“He sings the Bacchus, patron of the Vine,The Beechen bowl foams with a flood of wine.”Virgil notices the use of its smooth and green bark for receiving inscriptions from the “sylvan pen of lovers;” and Ovid, in his epistle from Œnone to Paris, refers to the same custom, gracefully notingthat the name of the fair one would grow and spread with the growth of the tree:—“The Beeches, faithful guardians of your flame,Bear on their wounded trunks Œnone’s name,And as their trunks, so still the letters grow;Spread on, and fair aloft my titles show.”According to a French tradition, a blacksmith, who was one day beating a bar of red-hot iron on his anvil, raised such a shower of sparks, that some of them reached the eyes of God himself, who forthwith, in His wrath, condemned the man to become a bear, with the condition that he might climb at his pleasure all the trees excepting the Beech. Changed into a bear, the man was for ever afterwards cogitating how to uproot the tree. In this legend, the Beech, which is generally considered a tree of good augury, becomes a specially favoured or privileged tree. Pliny wrote that it should not be cut for fuel. Gerarde says of it: “The wood is hard and firme, which being brought into the house there follows hard travail of child and miserable deaths, as it is reported; and therefore it is to be forborne, and not used as fire wood.” The Beech-tree is believed to be exempt from the action of lightning, and it is well known that Indians will seek its shelter during a thunderstorm. It is the Danish symbol.—Astrologers rule the Beech to be under the dominion of Saturn.BELINUNCIA.—Under the appellation of Kêd, or Ceridwen, the Druids worshipped the Moon, who was believed to exercise a peculiar influence on storms, diseases, and certain plants. They consecrated a herb to her, calledBelinuncia, in the poisonous sap of which they dipped their arrows, to render them as deadly as those malignant rays of the Moon which were deemed to shed both death and madness upon men.BEL-TREE.—TheÆgle Marmelos,Bilva(Sanscrit), or Bel-tree, is held sacred in India. Belonging to the same natural order as the Orange, its leaves, which are divided into three separate leaflets, are dedicated to the Hindu Trinity, and Indians are accustomed to carry one of them folded in the turban or sash, in order to propitiate Siva, and ensure safety from accidents. The wood is used to form the sacrificial pillars.——The Hindu women of the Punjab throw flowers into a sacred river, by means of which they can foretell whether or not they are to survive their husbands: but a much more ingenious rite is practised by the Newars of Nepaul. To obviate the terrible hardships to a young Hindu girl of becoming a widow, she is, in the first instance, married to a Bel-fruit, which is then cast into a sacred river. Should her future husband prove distasteful to her, this rite enables her to obtain a divorce; and should the husband die, she can still claim the title of wife to the sacred Bel-fruit, which is immortal; so that she is always a wife and never a widow.Bell-flower.—SeeBlue-bell, andCampanula.BETEL.—According to Indian traditions, the Betel was brought from heaven by Arjuna, who, during his journey to Paradise, stole a little bough of the sacred tree, which, upon his return to earth, he carefully planted. In remembrance of this celestial origin of the tree, and of the manner of its introduction to earth, Indians who desire to plant the Betel invariably steal a few young shoots.——The Betel, or Pepper-tree (Piper betle), is most highly esteemed by the Indian races, who attribute to its leaves no less than thirty properties or virtues, the possession of which, even by a plant of heavenly origin, can scarcely be credited. It is the leaf of the Betel which serves to enclose a few slices of the Areca Nut (sometimes erroneously called the Betel Nut); and these, together with a little Chunam or shell-lime, are what the natives universally chew to sweeten the breath and strengthen the stomach. The poor, indeed, employ it to keep off the pangs of hunger. In certain parts of the East, it is not considered polite to speak to a superior without some of the Betel and Areca compound in the mouth. At Indian marriage ceremonies, the bride and bridegroom exchange between themselves the same Areca Nut, with its accompanying Betel-leaf.——In Borneo, a favoured lover may enter the house of the loved one’s parents, at night, and awaken her, to sit and eat Betel Nut and the finest of Sirih-leaves from his garden.BETONY.—The ‘Medicinal Betony,’ as Clare calls it, isBetonica officinalis, and of all the simples praised by old herbalists, both English and foreign, none (the Vervain excepted) was awarded a higher place than Wood Betony. Turner, in his ‘Brittish Physician’ (1687), writes:—“It would seem a miracle to tell what experience I have had of it. This herb is hot and dry, almost to the second degree, a plant of Jupiter in Aries, and is appropriated to the head and eyes, for the infirmities whereof it is excellent, as also for the breast and lungs; being boiled in milk, and drunk, it takes away pains in the head and eyes.Probatum.Some write it will cure those that are possessed with devils, or frantic, being stamped and applied to the forehead.” He gives a list of between twenty or thirty complaints which Betony will cure, and then says, “I shall conclude with the words I found in an old manuscript under the virtues of it: ‘More than all this have been proved of Betony.’” Gerarde gives a similar list, and adds, that Betony is “a remedy against the bitings of mad dogs and venomous serpents, being drunk, and also applied to the hurts, and is most singular against poyson.” There is an old saying that, when a person is ill, he should sell his coat, and buy Betony.——The Romans were well acquainted with the medicinal properties of this herb. Pliny wrote of the marvellous results obtained from its use, and also affirmed that serpents would kill one another if surrounded by a ring composedofBetonica. Antonius Musa, physician to Augustus, wrote a treatise on the excellencies ofBetonica, which he affirmed would cure forty-seven different ailments. Franzius went so far as to assert that the wild beasts of the forest, aware of its surpassing virtues, availed themselves of its efficacy when they were wounded.——At a time when a belief in witchcraft was rife in England, it was generally understood that the house whereHerba Betonicawas sown, was free from all mischief. In Yorkshire, the Water Betony was formerly called Bishop’s Leaves. In Italy, at the present day, there are several proverbs relating to the virtues of Betony, one of which is, “May you have more virtues than Betony;” and another, “Known as well as Betony.”BIGNONIA.—One of the native names of theBignonia Indica, or Indian Trumpet-flower, isKâmadûti, or the Messenger of Love. Under the name ofPatala, theBignonia suaveolensis specially consecrated by the Indians to the god Brahma. The name ofPatala, however, is given in the Sanscrit to Durgâ, the wife of Siva, probably on account of the colour of her idols, which assimilate to the colour of the flowers of the Bignonia.BILBERRY.—The origin of the Bilberry or Whortleberry (Vaccinium Myrtillus), according to the mythology of the ancients, is as follows:—Œnomaüs, father of the lovely Hippodamia, chose for his attendant the young Myrtillus, son of Mercury. Proud of his skill, he stipulated that all his daughter’s suitors should compete for the prize in a chariot race with him. Pelops, who was eager to obtain the beautiful Hippodamia, promised Myrtillus a large reward if he would take out the linch-pin of his master’s chariot. Myrtillus was not proof againt the offer: in consequence, the chariot was overturned, and Œnomaüs mortally injured; but as he expired, he implored Pelops to avenge him, which he did by throwing the treacherous attendant into the sea. The waters having borne back his body to the shore, Mercury changed it to the shrub called after his name,Myrtillus, a name formerly given to the plant producing the Myrtle-berry, a fruit largely imported in the middle ages, and used in medicine and cookery—of the same genus as the English Bilberry, which is often found growing on the sea-shore. The Scotch name of this shrub is Blaeberry, the praises of which are often sung in Northern ballads.“Will ye go, lassie, go to the braes of Balquhidder,Whare the Blaeberries grow ’mong the bonny blooming Heather?”Bilberries are held by the astrologers to be under Jupiter. (See alsoWhortleberry.)BIRCH.—According to Scandinavian mythology, the Birch (Betula alba) was consecrated to the god Thor, and symbolised the return of Spring. The Greeks and Romans had not much knowledge of the tree, but the latter seem to have regarded it with a feeling of dread in consequence of thefascesof the magistracy beingcomposed of it, as now, says Evelyn, “are the gentler rods of our tyrannical pedagogues for lighter faults.” According to Pliny, the celebrated books which Numa Pompilius composed seven hundred years before Christ, and which were buried with him, were written on the bark of the Birch-tree.——It is in the northern countries of Europe that the Birch flourishes, and it is there the tree is held in the highest esteem. The Russians have a proverb that the Birch excels in four qualities:—It gives light to the world (with Birch-boughs torches are made); it stifles cries (from Birch they extract a lubricant which they apply to the wheels of carriages); it cleanses (in Russian baths, to promote perspiration, they scourge the body with branches of Birch); it cures diseases (by incision they obtain a liquor stated to have all the virtues of the spirit of salt, and from which a wine is distilled, excellent as a cordial and useful in cases of consumption). Moreover, in Russia, the oil of the Birch is used as a vermifuge and a balsam in the cure of wounds. In fact, to the peasants of the North, the Birch is as beneficent as is the Palm to the Indians. No wonder, then, that the Russians are very fond of the Birch, and surround their dwellings with it; believing, as they do, that this tree is never struck by lightning.——On the Day of Pentecost, it is a custom among young Russian maidens to suspend garlands on the trees they love best, and they are careful to tie round the stems of the Birch-trees a little red ribbon as a charm to cause them to flourish and to protect them from the Evil Eye. De Gubernatis quotes from a Russian author named Afanassief, who tells us of a Birch that showed its appreciation of the kindly attentions of a young girl in decking its stem, by protecting her from the persecutions of a witch, who had become her step-mother; and the same author makes mention of a certain white Birch, which grew in the island of Buian, on the topmost of whose branches it was currently believed the Mother of God might be seen sitting.——Grohmann, a German writer, recounts the legend of a young shepherdess, who was spinning in the midst of a forest of Birch-trees, when suddenly the Wild Woman of the forest accosted her. The Wild Woman was dressed in white, and had a garland of flowers upon her head: she persuaded the shepherdess to dance with her, and for three days kept up the dance until sunset, but so lightly that the grass under her feet was neither trampled upon nor bent. At the conclusion of the dance, all the yarn was spun, and the Wild Woman was so satisfied, that she filled the pocket of the little shepherdess with Birch-leaves, which soon turned into golden money.——Professor Mannhardt, says De Gubernatis, divulges to us the means employed by the Russian peasants to evoke the Lieschi, or Geni of the forest. They cut down some very young Birch-trees, and arrange them in a circle in such a manner that the points shall be turned towards the middle: they enter this circle, and then they call up the spirit, who forthwith makes his appearance. They place him on the stump ofone of the felled trees, with his face turned towards the East. They kiss his hand, and, whilst looking between his legs, they utter these words:—“Uncle Lieschi, show yourself to us, not as a grey wolf, not as a fierce fire, but as I myself appear.” Then the leaves of the Aspen quiver and tremble, and the Lieschi shows himself in human form, and is quite disposed to render no matter what service to him who has conjured him—provided only that he will promise him his soul.