citron of Law." The fruit is used at the Feast of Tabernacles according to a command given in the Book of the Law; it is not of an edible nature, but is handed round and smelt by the worshippers as they go out, when they "thank God for all good things, and for the sweet odours He has given to men." This citron is considered to be almost miraculously restorative, especially by those who regard it as the "tappnach," intended in the text, "Comfort me with apples." Ladies of the Orient, even now, carry a piece of its rind about them in a vinaigrette.

The citron which furnishes Candied Peel resembles a large juicy lemon, but without a nipple.

Virgil said of the fruit generally:--

"Media fert tristes succos, tardumque saporem
Felicis mali."

Fresh Lemon juice will not keep because of its mucilage, which soon ferments.

Sidney Smith, in writing about Foston, his remote Country Cure in Yorkshire, said it is "twelve miles from a Lemon."

[305] LENTIL.

Among the leguminous plants which supply food for the invalid, and are endowed with certain qualifications for correcting the health, may be justly placed the Lentil, though we have to import it because our moist, cold climate is not favourable for its growth. Nevertheless, it closely resembles the small purple vetch of our summer hedgerows at home. In France its pulse is much eaten during Lent--which season takes its name, as some authors suppose, from this penitential plant. Men become under its subduing dietary influence, "_lenti et lenes_." The plant is cultivated freely in Egypt for the sake of the seeds, which are flat on both sides, growing in numerous pods.

The botanical name is _Ervum lens_; and about the year 1840 a Mr. Wharton sold the flour of Lentils under the name of Ervalenta, this being then of a primrose colour. He failed in his enterprise, and Du Barry took up the business, but substituting the red Arabian Lentil for the yellow German pulse.

Joseph's mess of pottage which he sold to Esau for his birthright was a preparation of the red Lentil: and the same food was the bread of Ezekiel.

The legumin contained in this vegetable is very light and sustaining, but it is apt to form unwholesome combinations with any earthy salts taken in other articles of food, or in the water used in cooking; therefore Lemon juice or vinegar is a desirable addition to Lentils at table. This is because of the phosphates contained so abundantly, and liable to become deposited in the urine. "Lentils," says Gerard, "are singular good to stay the menses." They are traditionally regarded as funeral plants, and formerly they were forbidden at sacrifices and feasts.

[306] Parkinson said, "The country people sow it in the fields as food for their cattle, and call it 'tills', leaving out the 'lent', as thinking that word agreeth not with the matter." "_Ita sus Minervam_." In Hampshire the plant is known as "tils," and in Oxfordshire as "dills." The Romans supposed it made people indolent and torpid, therefore they named the plant from _lentus_, slow.

Allied to the Lentil as likewise a leguminous plant is the LUPINE, grown now only as an ornament to our flower beds, but formerly cultivated by the Romans as an article of food, and still capable of usefulness in this capacity for the invalid. Pliny said, "No kind of fodder is more wholesome and light of digestion than the white Lupine when eaten dry." If taken commonly at meals it will contribute a fresh colour and a cheerful countenance. When thus formerly used neither trouble nor expense was needed in sowing the seed, since it had merely to be scattered over the ground without ploughing or digging. But Virgil designated it _tristis Lupinus_, "the sad Lupine," probably because when the pulse of this plant was eaten without being first cooked in any way so as to modify its bitter taste, it had a tendency to contract the muscles of the face, and to give a sorrowful appearance to the countenance. It was said the Lupine was cursed by the Virgin Mary, because when she fled with the child Christ from the assassins of Herod, plants of this species by the noise they made attracted the attention of the soldiers.

The Lupine was originally named from _lupus_, a wolf, because of its voracious nature. The seeds were used as pieces of money by Roman actors in their plays and comedies, whence came the saying, "_nummus lupinus_," "a spurious bit of money."

[307] LETTUCE.

Our garden Lettuce is a cultivated variety of the wild, or strong-scented Lettuce (_Lactuca virosa_), which grows, with prickly leaves, on banks and waysides in chalky districts throughout England and Wales. It belongs to the Composite order of plants, and contains the medicinal properties of the plant more actively than does the Lettuce produced for the kitchen. An older form of the name is _Lettouce_, which is still retained in Scotland.

