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Show Th BRITISH BRITISH DIVISION 1 77 ie has The root is long, white, and flender, and very few fibres. The firft leaves, which rife immediately from it ‘arelarge, long, of a pale green, deeply jagged, and without footftalks. In the centre of thefe rifes the ftalk, whichis round, weak, of a pale green, and hairy; it is two feet high, tolerably ereét, and divided into feveral branches. The leaves on it are placedirregularly, and refemble thofe from the root, but that they are more deeply jagged, and divided at the edges: thefe alfo are of a pale green, and hairy, and they and the whole of the plant aboundwith a yellow bitter juice. The flowers are very large, and of a bright fearlet, with numerous threads in the centre; on which ftand black buttons. The feed-veffel is {mall, oblong, and crowned with a flat head: the feeds are very numerous, It is Common in our corn-fields, and flowers in July. Ter MeL Ty) C. Bauhine calls it Papaver erraticum majus. Others, Papaver erraticum, Papaver rubrum, and Papaver rheas. The flower is fometimes white, and fometimes variegated. Wefee this a little in nature, and much more fo in gardens, where culture renders it very, beautiful. The’ reader is not to underftand by this, that all the beautiful garden poppies are produced from this fpecieSs for many of them, indeed the greater part, are from the other, next to be defcribed : the fmaller, in general, are from this, and they are very beautiful, and very numerous. 2. Wild white Poppy. Papaver album fylveftre: The root is long, fimple, and white, and has few fibres. The ftalk is round, upright, firm, and a yard high: the leaves ftandirregularly on it, and are very large, and of a bluifh green. They have no footftalks, but enclofe the ftalk at the bafe, and from thence grow fmaller to the point : they are notched at the edges, and fmooth. The flowers ftandat the tops of the branches, into which the ftalk divides at the upper ‘part ; they are very large, but of no great beauty : their colour is white, with a faint bluth of a deadifh purple; and they have large black fpots, one at the bottom of eachpetal. The feed-veffel is roundandlarge, of a bluith green, andfull ofirregular, rough, white feeds. The whole plant is perfeétly fmooth, and throughout of the fame bluith green colour. Ic is commonwild in Ireland. We fee it in uncultivated places fometimes in England; but it feems to have arifen from feeds fcattered from fome garden. In Ireland it is faid to be found far from any houte. The SPECIES. 3. Black Poppy. 1. Red Poppy. Papaver rbeas. HERBAL, Papaver nigrum. A BRITISH Our people are not fufficiently acquainted with their virtues, for they are only kept in the form of a fyrupin the fhops 5 and that way cannot be given in a proper dofe,a becaufe of the quantity of = fugar, A ftrong tinéture may be drawn from in wine, which will better anfwer the purI The rootis long, flender, and divided : it hag few fibres, and is of a whitifh colour. The firft leaves are fmall, and inconfiderable: they ate long, narrow, divided deeply at the edges, and have no footttalks. pote. Among thefe rifes the flalk, whichis round, thick, upright, and a foot andahalf high. The leaves ftand alternately, and differ gteatly 3reatly from thofe whichrife firft from the root: they are large, and have no footftalks: their lour is a blackifh green, and they are eeply jagged. The flower is large; and there ufually, in the wild ftate of the plant, ftands only oneonthe top of the ftalk : it is of a deep colour, between blue and black, and-hasa tuft ofthiteads in-the centre. The feed-veflel is round, and moderately large, and the feeds are numerous, fimall, and black. The heads of theg cultivated, are gently foporifick, and excellent againft pain, What is called fyrup of diacodium is a very flrong decoction of thefe heads boiled up with fugar; and it contains fo much virtue, that half an ounceis aneffective dofe. Opiumis obtained by wounding and prefling the heads of the fame fpecies, cultivated in the fame manner in Turkey, and has the greateft vir: itis the moft powerful of almoft any known It is found wild in the northern parts of Ireland, far from any place where the feeds could be fuppofed tobe ‘feattered. It flowers in Auguft. C. Bauhine calls it Papaver bortenfe femine nigro. Linnzeus confiders this only as a variety of the other preceding: but, however they may te- femble one another when brought into gardens, from theeffect of culture, or the mixture perhaps oftheir farina, they are, when intheir wild and natural ftate, perfectly difting, Both thefe are brought into gardens for uf and beauty, and the varieties raifed from them by culture are innumerable. The black is not much regarded as a medi- cine ; but the: white poppy, we have defcribed here in its wild ftate, is the famous