——De Gubernatis relates one other anecdote respecting the Birch, which he says to the Esthonian is the living personification of his country. It is related that an Esthonian peasant noticed a stranger asleep beneath a tree at the moment when it was struck by lightning. He awoke him. The stranger, thanking him for his good offices, said: “When, far from your native country, and feeling sorrowful and home-sick, you shall see a crooked Birch, strike and ask of it: ‘Is the crooked one at home?’” One day the peasant, who had become a soldier, and was serving in Finland, felt dispirited and unhappy, for he could not help thinking of his home and the little ones he had left behind. Suddenly he sees the crooked Birch! He strikes it, and asks: “Is the crooked one at home?” Forthwith the mysterious stranger appears, and, calling to one of his spirits, bids him instantly transport the soldier to his native country, with his knapsack full of silver.——The Swedes have a superstition that our Saviour was scourged with a rod of the dwarf Birch, which was formerly a well-grown tree, but has ever since that day been doomed to hide its miserable and stunted head. It is calledLáng Fredags Ris, or Good Friday rod.——In France, it was in mediæval times the custom to preserve a bough of the Birch as a sacred object. In the country districts around Valenciennes, it is an old custom for lovers to hang a bough of Birch or Hornbeam over the doorway of his lady-love. In Haute Bretagne, as a charm to strengthen a weakly infant, they place in its cot Birch-leaves, which have been previously dried in an oven. There is an old English proverb, “Birchen twigs break no bones,” which has reference to the exceedingly slender branches of the tree.——In former days, churches were decked with boughs of the Birch, and Gerarde tell us that “it serveth well to the decking up of houses and banqueting-rooms, for places of pleasure, and for beautifying of streets in the crosse and gang [procession] weeke, and such like.” According to Herrick, it was customary to use Birch and fresh flowers for decorative purposes at Whitsuntide:—“When Yew is out, then Birch comes in,And many flowers besides;Both of a fresh and fragrant kinne,To honour Whitsontide.”The Scotch Highlanders think very highly of the Birch, and turn it to all sorts of uses. With Burns, the budding Birch was a prime favourite in the Spring-time. The Scotch proverb, which says of a very poor man that he is “Bare as a Birk at Yule e’en,” probablyrefers to an old custom of stripping the bark of the tree prior to converting it into the yule log. The tree known in the Highlands as the Drooping Birk is often grown in churchyards, where, as Scott says, “Weeps the Birch of silver bark with long dishevell’d hair.” In Scottish ballads, the Birch is associated with the dead, and more especially with the wraiths or spirits of those who appear to be living after death. The following is a good example:—“I dreamed a dreary dream last nicht;God keep us a’ frae sorrow!I dreamed I pu’d the Birk sae greenWi’ my true love on Yarrow.“I’ll redde your dream, my sister dear,I’ll tell you a’ your sorrow;You pu’d the Birk wi’ your true love;He’s killed, he’s killed on Yarrow.”The Birch-tree is held to be under the dominion of Venus.Bitter-Sweet.—SeeSolanum.BITTER VETCH.—The Orobus, or Bitter Vetch, is supposed to represent the herb mentioned in a passage in Pulci, which relates how an enchanter preserves two knights from starvation, during a long journey, by giving them a herb which, being held in the mouth, answers all the purposes of food.——The Scotch Highlanders have a great esteem for the tubercles of the Orobus root (which they call Corr or Cormeille); they use them as masticatories, to flavour their liquor. They also affirm that by the use of them they are enabled to repel hunger and thirst for a considerable time. In times of scarcity, the roots have served as a substitute for bread, and many think that the Bitter Vetch is theChara, mentioned by Cæsar, as affording food to his famished soldiers at the siege of Dyrrhachium. The seeds, ground and tempered with wine, were applied to heal the bitings of dogs and venomous beasts.Black-Thorn.—SeeThorn.Blaeberry.—SeeBilberryandWhortleberry.BLUE-BELL.—The Blue-bells of Scotland have long since become household words. The flower (Campanula latifolia) is the finest and most stately of the species, and although common enough on its native hills, is scarce in England. It is associated with the feast of St. George. (SeeCampanula.)Blue-BottleandBluet.—SeeCentaury.Bo-Tree.—SeePeepul.BORAGE.—In former days, Borage (Borago officinalis) was noted as one of the four “cordial flowers” most deserving of esteem for cheering the spirits—the other three being the Rose, Violet, and Alkanet. Pliny called BorageEuphrosynum, because it made men merry and joyful: and to the same purport is the oldLatin rhyme, “Ego Borago gaudia semper ago.” All the old herbalists praise the plant for its exhilarating effects, and agree with Pliny that when put into wine the leaves and flowers of Borage make men and women glad and merry, driving away all sadness, dulness, and melancholy. The “cool tankard” of our forefathers was a beverage composed of the young shoots and blossoms of Borage mingled with wine, water, lemon, and sugar. Lord Bacon was of opinion that “if in the must of wine or wort of beer, while it worketh, before it be tunned, the Burrage stay a short time, and be changed with fresh, it will make a sovereign drink for melancholy passion.”——Borage, astrologers tell us, is one of Jupiter’s cordials.BOX.—The evergreen Box (Buxus semperviva) was specially consecrated by the Greeks to Pluto, the protector of all evergreen trees, as being symbolical of the life which continues through the winter in the infernal regions, and in the other world.——A curious superstition existed among the ancients in regard to the Box: although it very much resembles the Myrtle, which was held sacred to Venus, yet they carefully refrained from dedicating the Box to that goddess, because they were afraid that through such an offering they would lose their virility. They also, according to Bacon, entertained the belief that the Box produced honey, and that in Trebizonde the honey issuing from this tree was so noxious, that it drove men mad. Corsican honey was supposed to owe its ill repute to the fact that the bees fed upon Box. The Box is referred to by the Prophet Isaiah in his description of the glory of the latter days of the Church: “The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the Fir-tree, the Pine-tree, and the Box-tree together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary.” It is thought, also, to be the Ashur-wood of the Scriptures, and to be referred to by Ezekiel when, in describing the splendour of Tyre, he alludes to the benches of the rowers as made of Ashur wood, inlaid with ivory. That the ancients were accustomed to inlay Box-wood with ivory we know from Virgil and other writers, who allude to this practice.——The Jews employ branches of Box in erecting their tents at the Feast of Tabernacles.——Boughs of Box were used formerly for decorative purposes, instead of the Willow, on Palm Sundays. According to Herrick, it was once a time-honoured custom on Candlemas Day to replace the Christmas evergreens with sprigs of Box, which were kept up till Easter Eve, when they gave place to Yew.“Down with the Rosemary and Bays,Down with the Mistletoe;Instead of Holly now upraiseThe greener Box for show.”Box-boughs were also in olden times regularly gathered at Whitsuntide for decking the large open fire-places then in vogue.——In several parts of the North of England, when a funeral takesplace, a basin full of sprigs of Box is placed at the door of the house from which the coffin is taken up, and each mourner is expected to take a sprig, and afterwards cast it on the grave of the deceased.——In Turkey, it is a practice with widows, who go weekly to pray at their husbands’ tomb, to plant a sprig of Box at the head of the grave. The monastery of St. Christine, in the Pyrenees, assumes the arms of the Knights of St. Christine, viz., a white pigeon with a cross in its beak, to which is attached the following legend:—The workmen who were employed to build the monastery had the greatest difficulty in finding a suitable foundation. After several ineffectual attempts, they one morning perceived a white pigeon flying with a cross in its beak. They pursued the bird, which perched on a Box-tree, but though it flew away on their near approach, they found in the branches the cross which it had left: this they took as a good omen, and proceeded successfully to lay the foundation on the spot where the Box-tree had stood, and completed the edifice.——To dream of Box denotes long life and prosperity, also a happy marriage.BRACKEN FERN.—There was formerly a proverb respecting thePteris aquilina, or common Brake Fern, popular in the country:—“When the Fern is as high as a spoon,You may sleep an hour at noon;When the Fern is as high as a ladle,You may sleep as long as you’reable;When the Fern begins to look red,Then milk is good with brown bread.”In Ireland, the Bracken Fern is called the Fern of God, from an old belief that if the stem be cut into three pieces, there will be seen on the first slice the letter G, on the second O, and on the third D,—the whole forming the sacred word God. There is still a superstition in England, probably derived from some holy father, that in the cut stem of the Bracken Fern may be traced the sacred letters I.H.S. In Kent, and some other counties, these letters are deciphered as J.C. In other parts of the country, the marks are supposed to delineate an Oak, and to have first grown there in memory of the tree in which King Charles sought shelter during his flight.——An old legend is yet told, that James, the unfortunate Duke of Monmouth, after the battle of Sedgemoor, was able to lie concealed for some days beneath the dense Bracken Ferns; but one day, emerging from his retreat, he sat down and began cutting some of the Fern-stems which had sheltered him. Whilst doing this, he was seen by some peasants, who noticed the flash of a diamond ring on one of his fingers. When, therefore, a reward was offered soon afterwards for the Duke’s capture, they recalled the circumstance, and sought for him where he lay concealed among the Brakes.——Connected with this figure of an Oak in the Bracken-stem, there is a saying, that if you cut the Bracken slantwise, you’ll see apicture of an Oak-tree; the more perfect, the luckier your chance will be. In Germany, the figure portrayed in the stem is popularly recognised as the Russian Double Eagle. Of still more ancient origin, however, is the opinion that the figure in the Brake Fern-stem is that of an eagle, from whence it derived its name of Eagle Fern. In Henderson’s ‘Folk Lore of the Northern Counties,’ we read that witches detest the Bracken Fern because it bears on its root the letter C, the initial of the holy name of Christ, which may be plainly seen on cutting the root horizontally. It has, however, been suggested that the letter intended is not the English C, but the Greek Χ, the initial letter of the word Christos, which resembles closely the marks on the root of the Bracken. These marks, however, have been also stated to represent Adam and Eve standing on either side of the Tree of Knowledge, and King Charles in the Oak. In some parts, lads and lasses try to discover in the Bracken-stem the initials of their future wife or husband.——Astrologers state that the Bracken Fern is under the dominion of Mercury.BRAMBLE, or BLACKBERRY.—The Bramble or Blackberry-bush (Rubus fruticosus) is said to be the burning bush, in the midst of which Jehovah appeared to Moses. It is the subject of the oldest apologue extant. We read in Judges ix., 8–15, how Jotham, when bitterly reproaching the men of Shechem for their ingratitude to his father’s house, narrated to them, after the Oriental fashion, the parable of the trees choosing a king, in which their choice eventually fell upon the Bramble. According to some accounts, it was the Bramble that supplied the Thorns which were plaited into a crown, and worn by our Saviour just prior to the Crucifixion.