Chemically the wild Lettuce contains lactucin, lactucopricin, asparagin, mannite, albumen, gum, and resin, together with oxalic, malic, and citric acids; thus possessing virtues for easing pain, and inducing sleep. The cultivated Lettuce which comes to our tables retains these same properties, but in a very modified degree, since the formidable principles have become as completely toned down and guileless in the garden product as were the child-like manners and the pensive smile of Bret Harte's Heathen Chinee.

Each plant derives its name, _lactuca_, from its milky juice; in Latin _lactis_; and in Greek, _galaktos_ (taking the genitive case). This juice, when withdrawn from the cut or incised stalks and stems of the wild Lettuce, is milky at first, and afterwards becomes brown, like opium, being then known (when dried into a kind of gum) as _lactucarium_. From three to eight grains of this gum, if taken at bedtime, will allay the wakefulness which follows over-excitement of brain. A similar _lactucarium_, got from the dried milk of the cultivated garden Lettuce, is so mild a sedative as to be suitable for restless infants; and two grains thereof may be safely given to a young child for soothing it to sleep.

The wild Lettuce is rather laxative; with which view a decoction of the leaves is sometimes taken as a drink [308] to remedy constipation, and intestinal difficulties, as also to allay feverish pains. The plant was mentioned as acting thus in an epigram by Martial (_Libr. VI., Sq_.).

"Prima tibi dabitur ventro lactuca movendo
Utilis, et porris fila resecta suis."

Gerard said: "Being in some degree laxative and aperient, the cultivated Lettuce is very proper for hot bilious dispositions;" and Parkinson adds (1640): "Lettuce eaten raw or boyled, helpeth to loosen the belly, and the boyled more than the raw." It was known as the "Milk Plant" to Dioscorides and Theophrastus, and was much esteemed by the Romans to be eaten after a debauch of wine, or as a sedative for inducing sleep. But a prejudice against it was entertained for a time as _venerem enervans_, and therefore _mortuorum cibi_, "food for the dead."

Apuleius says, that when the eagle desires to fly to a great height, and to get a clear view of the extensive prospect below him, he first plucks a leaf of the wild Lettuce and touches his eyes with the juice thereof, by which means he obtains the widest perspicuity of vision. "Dicunt aquilam quum in altum volare voluerit ut prospiciat rerum naturas lactucoe sylvaticoe folium evellere et succo ejus sibi oculos tangere, et maximam inde claritudinem accipere."

After the death of Adonis, Venus is related to have thrown herself on a bed of lettuces to assuage her grief. "In lactuca occultatum a Venere Adonin--cecinit Callimachus--quod allegorice interpretatus Athenoeus illuc referendum putat quod in venerem hebetiores fiunt lactucas vescentes assidue."

The Pythagoreans called this plant "the Eunuch"; and there is a saying in Surrey, "O'er much Lettuce in [309] the garden will stop a young wife's bearing." During the middle ages it was thought an evil spirit lurked among the Lettuces adverse to mothers, and causing grievous ills to new-born infants.

The Romans, in the reign of Domitian, had the lettuce prepared with eggs, and served with the last course at their tables, so as to stimulate their appetites afresh. Martial wonders that it had since then become customary to take it rather at the beginning of the meal:--

"Claudere quae caenas lactuca solebat avorum
Dic mihi cur nostras inchoat illa dapes."

Antoninus Musa cured Caesar Augustus of hypochondriasis by means of this plant.

The most common variety of the wild Lettuce, improved by frequent cultivation, is the Cabbage Lettuce, or Roman, "which is the best to boil, stew, or put into hodge-podge." Different sorts of the Cos Lettuce follow next onwards. The _Lactuca sylvatica_ is a variety of the wild Lettuce producing similar effects. From this a medicinal tincture (H.) is prepared, and an extract from the flowering herb is given in doses of from five to fifteen grains. No attempt was made to cultivate the Lettuce in this country until the fourth year of Elizabeth's reign.