plant, which being properly affifted’ by culture, affords in this country the poppy-beads, of which our fyrup of diacodium is made; andin Turkey, and other parts ofthe Eaft, yields opium. The plant continues the famein all refpects but fize when it is thus cultivated; and the greateft variation in this refpeét is in the head, which in the wildftate are not larger than a chef- nut, but by cultureis equal to a large apple. The virtues of all thefe, and thofe ofthe veral fucceeding kinds ofpoppies, are thef. but they enjoy themin a different degree. Theyare all foporifick, and of wonderful virtue againft pain. The 2lack poppyis fuppofed to have fomet poifonous, but altogether without reafon. We have fhewn that it differs little from the white in form, and it is lefs different in its virtue: however, the white is in repute, and is moft, indeed almoft only ufed. ¢ The flowers of the red poppy are gentlyfoporifick, and are peculiarly goodinpleurifies : ‘they have been extolled by many as a fpecifick in that diforder : they are alfo good in quinfies, and in all diforders of the breaft. Our he family-medicine called red fu atinéture of thefe flowers in fpirit, with f ingredients, and is much preferable to andother It is fovereign againft pain ; it promotes {weat, and caufes fleep. A veryfimall dofe is fufficient, and a larger is dange Laudanumis a tinéture of opium, andis more ufed than the fubftance; but either fhould be given with great care, and rarely without the advice of a phyfician. There are fome who accuflom themfelves to take opiumconftantly ; and, beginning with {mal] dofes, they habituate their conftitutions to the medicine, till they can take fuch as are aftonifhing. To thefe it ferves as a cordial, enlivening their fpirits like wine, or any other ftrong liquor. This is a general cuftomin the Fatt. As the three fpecies already defcribed are the principal of the poppy kind in virtue, we have given their ufes here; and fhall now proceed to the account of the feveral other fpecies called by different names, though certainly and plainly of this kind. 4. Round rough-headed Poppy. I The root is long, fle a few fibres. The firft leaves are numerous, and beautifully divided into fegments: they have long footftalks, green, and confiderably hairy: ubly pianated, as it were, each confifting of feveral pairs of pinnae: on a middle rib, and eachof thofe pinnae being jagged fo deeply on J again. The ftalk rifes in the m of this tuft, and is round, hairy, upright, branched, and a foot and a halt hi HERBAL, 143 It is common in corn-fields in-thany parts. of England, and flowersin July: C.Bauhine calls it Argemone capitulo bréviore, Others, Argemone vulgaris. 5. Long rough-headed Poppy. Papaver capitulo hifpido longioré. AA The root is long, flender, white, ufually undivided, and furnifhed with a few fibres. Thefirft leaves rife in a clufter: they are of a pale green, andhairy, and have fhort footftalks. they are deeply divided in the pinnated manner5 fo that they feem compofed of feveral pairs of pinnz, or finaller leaves, placed on a rib, with an odd one at the end; but they are inreality only fo many fegments. The ftalks are numerous, round, firm, very muchbranched, anda foot high. The leaves on them are few: they ftand irregularly, and are like thofe from the root, but fmaller. The flowers ftand at the tops of the branches, and are fmall, but of a beautiful fcarlet colour, with black buttons. The heads are long, and covered with a kind of foft prickles. It is common in many parts of England in corn-fields, and on ditch-banks, and flowers in June. The flowers very quickly fade and fall off in this and the preceding fpecies. C. Bauhine calls it Argemone capitulo longiore and others follow him, 6. Long fmooth-headed yellow Poppy. Papaver capitulo longiore glabro flore luteo. Therootis long, flender, white; divided, and full of fibres. The firft leaves rife in a clufter; and are large, and have long footftalks: they’ are properly of the pinnated kind, and very beautiful, each is compofedof three or four pairs of pinnz, or fmaller leaves, fet on a middle rib, with an oddone at the end. The ftalks rife in the centre ofthis tuft; and they are round, upright, weak, anda little hairy. Their leaves are few: andthey ftand irregularly, andare like thofe from the root, but fmaller, The flowers ftandat the tops of the ftalks, and are large and yellow. The feed-veffel is long, ribbed, and fmooth : the feeds are {mall and numerous. It is frequent in Wales wild, upon the moift rocks, and about the borders of rivulets. C. Bauhinecalls it Papaver tum flore flavo, erraticum lacinia- Others, Argemone lutea Cambro annica, +. Long, fmall-headed red Poppy. Papavercapitulo longiore glabro flore rubro, flender, white, and hung 1erous, long, narrow, 3 fo that they in fome degree vated kind. in the centre of thefe, and is rounds |