——On St. Simon and St. Jude’s Day (October 28th) tradition avers that Satan sets his foot on the Bramble, after which day not a single edible Blackberry can be found. In Sussex, they say that, after Old Michaelmas Day (10th October), the Devil goes round the county and spits on the Blackberries. In Scotland, it is thought that, late in the Autumn, the Devil throwshis cloak over the Blackberries, and renders them unwholesome. In Ireland, there is an old saying, that “at Michaelmas the Devil put his foot on the Blackberries;” and in some parts of that country the peasants will tell their children, after Michaelmas Day, not to eat theGrian-mhuine(Blackberries); and they attribute the decay in them, which about that time commences, to the operation of the Phooka, a mischievous goblin, sometimes assuming the form of a bat or bird, at other times appearing as a horse or goat.——The ancients deemed both the fruit and flowers of the Bramble efficacious against the bites of serpents; and it was at one time believed that so astringent were the qualities of this bush, that even its young shoots, when eaten as a salad, would fasten teeth that were loose. Gerarde, however, for that purpose recommends a decoction of the leaves, mixed with honey, alum, and alittle wine, and adds that the leaves “heale the eies that hang out.”——In Cornwall, Bramble-leaves, wetted with spring water, are employed as a charm for a scald or burn. The moistened leaves are applied to the burn whilst the patient repeats the following formula:—“There came three angels out of the East,One brought fire, and two brought frost;Out fire and in frost;In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.Amen.”A similar incantation to the above is used as a charm for inflammatory disease. The formula is repeated three times to each one of nine Bramble-leaves immersed in spring water, passes being meanwhile made with the leavesfromthe diseased part. A cure for rheumatism is to crawl under a Bramble, which has formed a second root in the ground; and to charm away boils, the sufferer should pass nine times, against the Sun, under a Bramble-bush growing at both ends. In Devonshire, a curious charm for the cure of blackhead or pinsoles consisted in creeping under an arched Bramble. The person affected by this troublesome malady has to creep on hands and knees under or through a Bramble three times, with the Sun—that is, from east to west. The Bramble must be of peculiar growth, forming an arch rooting at both ends, and if possible reaching into two proprietors’ lands; so that a Bramble is by preference selected, of which the original root is in the hedge of one owner, and the end of the branch forming the arch is rooted in the meadow of another.——The Bramble has funereal associations, and its young shoots have long been used to bind down the sods on newly-made graves in village churchyards. Jeremy Taylor, when commenting on mortality, says, referring to this custom: “The Summer gives green turf and Brambles to bind upon our graves.”——The Moat of Moybolgue, in the County of Cavan, is a sacred place in Ireland, where St. Patrick ministered. According to a legend, Honor Garrigan, one Sunday during the saint’s lifetime, rode up the hill to church; but espying a bunch of ripe Blackberries, she dismounted in order to gather them. Her servant lad remonstrated upon the wickedness of her breaking her fast before receiving the Holy Communion, but in vain; his mistress ate the Blackberries, and then her hunger increased to famine pitch, and she ate the boy and then the horse. St. Patrick, alarmed by the cries of his congregation, who were afraid the wicked woman would devour them also, shot her with his bow and arrow—her body separating into four sections, which were buried in a field outside the churchyard; St. Patrick prophesying to the terrified crowd that she would lie quiet till nine times nine of the name of Garrigan should cross the stream which separated the roads from the churchyard. When that took place, she would rise again, and devour all before her; and that would be the way shewould be destroyed. The water of the stream has ever since been held sacred, and effects miraculous cures.——The Bramble is said to be a plant of Mars. To dream of passing through places covered with Brambles, portends troubles; if they prick you, secret enemies will do you an injury with your friends; if they draw blood, expect heavy losses in trade. To dream of passing through Brambles unhurt, denotes a triumph over enemies.Breakstone.—SeeSaxifrage.BROOM.—The English royal line of Plantagenet undoubtedly derived its name from the Broom (Planta genista), theGenof the Celts, theGenêtof the French, and from time immemorial the badge of Brittany. According to Skinner, the house of Anjou derived the name of Plantagenet from Fulke, the first earl of that name, who, it is said, having killed his brother in order that he might enjoy his principality, afterwards, touched by remorse, undertook a pilgrimage to Jerusalem as a work of atonement; and being there soundly scourged with Broom-twigs, which grew plentifully on the spot, he ever after took the surname of Plantagenet, and bore theGenêtas his personal cognisance, which was retained by his noble posterity. Another legend, however, relates that this badge was first adopted by Gefroi, Earl of Anjou, the father of Henry II., and husband of Matilda, Empress of Germany. Passing on his way to the battle-field through a rocky pathway, on either side of which bushes of yellow Broom clung firmly to the boulders, or upheld the crumbling earth, Gefroi broke off a branch and fixed it as a plume in his cap, saying, “Thus shall this golden plant ever be my cognisance—rooted firmly among rocks, and yet upholding that which is ready to fall.” He afterwards took the name of Plantagenet (Planta genista) and transmitted it to his princely posterity. His son Henry was called the Royal Sprig of Genista, and the Broom continued to be the family device down to the last of the Plantagenets, Richard III. It may be seen on the great seal of Richard I., its first official heraldic appearance.——In 1234, St. Louis of France established a new order of Knighthood, calledl’Ordre duGenest, on the occasion of his marriage with Queen Marguerite. The Knights of the Genest wore a chain composed of blossoms of theGenêt(Broom) in gold alternately with white enamelled Fleurs de Lis, from which was suspended, a gold cross with the motto “Deusexaltat humiles.” One hundred Knights of the Order of the Genest acted as a body-guard to the King. The order was long held in high esteem, and one of its recipients was Richard II.——The Broom may well be symbolic of humility, for, according to a Sicilian legend, it was accursed for having made such a noise in the garden of Gethsemane during the time that Jesus Christ was praying there, that His persecutors were thus enabled to surprise Him. Hemmed in by His enemies, Jesus, turning towards the traitorous shrub, pronounced on it this malediction: “May you always make asmuch noise when you are being burnt.”——In England, the Broom has always been held as one of the plants beloved by witches. In Germany, the Broom is the plant selected for decorations on Whit-Sunday: it is also used as a charm. When a limb has been amputated, the charmer takes a twig from a Broom, and after pressing the wound together with it, wraps it in the bloody linen, and lays it in a dry place, saying:“The wounds of our Lord ChristThey are not bound;But these wounds they are boundIn the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.”In Tuscany, on the day of theFête-Dieu, it is often employed. In England, it is considered that if the Broom has plenty of blossoms, it is the sign of a plentiful grain harvest. In Suffolk and Sussex, there is a saying that—“If you sweep the house with blossomed Broom in May,You are sure to sweep the head of the house away.”By the old herbalists the Broom was considered a panacea for a multiplicity of disorders, and Gerarde tells us that no less a personage than “that worthy Prince of famous memory, Henry VIII., of England, was wont to drink the distilled water of Broome-floures, against surfets and diseases thereof arising.”——Broom is under the planetary influence of Mars.BRIONY.—The poisonous fruit or berries of the Black Briony (Tamus) are supposed to remove sunburns, freckles, bruises, black eyes, and other blemishes of the skin. Another name of this wild Vine is Our Lady’s Seal. The root of the White Briony may be made to grow in any shape by placing it when young in an earthenware mould. In olden times, designing people by this means obtained roots of frightful forms, which they exhibited as curiosities, or sold as charms. The anodyne necklace, which was a profitable affair for one Doctor Turner in the early part of the present century, consisted of beads made of white Briony-root: it was believed to assist in cutting the teeth of infants, around whose neck it was hung.——Briony is under the dominion of Mars.BUCKTHORN.—Of one variety of Buckthorn (Rhamnus palinurus) it is said that Christ’s Crown of Thorns was composed. Of another variety (R. Frangula) the Mongols make their idols, selecting the wood on account of its rich hue.——The Buckthorn is under the dominion of Saturn.BUGLOSS.—The Bugloss (Anchusa) has been made the emblem of Falsehood, because the roots of one of its species (A. tinctoria) are used in making rouge for the face. In the wilds of America, the Indians paint their bodies red with the root of a Bugloss (Anchusa Virginica) indigenous to their country. Galen notices the use of the Bugloss as a cosmetic in his time, and the rouge made from the roots of this plant is said to be the mostancient of all the paints prepared for the face.——Pliny says that theAnchusawas used by the Romans for colouring and dyeing; and adds, that if a person who has chewed this plant should spit in the mouth of a venomous creature, he would kill it.——The Viper’s Bugloss (Echium vulgare) derives its name from its seed being like the head of a viper, and, according to Matthiolus, was celebrated for curing its bites. Nicander also speaks of the Viper’s Bugloss as one of those plants which cure the biting of serpents, and especially of the viper, and that drive serpents away. Dioscorides, as quoted by Gerarde, writes, “The root drunk with wine is good for those that be bitten with serpents, and it keepeth such from being stung as have drunk of it before: the leaves and seeds do the same.”——Bugloss is reputed to be under the dominion of Jupiter.BULRUSH.—King Midas, having preferred the singing of Marsyas, the satyr, to that of Apollo, the god clapped upon him a pair of ass’s ears. The king’s barber saw them, and, unable to keep the secret, buried it at the foot of a cluster of Bulrushes. These Reeds, shaken by the wind, continually murmured, “King Midas has ass’s ears.” Both theScirpus lacustrisandTypha latifolia(the Reed Mace) are popularly known as the Bulrush (a corruption of Pole Rush or Pool Rush). TheTyphais depicted by Rubens, and the earlier Italian painters, as the Reed put into the hands of Jesus Christ upon His crucifixion. The same Reed is, on certain days, put into the hands of the Roman Catholic statues of our Saviour. Gerarde calls this Reed Cat’s-tail, and points out that Aristophanes makes mention of it in his ‘Comedy of Frogs,’ “where he bringeth them forth, one talking with another, being very glad that they had spent the whole day in skipping and leaping among Galingale and Cat’s-tail.”——The Bulrushes, among which the infant Moses was placed on the banks of the Nile, were Reeds not unlike theTypha. The ark in which he was laid was probably a small canoe constructed with the same Reed—thePapyrus Nilotica, which, according to Egyptian belief, was a protection from crocodiles. Gerarde says: “It is thought by men of great learning and understanding in the Scriptures, and set downe by them for truth, that this plant is the same Reed mentioned in the second chapter of Exodus, whereof was made that basket or cradle, which was daubed within and without with slime of that country, calledBitumen Judaicum, wherein Moses was put, being committed to the water, when Pharaoh gave commandment that all the male children of the Hebrews should be drowned.”