| OCR Text |
Show The Hijlory of P L A N T S. · 3· Tuber purpurafcens Juper.ftcie granulata. Tbe purplijh Truffle, with a granulated rind. This is the fmalleil: of all the Truffle kind ; ies general fize is that of a nutmeg1 fometimes it grows to the bignefs of a walnut, but it very rarely exceeds that fiandard. It's bark is raifed into prominences, in the manner of the refi, but they are fo fmall, that they rather deferve the name only of granules; they are roundi!h and obtufe at the end; the colour on the furface is a dufky brown, the pulp is of a pale purplilh colour, redder near the furface than toward the center. The fmell is like that of the Trufflle, but faint; the tafie fubafiringent, and very difagreeable, with a fweetnefs at the going off like that of Terra Japonica. The capfules in this fpecies are very large, and they ufually have four, five, or fix feeds in each. Thefe are natives of England, but they are not common with us. Merret, in Ray's Synopfis, fpeaks of purple Truffles of the bignefs of hazel nuts, which he met with in H ampton-Court park ; they muil: have been of this kind. I have me~ with thefe in Y or k{hire, and in {orne parts of Wiltfhire. Some authors have recommended a cataplafm of Truffles, as a fovereign remedy in quinfies. Cardan tells us of people almQfi miraculoufly cured by it. At prefent we know no ufe of it in medicine, ·but it is a favourite ingredient in our fauces. T HE __9J1lMd{,~v6'. ! . . (~t:1Wl;l...2. |