When bleached by gardeners the lettuce becomes tender, sweet, and succulent, being easily digested, even by dyspeptic persons, as to its crisp, leafy parts, but not its hard stalk. It now contains but little nutriment of any sort, but supplies some mineral salts, especially nitre. In the stem there still lingers a small quantity of the sleep-inducing principle, "lactucarin," particularly when the plant is flowering. Galen, when sleepless from [310] advanced age and infirmities, with hard study, took decoction of the Lettuce at night; and Pope says, with reference to our garden sort:--

"If you want rest,
Lettuce, and cowslip wine:--'probatum est.'"

But if Lettuces are taken at supper with this view of promoting sleep, they should be had without any vinegar, which neutralises their soporific qualities. "Sleep," said Sir Thomas Brown, "is so like death that I dare not trust it without my prayers."

Some persons suppose that when artificially blanched the plant is less wholesome than if left to grow naturally in the garden, especially if its ready digestibility by those of sensitive stomachs be correctly attributed to the slightly narcotic principle. It was taken uncooked by the Hebrews with the Paschal lamb.

John Evelyn writes enthusiastically about it in his _Book of Sallets_: "So harmless is it that it may safely be eaten raw in fevers; it allays heat, bridles choler, extinguishes thirst, excites appetite, kindly nourishes, and, above all, represses vapours, conciliates sleep, and mitigates pain, besides the effect it has upon the morals-- temperance and chastity."

"Galen (whose beloved sallet it was) says it breeds the most laudable blood. No marvel, then, that Lettuces were by the ancients called _sanoe_ by way of eminency, and were so highly valued by the great Augustus that, attributing to them his recovery from a dangerous sickness, it is reported he erected a statue and built an altar to this noble plant." Likewise, "Tacitus, spending almost nothing at his frugal table in other dainties, was yet so great a friend to the Lettuce that he used to say of his prodigality in its purchase, _Summi se mercari_ [311] _illas sumitus effusione_." Probably the Lettuce of Greece was more active than our indigenous, or cultivated plant.

By way of admonition as to care in preparing the Lettuce for table, Dr. King Chambers has said (_Diet in Health and Disease_), "The consumption of Lettuce by the working man with his tea is an increasing habit worthy of all encouragement. But the said working man must be warned of the importance of washing the material of his meal. This hint is given in view of the frequent occurrence of the large round worm in the labouring population of some agricultural counties, Oxfordshire for instance, where unwashed Lettuce is largely eaten." Young Lettuces may be raised in forty-eight-hours by first steeping the seed in brandy and then sowing it in a hot-house.

The seeds of the garden Lettuce are emollient, and when rubbed up with water make a pleasant emulsion, which contains nothing of the milky, laxative bitterness furnished by the leaves and stalk. This emulsion resembles that of almonds, but is even more cooling, and therefore a better medicine in disorders arising from acrimony and irritation.

From the _Lactuca virosa_, or strong-scented wild Lettuce, a medicinal tincture (H.) is prepared, using the whole plant. On the principle of treating with this tincture, when diluted, such toxic effects as too large doses of the juice would bring about, a slow pulse, with a disposition to stupor, and sleepy weakness, are successfully met by its use. Also a medicinal extract is made by druggists from the wild Lettuce, and given in doses of from three to ten grains for the medicinal purposes which have been particularised, and to remove a dull, heavy headache.

"The garden Lettuce is good," as Pliny said, "for [312] burnings and scaldings if the leaves be laid thereon, with salt (_sic_), before the blisters do appear." "By reason," concludes Evelyn, "too, of its soporiferous quality, the Lettuce ever was, and still continues, the principal foundation of the universal tribe of Sallets, which cools and refreshes, besides its other properties, and therefore was held in such high esteem by the ancients, that divers of the Valerian family dignified and ennobled their name with that of _Lactucinii_." It is botanically distinguished as the _Lactuca sativa_, "from the plenty of milk," says "Adam in Eden" (W. Coles), "that it hath, and _causeth_."

Lambs' Lettuce, or Corn Salad, is a distinct plant, one of the Valerian tribe, which was formerly classed as a Lettuce, by name, _Lactuca agnina_, either because it appears about the time when lambs (_agni_) are dropped, or because it is a favourite food of lambs.

The French call this _salade de Pretre_, "monks' salad," and in reference thereto an old writer has said: "It certainly deserves a place among the _penitential_ herbs, for the stomach that admits it is apt to cry _peccavi_."