——Boats and canoes formed of the Papyrus are common in Abyssinia. In South America, a similar kind of Bulrush is used for a like purpose.——The Bulrush is under the dominion of Saturn.BURDOCK.—Everyone is acquainted with the prickly burs of theArctium Lappa, or Burdock, which, by means of their hooks, are apt to cling so tenaciously to the passer-by. Thereexists an old belief among country lads, that they can catch bats by throwing these burs at them. The plant is also known by the names of Great-bur, Hur-bur, and Clot-bur, and has an ancient reputation for curing rheumatism.——It was under the great leaf of a Burdock that the original Hop-o’-my-Thumb, of nursery-rhyme celebrity, sought refuge from a storm, and was, unfortunately, swallowed, enclosed in the leaf, by a passing hungry cow.——In Albania, there is a superstitious belief that, if a man has been influenced by the demons of the forest, the evil spirit must be exorcised by the priest; a portion of the ceremony consisting of the steeping of bread in wine, and spreading it on the broad leaves of a Burdock.——Venus is the planet under whose rule astrologers place Burdock.BURITI.—The Buriti Palm (Mauritia vinifera) attains, in Brazil, gigantic proportions, and its rich red and yellow fruit, “like quilted cannon balls,” hang in bunches five feet long. From it flour, wine, and butter are made, whilst the fibre of the leaves supplies thread for weaving, &c. Another species,M. flexuosa, flourishes in the valleys and swamps of South America, where the native Indians regard it with great reverence, living almost entirely on its products; and, what is very remarkable, building their houses high up amongst its leaves, where they live during the floods.BURNET.—The Burnet Saxifrage (Pimpinella Saxifraga) appears to be considered a magical plant in Hungary, where it is calledChâbairje, or Chaba’s Salve, from an old tradition that King Chaba discovered it, and cured the wounds of fifteen thousand of his soldiers after a sanguinary battle fought against his brother.——In a work on astrology, purported to be written by King Solomon, and translated from the Hebrew by Iroé Grego, it is stated that the magician’s sword ought to be steeped in the blood of a mole and in the juice of Pimpinella.——In Piedmont, the Pimpinella is thought to possess the property of increasing the beauty of women.——Burnet is a herb of the Sun.BUTCHER’S BROOM.—A species of Butcher’s Broom,Ruscus hypoglossum, was the Alexandrian Laurel of the Romans, who formed of this shrub the so-called Laurel crowns worn by distinguished personages. It is the Laurel generally depicted on busts, coins, &c.——The name of Butcher’s Broom was given to this plant because in olden times butchers were in the habit of sweeping their blocks with hand brooms made of its green shoots. In Italy, branches of the plant, tied together, are commonly employed as besoms for sweeping houses; and hucksters place boughs of it round bacon and cheese to defend them from the mice. TheRuscus aculeatus, besides its ordinary name of Butcher’s Broom, is called Knee-holme, Knee-pulver, Knee-holly, Pettigree, and sometimes Jews’ Myrtle, because it is sold to the Jews for use during the Feast ofthe Tabernacles. In combination with Horse-radish, the plant, boiled for a decoction, is said to be serviceable in cases of dropsy; and its boughs are often used in this country for flogging chilblains.——Butcher’s Broom has been used and claimed by the Earls of Sutherland as the distinguishing badge of their followers and clan. The present Duke retains it, and every Sutherland volunteer still wears a sprig of Butcher’s Broom in his bonnet on field days.——Butcher’s Broom is under the dominion of Mars.Buttercups.—SeeRanunculus.CABBAGE.—A Grecian legend recounts that the Cabbage (Brassica) sprang from the tears of Lycurgus, Prince of Thrace, whom Dionysus had bound to a Vine-stock as a punishment for the destruction of Vines of which the Prince had been guilty. Perhaps this ancient legend may account for the belief that the Cabbage, like the Laurel, is inimical to the Vine; and it may also have given rise to the employment by the Egyptians and the Greeks of this vegetable as a most powerful remedy for the intoxication produced by the fruit of the Vine. Bacon, in hisSylva Sylvarum, says: “So the Colewort (Cabbage) is not an enemy (though that were anciently received) to the Vine onely; but it is an enemy to any other plant, because it draweth strongly the fattest juyce of the earth.” He also tells us that “it is reported that the shrub called Our Ladie’s Seal (which is a kinde of Briony) and Coleworts, set neare together, one or both will die.” Gerarde says that the Greeks called the CabbageAmethustos, “not onely because it driveth away drunkennesse, but also for that it is like in colour to the pretious stone called the Amethyst.”——The ancient Ionians, in their oaths, invoked the Cabbage. Nicander calls the Cabbage a sacred plant.——In Scotland, young women determine the figure and size of their future husbands by drawing Cabbages, blindfolded, on Hallowe’en.——In some country places, the housewife considers it a lucky omen if her Cabbages grow “double,”i.e., with two shoots from one root; or “lucker,” that is, with the leaves spreading open.——A Cabbage stalk or stump is a favourite steed upon which the “good people,” or fairies, are wont to travel in the air. Mr. Croker, in his ‘Fairy Legends of Ireland,’ relates that at Dundaniel, a village near Cork, in a pleasant outlet called Blackrock, there lived not many years ago a gardener named Crowley, who was considered by his neighbours as under fairy control, and suffered from what they termed “the falling sickness” resulting from the fatigue attendant on the journeys which he was compelled to take; being forced to travel night after night with the good people on one of his own Cabbage-stumps.——The Italian expressions, “Go among the Cabbages,” and “Go hide among the Cabbages,” mean to die. In the North, however, children are told that “Baby was fetched out of the Cabbage-bed.”——In Jersey, the Palm Cabbage is much cultivated, and reaches a considerable height. In La Vendée, the CæsareanCow Cabbage grows sixteen feet high. Possibly these gigantic Cabbages may have given rise to the nursery tales of some of the continental states, in which the young hero emulates the exploits of the English Jack and his Bean-stalk, by means of a little Cabbage, which grows larger and larger, and finally, becoming colossal, reaches the skies.——In England, there is a nursery legend which relates how the three daughters of a widow were one day sent into the kitchen garden to protect the Cabbages from the ravages of a grey horse which was continually stealing them. Watching their opportunity, they caught him by the mane and would not be shaken off; so the grey horse trotted away to a neighbouring hill, dragging the three girls after him. Arrived at the hill, he commanded it to open, and the widows’ daughters found themselves in an enchanted palace.——A tradition in the Havel country, North Germany, relates that one Christmas Eve a peasant felt a great desire to eat Cabbage, and having none himself, he slipped into a neighbour’s garden to cut some. Just as he had filled his basket, the Christ Child rode past on his white horse, and said: “Because thou hast stolen on the holy night, thou shalt immediately sit in the moon with thy basket of Cabbage.” The culprit was immediately wafted up to the moon, and there, as the man in the moon, he is still undergoing his penalty for stealing Cabbages on Christmas Eve.——To dream of cutting Cabbages denotes jealousy on the part of wife, husband, or lover, as the case may be. To dream of anyone else cutting them portends an attempt by some person to create jealousy in the loved one’s mind. To dream of eating Cabbage implies sickness to loved ones and loss of money.——Cabbages are plants of the Moon.CACTUS.—The Cacti are for the most part natives of South America, where their weird and grotesque columns or stems, devoid of leaves, dot with green the arid plains of New Barcelona or the dark hillsides of Mexico and California. They often attain the height of fifty feet, and live to such an age as to have gained the name of “imperishable statues.” Standing for centuries, they have been selected to mark national boundaries, as for instance, between the English and French possessions in the Island of St. Christopher, West Indies, and they are also employed as hedges to lanes and roadways. In the arid plains of Mexico and Brazil, the Cacti serve as reservoirs of moisture, and not only the natives, by probing the fleshy stems with their long forest knives, supply themselves with a cool and refreshing juice, but even the parched cattle contrive to break through the skin with their hoofs, and then to suck the liquid they contain. The splendid colours of the Cactus flowers are in vivid contrast with the ugly and ungainly stems.——There are sundry local legends and superstitions about these plants of the desert. A certain one poisons every white spot on a horse, but not one of any other colour. Another, eaten by horses, makes them lazy and imbecile.——The number of known genera is eighteen,and there aresix hundred species, two of which are specially cultivated, viz.,Opuntia Cochinellifera(Nopal plant), largely grown in Mexico, as the food plant of the Cochineal insect (Coccus Cacti), which produces a beautiful crimson dye; andC. vulgaris, or Prickly Pear, which is cultivated for its grateful Gooseberry-like fruits in barren rocky parts of North Africa and Southern Europe.——Peruvian sorcerers make rag dolls, and stick the thorns of Cactus in them, or hide these thorns in holes under or about houses, or in the wool of beds and cushions, that those they wish to harm may be crippled, maddened, or suffocated.Calf’s-snout.—SeeAntirrhinum.CAMELLIA.—The flower of the beauteous Rose of Japan (Camellia Japonica) has been well described as—
“He sings the Bacchus, patron of the Vine,The Beechen bowl foams with a flood of wine.”
“He sings the Bacchus, patron of the Vine,The Beechen bowl foams with a flood of wine.”
“He sings the Bacchus, patron of the Vine,
The Beechen bowl foams with a flood of wine.”
Virgil notices the use of its smooth and green bark for receiving inscriptions from the “sylvan pen of lovers;” and Ovid, in his epistle from Œnone to Paris, refers to the same custom, gracefully notingthat the name of the fair one would grow and spread with the growth of the tree:—
“The Beeches, faithful guardians of your flame,Bear on their wounded trunks Œnone’s name,And as their trunks, so still the letters grow;Spread on, and fair aloft my titles show.”
“The Beeches, faithful guardians of your flame,Bear on their wounded trunks Œnone’s name,And as their trunks, so still the letters grow;Spread on, and fair aloft my titles show.”
“The Beeches, faithful guardians of your flame,
Bear on their wounded trunks Œnone’s name,
And as their trunks, so still the letters grow;
Spread on, and fair aloft my titles show.”
According to a French tradition, a blacksmith, who was one day beating a bar of red-hot iron on his anvil, raised such a shower of sparks, that some of them reached the eyes of God himself, who forthwith, in His wrath, condemned the man to become a bear, with the condition that he might climb at his pleasure all the trees excepting the Beech. Changed into a bear, the man was for ever afterwards cogitating how to uproot the tree. In this legend, the Beech, which is generally considered a tree of good augury, becomes a specially favoured or privileged tree. Pliny wrote that it should not be cut for fuel. Gerarde says of it: “The wood is hard and firme, which being brought into the house there follows hard travail of child and miserable deaths, as it is reported; and therefore it is to be forborne, and not used as fire wood.” The Beech-tree is believed to be exempt from the action of lightning, and it is well known that Indians will seek its shelter during a thunderstorm. It is the Danish symbol.—Astrologers rule the Beech to be under the dominion of Saturn.
