f 
120 
% 
^3 
Al 
THE root IS annual, cylindrical, wliitiOi, branched, and fiirmfKed 
with feveral flender fibres : the ftalk is' ered, roundifh, channelled. 
rough from one to two feet high, and often branched towards the 
top: the leaves are long, elliptical, rough, runcinated, or varioufly 
ferrated, and barbed with fharp points; above of a bright green 
colour, underneath whitifli, and reticulated : the upper leaves are 
feffile, and on one fide extend along the ftalk, but the lov/er leaves 
ftand upon footftalks : the flowers are enclofed by an involucrum of 
ten leaves, of thefe the five 
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geft : the caly 
mbricated, fmooth, woolly, and confifts of feveral fquamous 
coverings, terminated by rigid, pinnated, fpinous points : the flowers 
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X 
are compound, or compofed of feveral yellow florets ; thofe at the 
circumference v^ant the parts necefl^ary to frudification, but thofe at 
the centre are hermaphrodite, tubular, unequally divided at the limb 
and dentated at their upper extremities: the filaments are five 
tapering, white, downy, and inferted in the bafe of the corolla : the 
anthers^ are cylindrical, tubulous, browniih, ftriated, and fomewhat 
longer than the corolla : the ftyle is filiform, and of the fame length 
brown, ftriated, bent, and crowned with a hairy wing or feather 
fimilar to that of the receptacle. It is a native of Spain and the 
the ftamina : the ftigma is yellow and cloven: the feeds are oblong 
r *v 
Levant, and flowers in Tune and Septemb 
V 
The firft account of the cultivation of this plant in England is 
^ 
given by Gerard, in 1597, ^^^ ^^ ^^ now ufually cultivated with other 
exotic medicinal fimples. It has an intenfely bitter tafte, accompa- 
nied with an unpleafant fmell, vfhich it lofes upon being well dried. 
" Cold water, poured on the dry leaves, extrads in an hour or two 
ght grateful bitternefs : by ftanding long upon the plant the liq 
becomes difagreeable. Redified fpirit in a fhort time extrads the 
=■5 
lighter bitter of the Carduus, but does not take up the naufeous fa 
eafily as water." * The watery extrad, hj keeping, produces a fait 
upon its furface, which refembles nitre.'' . ^ 
This plant obtained the appellation of Benedidus, from its being 
fuppofed to poflefs extraordinary medicinal virtues ; for exclufive of 
thofe qualities which are ufually attributed to bitters, it was thought 
* Lewis Mat. "Med. p. 195. 
^ Sal commune continere albi. Hift. 4e rAcad. des Sc. de Berlin, 1747? P* 79* 
to 
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