The same plant is also known by the title of the White Pot Herb, in contrast to the _Olus atrum_, or Black Pot Herb. It grows wild in the banks of hedges and waste cornfields, and is cultivated in our kitchen gardens as a salad herb, the Milk Grass, being called botanically the _Valerianella olitoria_, and having been in request as a spring medicine among country folk in former days. By genus it is a _Fedia_, and bears diminutive white flowers resembling glass. Gerard says: "We know the Lambs' Lettuce as _Loblollie_; and it serves in winter as a salad herb, among others none of the worst." In France it goes by the names _manche_ and _broussette_. A medicinal tincture is made (H.) from the fresh root.

[313] The black pot-herb--so called from the dark colour of its fruit--is an umbelliferous plant, (_Smyrnium olusatrum_) or Alexanders, often found in the vicinity of abbeys, and probably therefore held in former repute by the Monks. Its names are derived from _Smyrna_, myrrh, in allusion to the odour of the plant; and from _Macedonicum_, or the parsley of Macedon, Alexander's country. The herb was also known as Stanmarch. It grows on waste places by rivers near the sea, having been formerly cultivated like celery, which has now supplanted it. When boiled it is eaten with avidity by sailors returning from long voyages, who happen to land at the South Western corner of Anglesea.

LILY OF THE VALLEY.

The Lily of the Valley grows wild in many of our English woods, and possesses special curative virtues, which give it, according to modern knowledge, a just place among Herbal Simples of repute. This is the parent flower of our graceful, sweet-scented scape of pendent, milk-white little floral bells, enshrined within two broad leafy blades of dark green, and finding general favour for the _jardiniere_, or the button-hole.

Its name _Convallaria majalis_ is derived from _convallis_, "a valley," and _majalis_, "belonging to the month of May," when this Lily comes into flower.

Rustics corrupt the double title to "Liry Confancy," and provincially the plant is known as "Wood Lily," "May Lily," and "May Blossom." Also it bears the name of Mugget, and is said to have grown up after the bloody combat of St. Leonard with the Dragon. The French call it _Muguet_, or "little musk." The taste of the flowers is acrid and bitter; they have been [314] employed with benefit, when dried and powdered, as snuff, for headache, and giddiness arising from weakness. A tincture of the plant is made, and can be procured from any leading druggist. The active medicinal principle is "convallarin," which slows the disturbed action of a weak, irritable heart, whilst at the same time increasing its power. Happily the remedy is a perfectly safe one, and no harm has been known to occur from taking it experimentally in full and frequent doses; so that, in this respect, it is far preferable to the Fox Glove, which is apt to accumulate in the blood with poisonous results. To make the tincture of _Convallaria_, one part of the flowers is treated with eight parts of spirit of wine (proof); and the dose is from five to fifteen drops, with a tablespoonful of water, three times in the twenty-four hours.

Also an infusion may be made with boiling water poured over the whole plant-root, stems, and flowers; and this infusion may be given continuously for from five to ten days; but it should be left off for a time as soon as the irritability of the heart is subdued, and the pulse steady and stronger. If taken during an attack of palpitation and laboured breathing from a weak heart, the benefit of the infusion in tablespoonful doses is felt at once.

Ten grains of the dried flowers may be infused in six ounces of boiling water; and a tablespoonful of this be given three times a day with perfect safety, and with a most soothing effect for a weak, sensitive, palpitating heart; but it does not suit a fatty heart equally well. Nevertheless, even for insufficiency of the valves, when dangerous, or distressing symptoms of heart disease have set in, an infusion of the flowers has proved very helpful. The _rhizome_, root, exhales a pleasant odour, [315] different from that of the flowers; it tastes sweet at first but afterwards bitter.

A fluid extract is further prepared, and may be mixed in doses of from five to twenty drops with water. The Russian peasants have long employed the Lily of the Valley for certain forms of dropsy, when proceeding from a faulty heart.

In the summer, when the flowers are in bloom, two drachms, by weight, of the leaves should be steeped in a pint of water, either cold or boiling; and the whole of this may be taken, if needed, during the twenty-four hours. It will promote a free flow of urine. Culpeper commended the Lily of the Valley for weak memory, loss of speech, and apoplexy; whilst Gerard advised it for gout. In Devonshire it is thought unlucky to plant a bed of these Lilies, as the person who does so will probably die within the next twelve months.