BELINUNCIA.—Under the appellation of Kêd, or Ceridwen, the Druids worshipped the Moon, who was believed to exercise a peculiar influence on storms, diseases, and certain plants. They consecrated a herb to her, calledBelinuncia, in the poisonous sap of which they dipped their arrows, to render them as deadly as those malignant rays of the Moon which were deemed to shed both death and madness upon men.
BEL-TREE.—TheÆgle Marmelos,Bilva(Sanscrit), or Bel-tree, is held sacred in India. Belonging to the same natural order as the Orange, its leaves, which are divided into three separate leaflets, are dedicated to the Hindu Trinity, and Indians are accustomed to carry one of them folded in the turban or sash, in order to propitiate Siva, and ensure safety from accidents. The wood is used to form the sacrificial pillars.——The Hindu women of the Punjab throw flowers into a sacred river, by means of which they can foretell whether or not they are to survive their husbands: but a much more ingenious rite is practised by the Newars of Nepaul. To obviate the terrible hardships to a young Hindu girl of becoming a widow, she is, in the first instance, married to a Bel-fruit, which is then cast into a sacred river. Should her future husband prove distasteful to her, this rite enables her to obtain a divorce; and should the husband die, she can still claim the title of wife to the sacred Bel-fruit, which is immortal; so that she is always a wife and never a widow.
Bell-flower.—SeeBlue-bell, andCampanula.
BETEL.—According to Indian traditions, the Betel was brought from heaven by Arjuna, who, during his journey to Paradise, stole a little bough of the sacred tree, which, upon his return to earth, he carefully planted. In remembrance of this celestial origin of the tree, and of the manner of its introduction to earth, Indians who desire to plant the Betel invariably steal a few young shoots.——The Betel, or Pepper-tree (Piper betle), is most highly esteemed by the Indian races, who attribute to its leaves no less than thirty properties or virtues, the possession of which, even by a plant of heavenly origin, can scarcely be credited. It is the leaf of the Betel which serves to enclose a few slices of the Areca Nut (sometimes erroneously called the Betel Nut); and these, together with a little Chunam or shell-lime, are what the natives universally chew to sweeten the breath and strengthen the stomach. The poor, indeed, employ it to keep off the pangs of hunger. In certain parts of the East, it is not considered polite to speak to a superior without some of the Betel and Areca compound in the mouth. At Indian marriage ceremonies, the bride and bridegroom exchange between themselves the same Areca Nut, with its accompanying Betel-leaf.——In Borneo, a favoured lover may enter the house of the loved one’s parents, at night, and awaken her, to sit and eat Betel Nut and the finest of Sirih-leaves from his garden.
BETONY.—The ‘Medicinal Betony,’ as Clare calls it, isBetonica officinalis, and of all the simples praised by old herbalists, both English and foreign, none (the Vervain excepted) was awarded a higher place than Wood Betony. Turner, in his ‘Brittish Physician’ (1687), writes:—“It would seem a miracle to tell what experience I have had of it. This herb is hot and dry, almost to the second degree, a plant of Jupiter in Aries, and is appropriated to the head and eyes, for the infirmities whereof it is excellent, as also for the breast and lungs; being boiled in milk, and drunk, it takes away pains in the head and eyes.Probatum.Some write it will cure those that are possessed with devils, or frantic, being stamped and applied to the forehead.” He gives a list of between twenty or thirty complaints which Betony will cure, and then says, “I shall conclude with the words I found in an old manuscript under the virtues of it: ‘More than all this have been proved of Betony.’” Gerarde gives a similar list, and adds, that Betony is “a remedy against the bitings of mad dogs and venomous serpents, being drunk, and also applied to the hurts, and is most singular against poyson.” There is an old saying that, when a person is ill, he should sell his coat, and buy Betony.——The Romans were well acquainted with the medicinal properties of this herb. Pliny wrote of the marvellous results obtained from its use, and also affirmed that serpents would kill one another if surrounded by a ring composedofBetonica. Antonius Musa, physician to Augustus, wrote a treatise on the excellencies ofBetonica, which he affirmed would cure forty-seven different ailments. Franzius went so far as to assert that the wild beasts of the forest, aware of its surpassing virtues, availed themselves of its efficacy when they were wounded.——At a time when a belief in witchcraft was rife in England, it was generally understood that the house whereHerba Betonicawas sown, was free from all mischief. In Yorkshire, the Water Betony was formerly called Bishop’s Leaves. In Italy, at the present day, there are several proverbs relating to the virtues of Betony, one of which is, “May you have more virtues than Betony;” and another, “Known as well as Betony.”
BIGNONIA.—One of the native names of theBignonia Indica, or Indian Trumpet-flower, isKâmadûti, or the Messenger of Love. Under the name ofPatala, theBignonia suaveolensis specially consecrated by the Indians to the god Brahma. The name ofPatala, however, is given in the Sanscrit to Durgâ, the wife of Siva, probably on account of the colour of her idols, which assimilate to the colour of the flowers of the Bignonia.
BILBERRY.—The origin of the Bilberry or Whortleberry (Vaccinium Myrtillus), according to the mythology of the ancients, is as follows:—Œnomaüs, father of the lovely Hippodamia, chose for his attendant the young Myrtillus, son of Mercury. Proud of his skill, he stipulated that all his daughter’s suitors should compete for the prize in a chariot race with him. Pelops, who was eager to obtain the beautiful Hippodamia, promised Myrtillus a large reward if he would take out the linch-pin of his master’s chariot. Myrtillus was not proof againt the offer: in consequence, the chariot was overturned, and Œnomaüs mortally injured; but as he expired, he implored Pelops to avenge him, which he did by throwing the treacherous attendant into the sea. The waters having borne back his body to the shore, Mercury changed it to the shrub called after his name,Myrtillus, a name formerly given to the plant producing the Myrtle-berry, a fruit largely imported in the middle ages, and used in medicine and cookery—of the same genus as the English Bilberry, which is often found growing on the sea-shore. The Scotch name of this shrub is Blaeberry, the praises of which are often sung in Northern ballads.
“Will ye go, lassie, go to the braes of Balquhidder,Whare the Blaeberries grow ’mong the bonny blooming Heather?”
“Will ye go, lassie, go to the braes of Balquhidder,Whare the Blaeberries grow ’mong the bonny blooming Heather?”
“Will ye go, lassie, go to the braes of Balquhidder,
Whare the Blaeberries grow ’mong the bonny blooming Heather?”
Bilberries are held by the astrologers to be under Jupiter. (See alsoWhortleberry.)
BIRCH.—According to Scandinavian mythology, the Birch (Betula alba) was consecrated to the god Thor, and symbolised the return of Spring. The Greeks and Romans had not much knowledge of the tree, but the latter seem to have regarded it with a feeling of dread in consequence of thefascesof the magistracy beingcomposed of it, as now, says Evelyn, “are the gentler rods of our tyrannical pedagogues for lighter faults.” According to Pliny, the celebrated books which Numa Pompilius composed seven hundred years before Christ, and which were buried with him, were written on the bark of the Birch-tree.——It is in the northern countries of Europe that the Birch flourishes, and it is there the tree is held in the highest esteem. The Russians have a proverb that the Birch excels in four qualities:—It gives light to the world (with Birch-boughs torches are made); it stifles cries (from Birch they extract a lubricant which they apply to the wheels of carriages); it cleanses (in Russian baths, to promote perspiration, they scourge the body with branches of Birch); it cures diseases (by incision they obtain a liquor stated to have all the virtues of the spirit of salt, and from which a wine is distilled, excellent as a cordial and useful in cases of consumption). Moreover, in Russia, the oil of the Birch is used as a vermifuge and a balsam in the cure of wounds. In fact, to the peasants of the North, the Birch is as beneficent as is the Palm to the Indians. No wonder, then, that the Russians are very fond of the Birch, and surround their dwellings with it; believing, as they do, that this tree is never struck by lightning.——On the Day of Pentecost, it is a custom among young Russian maidens to suspend garlands on the trees they love best, and they are careful to tie round the stems of the Birch-trees a little red ribbon as a charm to cause them to flourish and to protect them from the Evil Eye. De Gubernatis quotes from a Russian author named Afanassief, who tells us of a Birch that showed its appreciation of the kindly attentions of a young girl in decking its stem, by protecting her from the persecutions of a witch, who had become her step-mother; and the same author makes mention of a certain white Birch, which grew in the island of Buian, on the topmost of whose branches it was currently believed the Mother of God might be seen sitting.——Grohmann, a German writer, recounts the legend of a young shepherdess, who was spinning in the midst of a forest of Birch-trees, when suddenly the Wild Woman of the forest accosted her. The Wild Woman was dressed in white, and had a garland of flowers upon her head: she persuaded the shepherdess to dance with her, and for three days kept up the dance until sunset, but so lightly that the grass under her feet was neither trampled upon nor bent. At the conclusion of the dance, all the yarn was spun, and the Wild Woman was so satisfied, that she filled the pocket of the little shepherdess with Birch-leaves, which soon turned into golden money.——Professor Mannhardt, says De Gubernatis, divulges to us the means employed by the Russian peasants to evoke the Lieschi, or Geni of the forest. They cut down some very young Birch-trees, and arrange them in a circle in such a manner that the points shall be turned towards the middle: they enter this circle, and then they call up the spirit, who forthwith makes his appearance. They place him on the stump ofone of the felled trees, with his face turned towards the East. They kiss his hand, and, whilst looking between his legs, they utter these words:—“Uncle Lieschi, show yourself to us, not as a grey wolf, not as a fierce fire, but as I myself appear.” Then the leaves of the Aspen quiver and tremble, and the Lieschi shows himself in human form, and is quite disposed to render no matter what service to him who has conjured him—provided only that he will promise him his soul.——De Gubernatis relates one other anecdote respecting the Birch, which he says to the Esthonian is the living personification of his country. It is related that an Esthonian peasant noticed a stranger asleep beneath a tree at the moment when it was struck by lightning. He awoke him. The stranger, thanking him for his good offices, said: “When, far from your native country, and feeling sorrowful and home-sick, you shall see a crooked Birch, strike and ask of it: ‘Is the crooked one at home?’” One day the peasant, who had become a soldier, and was serving in Finland, felt dispirited and unhappy, for he could not help thinking of his home and the little ones he had left behind. Suddenly he sees the crooked Birch! He strikes it, and asks: “Is the crooked one at home?” Forthwith the mysterious stranger appears, and, calling to one of his spirits, bids him instantly transport the soldier to his native country, with his knapsack full of silver.——The Swedes have a superstition that our Saviour was scourged with a rod of the dwarf Birch, which was formerly a well-grown tree, but has ever since that day been doomed to hide its miserable and stunted head. It is calledLáng Fredags Ris, or Good Friday rod.——In France, it was in mediæval times the custom to preserve a bough of the Birch as a sacred object. In the country districts around Valenciennes, it is an old custom for lovers to hang a bough of Birch or Hornbeam over the doorway of his lady-love. In Haute Bretagne, as a charm to strengthen a weakly infant, they place in its cot Birch-leaves, which have been previously dried in an oven. There is an old English proverb, “Birchen twigs break no bones,” which has reference to the exceedingly slender branches of the tree.——In former days, churches were decked with boughs of the Birch, and Gerarde tell us that “it serveth well to the decking up of houses and banqueting-rooms, for places of pleasure, and for beautifying of streets in the crosse and gang [procession] weeke, and such like.” According to Herrick, it was customary to use Birch and fresh flowers for decorative purposes at Whitsuntide:—
“When Yew is out, then Birch comes in,And many flowers besides;Both of a fresh and fragrant kinne,To honour Whitsontide.”
