HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



225 



in several corn-fields and also along the hedge banks 

 and borders of the same fields. The figure of this 

 species as given in Gibson's " Flora," is a good one, 

 with the exception of the leaflets, which are repre- 

 sented as ovate, whereas they are obovate ; but truer 

 to nature than either the engravings of Gibson or 

 Syme is the old woodcut of Gerard, headed Terra 



lesser, of a red purple colour, in smell not unpleasant ; 

 in their places come up long cods, in which are three 

 or four round seeds : the roots be thicke, long, like 

 after a sort to acorns, but much greater, blacke, 

 without, gray within, in taste like to the chesse-nut ; 

 out of which beneath doth hang a long slender string." 

 He mentions also that by the Dutch, the curious 



Fig. 83.— Lathy t us tubcrosus. 



Tig. 84. — Rootstock and tubers of Lathyrus tuberosus. 



glci7ides, pease earth-nut, while his verbal description 

 allowing for the absence of technicalities is excellent. 

 "The pease earth-nut commeth vp with slender 

 and weake stalkes : the leaves be thin, and little, 

 growing upon slender stems, with clasping tendrils at 

 the ends, with which it imbraceth and taketh hold of 

 such things as stand neere onto it : the flowres on the 

 tops of the stalkes are like to those of pease, but 



tubers are called " tailed mise of the similitude or 

 likenesse of domesticall mise, which the blacke, round 

 and long nuts, with a piece of the slender string 

 hanging out behind do represent," and to a dead and 

 shrivelled mouse they have certainly a quaint re- 

 semblance. Gerard states that although this plant is 

 common in Germany, he had not heard of its occur- 

 rence in England. In Holland it is stated to be used 