In the _Apocrypha_, Canticles ii, I, "I am the Lily of the Valley," this flower is apparently brought under notice, but some other plant must be intended here, because the Lily Convally does not grow in Palestine. The word Lily is used in Oriental languages for a flower in general.

Distilled water from the flowers was formerly in great repute against nervous affections, and for many troubles of the head, insomuch that it was treasured in vessels of gold and silver. Matthiolus named it _Aqua aurea_, "golden water"; and Etmuller said of the virtues of the plant, _Quod specifice armabit impotentes maritos ad bellum veneris_.

A spirit made from the petals is excellent as an outward embrocation for rheumatism and sprains; and in some parts of Germany, a wine is prepared from the flowers mixed with raisins. Old Gerard adopted an [316] unaccountable method for extracting these virtues of the Lilies. He ordered that, "The flowers being close stopped up in a glass vessel, should be put into an ant hill, and taken away again a month after, when ye shall find a liquor in the glass which, being outwardly applied, will help the cure of the gout."

After the blossom has fallen off a berry is formed, which assumes in the autumn a bright scarlet colour, and proves attractive to birds.

LIME TREE, Flowers of (_Tiliaceoe_).

Though not a native of Great Britain, yet, because of its common growth in our roadways and along the front of terraced houses, and in suburban avenues, the Lime Tree has become almost indigenous.

In the old _Herbals_ it is called Lyne or Line, Tillet, Till tree, and Tilia, each of these names bearing reference to the bast or inner bark of the tree, which is used in the North for cordage. Others say the name is an alteration of Telia, from _telum_, a dart, alluding to the use of the wood. Tilia is more probably derived from _ptilon_, a feather, because of the feathery appearance of the floral leaves.

Shakespeare says:--

"Now, tell me thy name, good fellow," said he,
"Under the leaves of lyne."

The "n" in later writers has been changed into "m."

Its sweet-smelling and highly fragrant flowers blossom in May, and are much sought after by bees, because abounding with honied nectar. A medicinal tincture (H.) is made from them with spirit of wine; and when given in doses of from five to ten drops with water, three times in the day, it serves to relieve sick [317] bilious giddiness, with depression of spirits, and a tendency to loose bowels, with nervous headache. The sap of the Lime Tree (_Tilia Europoea_) abounds in mucilage, from which sugar can be elaborated. A tea made from the blossoms and leaves with boiling water, is admirable for promoting perspiration. It is because of a long established reputation for giving relief in chronic epilepsy or the falling sickness, and of curing epileptiform headaches, whilst proving of indisputable usefulness in allied nervous disorders, that the flowers and leaves of the Lime or Linden Tree occupy a true place among modern medicinal Simples. Gilbert White made some Lime-blossom tea, and pronounced it a very soft, well-flavoured, pleasant saccharine julep, much resembling the juice of liquorice. This tea has been found efficacious for quieting hard coughs and for relieving hoarseness.

The flowers easily ferment, and being so fragrant may be used for making wine: likewise a fine flavoured brandy has been distilled from them. The fruit contains an oily substance, and has been proposed, when roasted, as a domestic substitute for chocolate. The sap may be procured by making incisions in the trunk, and branches. The flowers are sedative, and anti-spasmodic. Fenelon decorates his enchanted Isle of Calypso with flowering Lime trees. Hoffman says _Tilioe ad mille usus petendoe_.

The inner bark furnishes a soft mucilage, which may be applied externally with healing effect to burns, scalds, and inflammatory swellings. Gerard taught, "that the flowers are commended by divers persons against pain of the head proceeding from a cold cause; against dizziness, apoplexy, and the falling sickness; and not only the flowers, but the distilled water thereof." [318] Hoffman knew a case of chronic epilepsy recovered by a use of the flowers in infusion drunk as tea. Such, indeed, was the former exalted anti-epileptic reputation of the Lime Tree, that epileptic persons sitting under its shade were reported to be cured.