“When Yew is out, then Birch comes in,And many flowers besides;Both of a fresh and fragrant kinne,To honour Whitsontide.”
“When Yew is out, then Birch comes in,
And many flowers besides;
Both of a fresh and fragrant kinne,
To honour Whitsontide.”
The Scotch Highlanders think very highly of the Birch, and turn it to all sorts of uses. With Burns, the budding Birch was a prime favourite in the Spring-time. The Scotch proverb, which says of a very poor man that he is “Bare as a Birk at Yule e’en,” probablyrefers to an old custom of stripping the bark of the tree prior to converting it into the yule log. The tree known in the Highlands as the Drooping Birk is often grown in churchyards, where, as Scott says, “Weeps the Birch of silver bark with long dishevell’d hair.” In Scottish ballads, the Birch is associated with the dead, and more especially with the wraiths or spirits of those who appear to be living after death. The following is a good example:—
“I dreamed a dreary dream last nicht;God keep us a’ frae sorrow!I dreamed I pu’d the Birk sae greenWi’ my true love on Yarrow.“I’ll redde your dream, my sister dear,I’ll tell you a’ your sorrow;You pu’d the Birk wi’ your true love;He’s killed, he’s killed on Yarrow.”
“I dreamed a dreary dream last nicht;God keep us a’ frae sorrow!I dreamed I pu’d the Birk sae greenWi’ my true love on Yarrow.“I’ll redde your dream, my sister dear,I’ll tell you a’ your sorrow;You pu’d the Birk wi’ your true love;He’s killed, he’s killed on Yarrow.”
“I dreamed a dreary dream last nicht;God keep us a’ frae sorrow!I dreamed I pu’d the Birk sae greenWi’ my true love on Yarrow.
“I dreamed a dreary dream last nicht;
God keep us a’ frae sorrow!
I dreamed I pu’d the Birk sae green
Wi’ my true love on Yarrow.
“I’ll redde your dream, my sister dear,I’ll tell you a’ your sorrow;You pu’d the Birk wi’ your true love;He’s killed, he’s killed on Yarrow.”
“I’ll redde your dream, my sister dear,
I’ll tell you a’ your sorrow;
You pu’d the Birk wi’ your true love;
He’s killed, he’s killed on Yarrow.”
The Birch-tree is held to be under the dominion of Venus.
Bitter-Sweet.—SeeSolanum.
BITTER VETCH.—The Orobus, or Bitter Vetch, is supposed to represent the herb mentioned in a passage in Pulci, which relates how an enchanter preserves two knights from starvation, during a long journey, by giving them a herb which, being held in the mouth, answers all the purposes of food.——The Scotch Highlanders have a great esteem for the tubercles of the Orobus root (which they call Corr or Cormeille); they use them as masticatories, to flavour their liquor. They also affirm that by the use of them they are enabled to repel hunger and thirst for a considerable time. In times of scarcity, the roots have served as a substitute for bread, and many think that the Bitter Vetch is theChara, mentioned by Cæsar, as affording food to his famished soldiers at the siege of Dyrrhachium. The seeds, ground and tempered with wine, were applied to heal the bitings of dogs and venomous beasts.
Black-Thorn.—SeeThorn.
Blaeberry.—SeeBilberryandWhortleberry.
BLUE-BELL.—The Blue-bells of Scotland have long since become household words. The flower (Campanula latifolia) is the finest and most stately of the species, and although common enough on its native hills, is scarce in England. It is associated with the feast of St. George. (SeeCampanula.)
Blue-BottleandBluet.—SeeCentaury.
Bo-Tree.—SeePeepul.
BORAGE.—In former days, Borage (Borago officinalis) was noted as one of the four “cordial flowers” most deserving of esteem for cheering the spirits—the other three being the Rose, Violet, and Alkanet. Pliny called BorageEuphrosynum, because it made men merry and joyful: and to the same purport is the oldLatin rhyme, “Ego Borago gaudia semper ago.” All the old herbalists praise the plant for its exhilarating effects, and agree with Pliny that when put into wine the leaves and flowers of Borage make men and women glad and merry, driving away all sadness, dulness, and melancholy. The “cool tankard” of our forefathers was a beverage composed of the young shoots and blossoms of Borage mingled with wine, water, lemon, and sugar. Lord Bacon was of opinion that “if in the must of wine or wort of beer, while it worketh, before it be tunned, the Burrage stay a short time, and be changed with fresh, it will make a sovereign drink for melancholy passion.”——Borage, astrologers tell us, is one of Jupiter’s cordials.
BOX.—The evergreen Box (Buxus semperviva) was specially consecrated by the Greeks to Pluto, the protector of all evergreen trees, as being symbolical of the life which continues through the winter in the infernal regions, and in the other world.——A curious superstition existed among the ancients in regard to the Box: although it very much resembles the Myrtle, which was held sacred to Venus, yet they carefully refrained from dedicating the Box to that goddess, because they were afraid that through such an offering they would lose their virility. They also, according to Bacon, entertained the belief that the Box produced honey, and that in Trebizonde the honey issuing from this tree was so noxious, that it drove men mad. Corsican honey was supposed to owe its ill repute to the fact that the bees fed upon Box. The Box is referred to by the Prophet Isaiah in his description of the glory of the latter days of the Church: “The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the Fir-tree, the Pine-tree, and the Box-tree together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary.” It is thought, also, to be the Ashur-wood of the Scriptures, and to be referred to by Ezekiel when, in describing the splendour of Tyre, he alludes to the benches of the rowers as made of Ashur wood, inlaid with ivory. That the ancients were accustomed to inlay Box-wood with ivory we know from Virgil and other writers, who allude to this practice.——The Jews employ branches of Box in erecting their tents at the Feast of Tabernacles.——Boughs of Box were used formerly for decorative purposes, instead of the Willow, on Palm Sundays. According to Herrick, it was once a time-honoured custom on Candlemas Day to replace the Christmas evergreens with sprigs of Box, which were kept up till Easter Eve, when they gave place to Yew.
“Down with the Rosemary and Bays,Down with the Mistletoe;Instead of Holly now upraiseThe greener Box for show.”
“Down with the Rosemary and Bays,Down with the Mistletoe;Instead of Holly now upraiseThe greener Box for show.”
“Down with the Rosemary and Bays,
Down with the Mistletoe;
Instead of Holly now upraise
The greener Box for show.”
Box-boughs were also in olden times regularly gathered at Whitsuntide for decking the large open fire-places then in vogue.——In several parts of the North of England, when a funeral takesplace, a basin full of sprigs of Box is placed at the door of the house from which the coffin is taken up, and each mourner is expected to take a sprig, and afterwards cast it on the grave of the deceased.——In Turkey, it is a practice with widows, who go weekly to pray at their husbands’ tomb, to plant a sprig of Box at the head of the grave. The monastery of St. Christine, in the Pyrenees, assumes the arms of the Knights of St. Christine, viz., a white pigeon with a cross in its beak, to which is attached the following legend:—The workmen who were employed to build the monastery had the greatest difficulty in finding a suitable foundation. After several ineffectual attempts, they one morning perceived a white pigeon flying with a cross in its beak. They pursued the bird, which perched on a Box-tree, but though it flew away on their near approach, they found in the branches the cross which it had left: this they took as a good omen, and proceeded successfully to lay the foundation on the spot where the Box-tree had stood, and completed the edifice.——To dream of Box denotes long life and prosperity, also a happy marriage.
BRACKEN FERN.—There was formerly a proverb respecting thePteris aquilina, or common Brake Fern, popular in the country:—
“When the Fern is as high as a spoon,You may sleep an hour at noon;When the Fern is as high as a ladle,You may sleep as long as you’reable;When the Fern begins to look red,Then milk is good with brown bread.”
“When the Fern is as high as a spoon,You may sleep an hour at noon;When the Fern is as high as a ladle,You may sleep as long as you’reable;When the Fern begins to look red,Then milk is good with brown bread.”
“When the Fern is as high as a spoon,
You may sleep an hour at noon;
When the Fern is as high as a ladle,
You may sleep as long as you’reable;
When the Fern begins to look red,
Then milk is good with brown bread.”
In Ireland, the Bracken Fern is called the Fern of God, from an old belief that if the stem be cut into three pieces, there will be seen on the first slice the letter G, on the second O, and on the third D,—the whole forming the sacred word God. There is still a superstition in England, probably derived from some holy father, that in the cut stem of the Bracken Fern may be traced the sacred letters I.H.S. In Kent, and some other counties, these letters are deciphered as J.C. In other parts of the country, the marks are supposed to delineate an Oak, and to have first grown there in memory of the tree in which King Charles sought shelter during his flight.——An old legend is yet told, that James, the unfortunate Duke of Monmouth, after the battle of Sedgemoor, was able to lie concealed for some days beneath the dense Bracken Ferns; but one day, emerging from his retreat, he sat down and began cutting some of the Fern-stems which had sheltered him. Whilst doing this, he was seen by some peasants, who noticed the flash of a diamond ring on one of his fingers. When, therefore, a reward was offered soon afterwards for the Duke’s capture, they recalled the circumstance, and sought for him where he lay concealed among the Brakes.——Connected with this figure of an Oak in the Bracken-stem, there is a saying, that if you cut the Bracken slantwise, you’ll see apicture of an Oak-tree; the more perfect, the luckier your chance will be. In Germany, the figure portrayed in the stem is popularly recognised as the Russian Double Eagle. Of still more ancient origin, however, is the opinion that the figure in the Brake Fern-stem is that of an eagle, from whence it derived its name of Eagle Fern. In Henderson’s ‘Folk Lore of the Northern Counties,’ we read that witches detest the Bracken Fern because it bears on its root the letter C, the initial of the holy name of Christ, which may be plainly seen on cutting the root horizontally. It has, however, been suggested that the letter intended is not the English C, but the Greek Χ, the initial letter of the word Christos, which resembles closely the marks on the root of the Bracken. These marks, however, have been also stated to represent Adam and Eve standing on either side of the Tree of Knowledge, and King Charles in the Oak. In some parts, lads and lasses try to discover in the Bracken-stem the initials of their future wife or husband.——Astrologers state that the Bracken Fern is under the dominion of Mercury.
