186 HOURS AMONG THE ROCKS AND CLOUDS. 



though not of common occurrence. Withering observes that the tender leaves 

 are very commonly boiled in soups, or fried with other herbs. Cows, Sheep, and 

 Swine eat it. The smell of Garlic is said to be so inimical to Moles, that to get 

 rid of them it is sufficient to introduce a few heads of this plant into their sub- 

 terraneous walks. 



Allium ursinum, Bear's Garlic, Broad-leaved Garlic, Ramsons. — Every part 

 of the plant, when trodden under foot or otherwise bruised, exhales the strong 

 odour of its genus ; and if Cows feed upon it, ever so sparingly, the milk is 

 rendered nauseous, and the flavour is communicated to butter, so as to be 

 offensive, if not unwholsome ; the pretty flowers are therefore viewed with disgust 

 by those who wish in vain to eradicate such a troublesome weed from their 

 pastures. In Khamschatka it is used as a principal antiscorbutic, as well as for 

 culinary purposes, and is gathered in large quantities for winter service. Pliny, 

 who first recorded the specific name, does not account for its application. The 

 coarseness of its qualities, like the manners of some human beings, may justify 

 the comparison. 



Allium schcenoprasum, Chive Garlic. — It is preferred for early spring salads 

 and soups, being very hardy, and milder than the other species. The roots are 

 considered beneficial to cold, phlegmatic constitutions. 

 Woodside, Liverpool, 

 Feb. 7, 1838. 



C To be continued.) 



HOURS AMONG THE ROCKS AND CLOUDS. 



No. I. — Plinlimmon. 



By Edwin Lees, P.L.S., M.E.S. 



Gloomy as a phantom emerging from the womb of night — hideous as a cloaked 

 hag in a wintry storm — and cheerless and desolate as the blast of November, 

 sweeping from the boisterous south-west — sits solemn Plinlimmon, cowering in 

 the eternal seclusion of fog and cloud. Few besides the lone shepherd penetrate 

 into his turbaries and defiles, few venture upon his treacherous quagmires, and 

 still fewer attain the eminence of his grey loose cams. There is nothing to repay 

 the danger — nothing to invite the inquiry, and the stranger who hurries past the 

 base of the mountain, strains his eyes in vain amidst the descending deluge to 

 behold the grim monarch of the bogs and floods. Sulky, obstinate, unconquered, 

 passive, and yet revengeful, he personifies the rude race that hang upon his skirts, 