A famous "Lind" or Lime Tree, which grew in his ancestral place, gave to the celebrated Linnaeus his significant name. The well-known street, _unter den Linden_ in Berlin, is a favourite resort, because of its pleasant, balmy shade; and when Heine lay beneath the Lindens, he "thought his own sweet nothing-at-all thoughts." The wood of the Lime Tree is preferred before every other wood fur masterly carving. Grinling Gibbons executed his best and most noted work in this material; and the finely-cut details still remain sharp, delicate, and beautiful.

Chemically, the Linden flowers contain a particular light, fragrant, volatile oil, which is soluble in alcohol. They are used in warm baths with much success to allay nervous irritability; or a strong infusion of them is administered by enema for the same purpose.

LIQUORICE, English (_Leguminous_).

The common Liquorice plant, a native of the warmer European countries, was first cultivated in Britain about 1562, in Turner's time. It has been chiefly grown at Pontefract (Pomfret) in Yorkshire, Worksop in Nottinghamshire, and Godalming in Surrey; whilst at the present time it is produced abundantly at Mitcham, near London, and the roots are dug up after a three years' growth, to be supplied to the shops. The use of the Liquorice plant was first learnt by the Hellenes from the Scythians; and the root was named _adipson_, being thought from the time of Theophrastus to [319] powerfully extinguish thirst. But Dr. Cullen says his experience has not confirmed this as a true effect of chewing the root. When lightly boiled in a little water it yields all its sweetness, together with some mucilage.

A favourite pastime of school boys at the beginning of the present century, was to carry in the pocket a small phial of water containing bits of this "Spanish juice," and to shake it continually so as to make a solution, valued the more the darker and thicker it became.

The juice is commonly employed as a pectoral in coughs or hoarseness, when thickened to the consistence of a lozenge, or to that of a solid mass, which hardens in the form of a stick. It is also added to nauseous medicines, for masking their taste. Towards obtaining this juice the underground stem or root of the plant is the part employed.

The search of Diogenes for an honest man was scarcely more difficult than would be that of an average person for genuine Liquorice; since the juice is adulterated to any extent, and there is no definite standard of purity for this article so commonly used. Potato starch, miller's sweepings mixed with sugar, and any kind of rubbish are added to it.

In China, the roots of _Glycyrrhiza echinata _and _Glycyrrhiza glabra_, are used in a variety of medicinal preparations as possessing tonic, alterative, and expectorant properties, and as a mild aperient. Thereto are attributed rejuvenating and highly nutritive qualities. English Liquorice root occurs in pieces three or four inches long, and about as thick as a finger.

The extract of Liquorice must be prepared from the _dried_ root, else it cannot be strained bright, and would be liable to fermentation. Chemically, the root [320] contains a special kind of sugar, glycyrrhizine, a demulcent starch, asparagin, phosphate and malate of lime and magnesia, a resinous oil, albumen, and woody fibre. Old Fuller says concerning Nottingham, "This county affordeth the first and best Liquorice in England: great is the use thereof in physick. A stick of the same is commonly the spoon prescribed to patients to use in any Loaches. If (as the men of oeneas were forced to eat their own trenchers), these chance to eat their spoons, their danger is none at all." The Loach, or Lingence, from _ekleigma_, a substance licked-up, has become our modern lozenge. Extract of Liquorice is largely imported as "Spanish" or "Italian" juice, the Solazzi juice being most esteemed, which comes in cylindrical or flattened rolls, enveloped in bay leaves; but the pipe Liquorice of the sweetstuff shops is adulterated. Pontefract lozenges are made of refined Liquorice, and are justly popular. The sugar of Liquorice may be safely taken by diabetic patients.

Officinally, the root and stolons (underground stems) of the _Glycyrrhiza glabra_ (smooth) are variously employed; for making an extract, for mixing with linseed in a tea, for combination with powdered senna, sugar, and fennel, to form a favourite mild laxative medicine, known as "Compound Liquorice Powder," and for other uses. The solid juice is put into porter and stout, because giving sweetness, thickness, and blackness to those beverages, without making them fermentative; but Liquorice, like gum, supplies scant aliment to the body. Black Liquorice is employed in the manufacture of tobacco, for smoking and chewing.