BRAMBLE, or BLACKBERRY.—The Bramble or Blackberry-bush (Rubus fruticosus) is said to be the burning bush, in the midst of which Jehovah appeared to Moses. It is the subject of the oldest apologue extant. We read in Judges ix., 8–15, how Jotham, when bitterly reproaching the men of Shechem for their ingratitude to his father’s house, narrated to them, after the Oriental fashion, the parable of the trees choosing a king, in which their choice eventually fell upon the Bramble. According to some accounts, it was the Bramble that supplied the Thorns which were plaited into a crown, and worn by our Saviour just prior to the Crucifixion.——On St. Simon and St. Jude’s Day (October 28th) tradition avers that Satan sets his foot on the Bramble, after which day not a single edible Blackberry can be found. In Sussex, they say that, after Old Michaelmas Day (10th October), the Devil goes round the county and spits on the Blackberries. In Scotland, it is thought that, late in the Autumn, the Devil throwshis cloak over the Blackberries, and renders them unwholesome. In Ireland, there is an old saying, that “at Michaelmas the Devil put his foot on the Blackberries;” and in some parts of that country the peasants will tell their children, after Michaelmas Day, not to eat theGrian-mhuine(Blackberries); and they attribute the decay in them, which about that time commences, to the operation of the Phooka, a mischievous goblin, sometimes assuming the form of a bat or bird, at other times appearing as a horse or goat.——The ancients deemed both the fruit and flowers of the Bramble efficacious against the bites of serpents; and it was at one time believed that so astringent were the qualities of this bush, that even its young shoots, when eaten as a salad, would fasten teeth that were loose. Gerarde, however, for that purpose recommends a decoction of the leaves, mixed with honey, alum, and alittle wine, and adds that the leaves “heale the eies that hang out.”——In Cornwall, Bramble-leaves, wetted with spring water, are employed as a charm for a scald or burn. The moistened leaves are applied to the burn whilst the patient repeats the following formula:—
“There came three angels out of the East,One brought fire, and two brought frost;Out fire and in frost;In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.Amen.”
“There came three angels out of the East,One brought fire, and two brought frost;Out fire and in frost;In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.Amen.”
“There came three angels out of the East,
One brought fire, and two brought frost;
Out fire and in frost;
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Amen.”
A similar incantation to the above is used as a charm for inflammatory disease. The formula is repeated three times to each one of nine Bramble-leaves immersed in spring water, passes being meanwhile made with the leavesfromthe diseased part. A cure for rheumatism is to crawl under a Bramble, which has formed a second root in the ground; and to charm away boils, the sufferer should pass nine times, against the Sun, under a Bramble-bush growing at both ends. In Devonshire, a curious charm for the cure of blackhead or pinsoles consisted in creeping under an arched Bramble. The person affected by this troublesome malady has to creep on hands and knees under or through a Bramble three times, with the Sun—that is, from east to west. The Bramble must be of peculiar growth, forming an arch rooting at both ends, and if possible reaching into two proprietors’ lands; so that a Bramble is by preference selected, of which the original root is in the hedge of one owner, and the end of the branch forming the arch is rooted in the meadow of another.——The Bramble has funereal associations, and its young shoots have long been used to bind down the sods on newly-made graves in village churchyards. Jeremy Taylor, when commenting on mortality, says, referring to this custom: “The Summer gives green turf and Brambles to bind upon our graves.”——The Moat of Moybolgue, in the County of Cavan, is a sacred place in Ireland, where St. Patrick ministered. According to a legend, Honor Garrigan, one Sunday during the saint’s lifetime, rode up the hill to church; but espying a bunch of ripe Blackberries, she dismounted in order to gather them. Her servant lad remonstrated upon the wickedness of her breaking her fast before receiving the Holy Communion, but in vain; his mistress ate the Blackberries, and then her hunger increased to famine pitch, and she ate the boy and then the horse. St. Patrick, alarmed by the cries of his congregation, who were afraid the wicked woman would devour them also, shot her with his bow and arrow—her body separating into four sections, which were buried in a field outside the churchyard; St. Patrick prophesying to the terrified crowd that she would lie quiet till nine times nine of the name of Garrigan should cross the stream which separated the roads from the churchyard. When that took place, she would rise again, and devour all before her; and that would be the way shewould be destroyed. The water of the stream has ever since been held sacred, and effects miraculous cures.——The Bramble is said to be a plant of Mars. To dream of passing through places covered with Brambles, portends troubles; if they prick you, secret enemies will do you an injury with your friends; if they draw blood, expect heavy losses in trade. To dream of passing through Brambles unhurt, denotes a triumph over enemies.
Breakstone.—SeeSaxifrage.
BROOM.—The English royal line of Plantagenet undoubtedly derived its name from the Broom (Planta genista), theGenof the Celts, theGenêtof the French, and from time immemorial the badge of Brittany. According to Skinner, the house of Anjou derived the name of Plantagenet from Fulke, the first earl of that name, who, it is said, having killed his brother in order that he might enjoy his principality, afterwards, touched by remorse, undertook a pilgrimage to Jerusalem as a work of atonement; and being there soundly scourged with Broom-twigs, which grew plentifully on the spot, he ever after took the surname of Plantagenet, and bore theGenêtas his personal cognisance, which was retained by his noble posterity. Another legend, however, relates that this badge was first adopted by Gefroi, Earl of Anjou, the father of Henry II., and husband of Matilda, Empress of Germany. Passing on his way to the battle-field through a rocky pathway, on either side of which bushes of yellow Broom clung firmly to the boulders, or upheld the crumbling earth, Gefroi broke off a branch and fixed it as a plume in his cap, saying, “Thus shall this golden plant ever be my cognisance—rooted firmly among rocks, and yet upholding that which is ready to fall.” He afterwards took the name of Plantagenet (Planta genista) and transmitted it to his princely posterity. His son Henry was called the Royal Sprig of Genista, and the Broom continued to be the family device down to the last of the Plantagenets, Richard III. It may be seen on the great seal of Richard I., its first official heraldic appearance.——In 1234, St. Louis of France established a new order of Knighthood, calledl’Ordre duGenest, on the occasion of his marriage with Queen Marguerite. The Knights of the Genest wore a chain composed of blossoms of theGenêt(Broom) in gold alternately with white enamelled Fleurs de Lis, from which was suspended, a gold cross with the motto “Deusexaltat humiles.” One hundred Knights of the Order of the Genest acted as a body-guard to the King. The order was long held in high esteem, and one of its recipients was Richard II.——The Broom may well be symbolic of humility, for, according to a Sicilian legend, it was accursed for having made such a noise in the garden of Gethsemane during the time that Jesus Christ was praying there, that His persecutors were thus enabled to surprise Him. Hemmed in by His enemies, Jesus, turning towards the traitorous shrub, pronounced on it this malediction: “May you always make asmuch noise when you are being burnt.”——In England, the Broom has always been held as one of the plants beloved by witches. In Germany, the Broom is the plant selected for decorations on Whit-Sunday: it is also used as a charm. When a limb has been amputated, the charmer takes a twig from a Broom, and after pressing the wound together with it, wraps it in the bloody linen, and lays it in a dry place, saying:
“The wounds of our Lord ChristThey are not bound;But these wounds they are boundIn the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.”
“The wounds of our Lord ChristThey are not bound;But these wounds they are boundIn the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.”
“The wounds of our Lord Christ
They are not bound;
But these wounds they are bound
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.”
In Tuscany, on the day of theFête-Dieu, it is often employed. In England, it is considered that if the Broom has plenty of blossoms, it is the sign of a plentiful grain harvest. In Suffolk and Sussex, there is a saying that—
“If you sweep the house with blossomed Broom in May,You are sure to sweep the head of the house away.”
“If you sweep the house with blossomed Broom in May,You are sure to sweep the head of the house away.”
“If you sweep the house with blossomed Broom in May,
You are sure to sweep the head of the house away.”
By the old herbalists the Broom was considered a panacea for a multiplicity of disorders, and Gerarde tells us that no less a personage than “that worthy Prince of famous memory, Henry VIII., of England, was wont to drink the distilled water of Broome-floures, against surfets and diseases thereof arising.”——Broom is under the planetary influence of Mars.
BRIONY.—The poisonous fruit or berries of the Black Briony (Tamus) are supposed to remove sunburns, freckles, bruises, black eyes, and other blemishes of the skin. Another name of this wild Vine is Our Lady’s Seal. The root of the White Briony may be made to grow in any shape by placing it when young in an earthenware mould. In olden times, designing people by this means obtained roots of frightful forms, which they exhibited as curiosities, or sold as charms. The anodyne necklace, which was a profitable affair for one Doctor Turner in the early part of the present century, consisted of beads made of white Briony-root: it was believed to assist in cutting the teeth of infants, around whose neck it was hung.——Briony is under the dominion of Mars.
BUCKTHORN.—Of one variety of Buckthorn (Rhamnus palinurus) it is said that Christ’s Crown of Thorns was composed. Of another variety (R. Frangula) the Mongols make their idols, selecting the wood on account of its rich hue.——The Buckthorn is under the dominion of Saturn.
BUGLOSS.—The Bugloss (Anchusa) has been made the emblem of Falsehood, because the roots of one of its species (A. tinctoria) are used in making rouge for the face. In the wilds of America, the Indians paint their bodies red with the root of a Bugloss (Anchusa Virginica) indigenous to their country. Galen notices the use of the Bugloss as a cosmetic in his time, and the rouge made from the roots of this plant is said to be the mostancient of all the paints prepared for the face.——Pliny says that theAnchusawas used by the Romans for colouring and dyeing; and adds, that if a person who has chewed this plant should spit in the mouth of a venomous creature, he would kill it.——The Viper’s Bugloss (Echium vulgare) derives its name from its seed being like the head of a viper, and, according to Matthiolus, was celebrated for curing its bites. Nicander also speaks of the Viper’s Bugloss as one of those plants which cure the biting of serpents, and especially of the viper, and that drive serpents away. Dioscorides, as quoted by Gerarde, writes, “The root drunk with wine is good for those that be bitten with serpents, and it keepeth such from being stung as have drunk of it before: the leaves and seeds do the same.”——Bugloss is reputed to be under the dominion of Jupiter.