The Rest Harrow (_Ononis arvensis_), a troublesome weed, very common in our ploughed fields, has a root [321] which affords a sweet viscid juice, and hence it is popularly known as "Wild Liquorice."

This is a leguminous plant, called also "Ground Furze," which is a favourite food of the donkey, and therefore gets its botanical title from the Greek word _onos_, an ass. Its long and thickly matted roots will arrest the progress of the harrow, or plough. Medicinally, the plant has been given with success to subdue delirium. It is obnoxious to snakes, and they will not come near it.

Other appellations of the herb are Cammock, Stinking Tommy, _Arrete boeuf_, _Remora aratri_, _Resta bovis_, and Land Whin (which from the Latin _guindolum_, signifies a kind of cherry). The plant was formerly much extolled for obviating stone in the bladder. It is seen to be covered with spines; and a tradition exists that it was the Rest harrow which furnished the crown of thorns plaited by the Roman soldiers at the crucifixion of our Saviour. This plant has been long-used as a culinary vegetable, its young shoots being boiled, or taken in salad, or pickled.

The French know it as _Bugrane_, beloved by goats, and the chief delight of donkeys, who rejoice to roll themselves amid its prickles. Simon Pauli _ne connait pas de meilleur remede contre le calcul des reins, et de la vessie_. "_Anjourdhui l'arr ete boeuf est a peu pres abandonne_." "_On y reviendra!_" The plant contains "ononin," a chemical glucoside, which is demulcent to the urinary organs.

Its botanical name of _Glycyrrhiza_ comes from the Greek words, _glukus_, "sweet," and _riza_, "a root." English Liquorice root, when dried, is commercially used in two forms, the peeled and the unpeeled. By far and away the best lozenges are those of our [322] boyhood, still attributed to one "Smith," in the Borough of London.

MALLOWS.

All the Mallows (_Malvaceoe_) to the number of a thousand, agree in containing mucilage freely, and in possessing no unwholesome properties.

Their family name "Mallow" is derived from the Greek _malassein_, "to soften," as alluding to the demulcent qualities of these mucilaginous plants. The Common Mallow is a well-known roadside plant, with large downy leaves, and streaked trumpet-shaped purple flowers, which later on furnish round button-like seeds, known to the rustics as "pickcheeses" in Norfolk and elsewhere, whilst beloved by schoolboys, because of their nutty flavour, and called by them "Bread and Cheese."

Clare tells playfully of the fairies, borne by mice at a gallop:--

"In chariots lolling at their ease,
Made of whate'er their fancies please,
With wheels at hand of Mallow seeds,
Which childish sport had strung as beads."

And recalls the time when he sat as a boy:--

"Picking from Mallows, sport to please,
The crumpled seed we called a cheese."

Both this plant and its twin sister, the Marsh Mallow (_Althoea hibiscus_, from _altho_, to cure), possess medicinal virtues, which entitle them to take rank as curative Herbal Simples. The Sussex peasant knows the Common Mallow as "Maller," so that "aller and maller" means with him Alehoof (Ground Ivy) and Mallow. Pliny said: "Whosoever shall take a spoonful of the [323] Mallows shall that day be free from all diseases that may come to him."

This plant is often named "Round Dock," and was formerly called "Hock Herb": our Hollyhock being of the Mallow tribe, and first brought to us from China. Pythagoras held _Malvoe folium sanctissimum_; and we read of Epimenides in _Plato_, "at his Mallows and Asphodels." The Romans esteemed the plant _in deliciis_ among their dainties, and placed it of old as the first dish at their tables. The laxative properties of the Mallow, both as regards its emollient leaves, and its _radix altheoe efficacior_, were told of by Cicero and Horace.

The _Marsh Mallow_ grows wild abundantly in many parts of England, especially in marshes near the sea coast. It gets its generic name _althoea_, from the Greek _althos_, "a remedy," because exercising so many curative virtues. Its old appellations were _Vismalva_, _Bismalva_, _Malvaviscus_, being twice as medicinally efficacious as the ordinary Mallow (_Sylvestris_).

Virgil in one of his eclogues teaches how to coax goats with the Marsh Mallow:--

"Haedorumque gregem viridi compellere hibisco."