BULRUSH.—King Midas, having preferred the singing of Marsyas, the satyr, to that of Apollo, the god clapped upon him a pair of ass’s ears. The king’s barber saw them, and, unable to keep the secret, buried it at the foot of a cluster of Bulrushes. These Reeds, shaken by the wind, continually murmured, “King Midas has ass’s ears.” Both theScirpus lacustrisandTypha latifolia(the Reed Mace) are popularly known as the Bulrush (a corruption of Pole Rush or Pool Rush). TheTyphais depicted by Rubens, and the earlier Italian painters, as the Reed put into the hands of Jesus Christ upon His crucifixion. The same Reed is, on certain days, put into the hands of the Roman Catholic statues of our Saviour. Gerarde calls this Reed Cat’s-tail, and points out that Aristophanes makes mention of it in his ‘Comedy of Frogs,’ “where he bringeth them forth, one talking with another, being very glad that they had spent the whole day in skipping and leaping among Galingale and Cat’s-tail.”——The Bulrushes, among which the infant Moses was placed on the banks of the Nile, were Reeds not unlike theTypha. The ark in which he was laid was probably a small canoe constructed with the same Reed—thePapyrus Nilotica, which, according to Egyptian belief, was a protection from crocodiles. Gerarde says: “It is thought by men of great learning and understanding in the Scriptures, and set downe by them for truth, that this plant is the same Reed mentioned in the second chapter of Exodus, whereof was made that basket or cradle, which was daubed within and without with slime of that country, calledBitumen Judaicum, wherein Moses was put, being committed to the water, when Pharaoh gave commandment that all the male children of the Hebrews should be drowned.”——Boats and canoes formed of the Papyrus are common in Abyssinia. In South America, a similar kind of Bulrush is used for a like purpose.——The Bulrush is under the dominion of Saturn.
BURDOCK.—Everyone is acquainted with the prickly burs of theArctium Lappa, or Burdock, which, by means of their hooks, are apt to cling so tenaciously to the passer-by. Thereexists an old belief among country lads, that they can catch bats by throwing these burs at them. The plant is also known by the names of Great-bur, Hur-bur, and Clot-bur, and has an ancient reputation for curing rheumatism.——It was under the great leaf of a Burdock that the original Hop-o’-my-Thumb, of nursery-rhyme celebrity, sought refuge from a storm, and was, unfortunately, swallowed, enclosed in the leaf, by a passing hungry cow.——In Albania, there is a superstitious belief that, if a man has been influenced by the demons of the forest, the evil spirit must be exorcised by the priest; a portion of the ceremony consisting of the steeping of bread in wine, and spreading it on the broad leaves of a Burdock.——Venus is the planet under whose rule astrologers place Burdock.
BURITI.—The Buriti Palm (Mauritia vinifera) attains, in Brazil, gigantic proportions, and its rich red and yellow fruit, “like quilted cannon balls,” hang in bunches five feet long. From it flour, wine, and butter are made, whilst the fibre of the leaves supplies thread for weaving, &c. Another species,M. flexuosa, flourishes in the valleys and swamps of South America, where the native Indians regard it with great reverence, living almost entirely on its products; and, what is very remarkable, building their houses high up amongst its leaves, where they live during the floods.
BURNET.—The Burnet Saxifrage (Pimpinella Saxifraga) appears to be considered a magical plant in Hungary, where it is calledChâbairje, or Chaba’s Salve, from an old tradition that King Chaba discovered it, and cured the wounds of fifteen thousand of his soldiers after a sanguinary battle fought against his brother.——In a work on astrology, purported to be written by King Solomon, and translated from the Hebrew by Iroé Grego, it is stated that the magician’s sword ought to be steeped in the blood of a mole and in the juice of Pimpinella.——In Piedmont, the Pimpinella is thought to possess the property of increasing the beauty of women.——Burnet is a herb of the Sun.
BUTCHER’S BROOM.—A species of Butcher’s Broom,Ruscus hypoglossum, was the Alexandrian Laurel of the Romans, who formed of this shrub the so-called Laurel crowns worn by distinguished personages. It is the Laurel generally depicted on busts, coins, &c.——The name of Butcher’s Broom was given to this plant because in olden times butchers were in the habit of sweeping their blocks with hand brooms made of its green shoots. In Italy, branches of the plant, tied together, are commonly employed as besoms for sweeping houses; and hucksters place boughs of it round bacon and cheese to defend them from the mice. TheRuscus aculeatus, besides its ordinary name of Butcher’s Broom, is called Knee-holme, Knee-pulver, Knee-holly, Pettigree, and sometimes Jews’ Myrtle, because it is sold to the Jews for use during the Feast ofthe Tabernacles. In combination with Horse-radish, the plant, boiled for a decoction, is said to be serviceable in cases of dropsy; and its boughs are often used in this country for flogging chilblains.——Butcher’s Broom has been used and claimed by the Earls of Sutherland as the distinguishing badge of their followers and clan. The present Duke retains it, and every Sutherland volunteer still wears a sprig of Butcher’s Broom in his bonnet on field days.——Butcher’s Broom is under the dominion of Mars.
Buttercups.—SeeRanunculus.
CABBAGE.—A Grecian legend recounts that the Cabbage (Brassica) sprang from the tears of Lycurgus, Prince of Thrace, whom Dionysus had bound to a Vine-stock as a punishment for the destruction of Vines of which the Prince had been guilty. Perhaps this ancient legend may account for the belief that the Cabbage, like the Laurel, is inimical to the Vine; and it may also have given rise to the employment by the Egyptians and the Greeks of this vegetable as a most powerful remedy for the intoxication produced by the fruit of the Vine. Bacon, in hisSylva Sylvarum, says: “So the Colewort (Cabbage) is not an enemy (though that were anciently received) to the Vine onely; but it is an enemy to any other plant, because it draweth strongly the fattest juyce of the earth.” He also tells us that “it is reported that the shrub called Our Ladie’s Seal (which is a kinde of Briony) and Coleworts, set neare together, one or both will die.” Gerarde says that the Greeks called the CabbageAmethustos, “not onely because it driveth away drunkennesse, but also for that it is like in colour to the pretious stone called the Amethyst.”——The ancient Ionians, in their oaths, invoked the Cabbage. Nicander calls the Cabbage a sacred plant.——In Scotland, young women determine the figure and size of their future husbands by drawing Cabbages, blindfolded, on Hallowe’en.——In some country places, the housewife considers it a lucky omen if her Cabbages grow “double,”i.e., with two shoots from one root; or “lucker,” that is, with the leaves spreading open.——A Cabbage stalk or stump is a favourite steed upon which the “good people,” or fairies, are wont to travel in the air. Mr. Croker, in his ‘Fairy Legends of Ireland,’ relates that at Dundaniel, a village near Cork, in a pleasant outlet called Blackrock, there lived not many years ago a gardener named Crowley, who was considered by his neighbours as under fairy control, and suffered from what they termed “the falling sickness” resulting from the fatigue attendant on the journeys which he was compelled to take; being forced to travel night after night with the good people on one of his own Cabbage-stumps.——The Italian expressions, “Go among the Cabbages,” and “Go hide among the Cabbages,” mean to die. In the North, however, children are told that “Baby was fetched out of the Cabbage-bed.”——In Jersey, the Palm Cabbage is much cultivated, and reaches a considerable height. In La Vendée, the CæsareanCow Cabbage grows sixteen feet high. Possibly these gigantic Cabbages may have given rise to the nursery tales of some of the continental states, in which the young hero emulates the exploits of the English Jack and his Bean-stalk, by means of a little Cabbage, which grows larger and larger, and finally, becoming colossal, reaches the skies.——In England, there is a nursery legend which relates how the three daughters of a widow were one day sent into the kitchen garden to protect the Cabbages from the ravages of a grey horse which was continually stealing them. Watching their opportunity, they caught him by the mane and would not be shaken off; so the grey horse trotted away to a neighbouring hill, dragging the three girls after him. Arrived at the hill, he commanded it to open, and the widows’ daughters found themselves in an enchanted palace.——A tradition in the Havel country, North Germany, relates that one Christmas Eve a peasant felt a great desire to eat Cabbage, and having none himself, he slipped into a neighbour’s garden to cut some. Just as he had filled his basket, the Christ Child rode past on his white horse, and said: “Because thou hast stolen on the holy night, thou shalt immediately sit in the moon with thy basket of Cabbage.” The culprit was immediately wafted up to the moon, and there, as the man in the moon, he is still undergoing his penalty for stealing Cabbages on Christmas Eve.——To dream of cutting Cabbages denotes jealousy on the part of wife, husband, or lover, as the case may be. To dream of anyone else cutting them portends an attempt by some person to create jealousy in the loved one’s mind. To dream of eating Cabbage implies sickness to loved ones and loss of money.——Cabbages are plants of the Moon.
CACTUS.—The Cacti are for the most part natives of South America, where their weird and grotesque columns or stems, devoid of leaves, dot with green the arid plains of New Barcelona or the dark hillsides of Mexico and California. They often attain the height of fifty feet, and live to such an age as to have gained the name of “imperishable statues.” Standing for centuries, they have been selected to mark national boundaries, as for instance, between the English and French possessions in the Island of St. Christopher, West Indies, and they are also employed as hedges to lanes and roadways. In the arid plains of Mexico and Brazil, the Cacti serve as reservoirs of moisture, and not only the natives, by probing the fleshy stems with their long forest knives, supply themselves with a cool and refreshing juice, but even the parched cattle contrive to break through the skin with their hoofs, and then to suck the liquid they contain. The splendid colours of the Cactus flowers are in vivid contrast with the ugly and ungainly stems.——There are sundry local legends and superstitions about these plants of the desert. A certain one poisons every white spot on a horse, but not one of any other colour. Another, eaten by horses, makes them lazy and imbecile.——The number of known genera is eighteen,and there aresix hundred species, two of which are specially cultivated, viz.,Opuntia Cochinellifera(Nopal plant), largely grown in Mexico, as the food plant of the Cochineal insect (Coccus Cacti), which produces a beautiful crimson dye; andC. vulgaris, or Prickly Pear, which is cultivated for its grateful Gooseberry-like fruits in barren rocky parts of North Africa and Southern Europe.——Peruvian sorcerers make rag dolls, and stick the thorns of Cactus in them, or hide these thorns in holes under or about houses, or in the wool of beds and cushions, that those they wish to harm may be crippled, maddened, or suffocated.
Calf’s-snout.—SeeAntirrhinum.
CAMELLIA.—The flower of the beauteous Rose of Japan (Camellia Japonica) has been well described as—