414 ILLUSTRATION OF THE BOTANY OF ( Cyperacee, 
(C. jemenicus, Linn.), of which Dr. Roxburgh states Pure-gaddi, to be the Telinga 
name of the plant, and puri-dumpa that of the roots, which are roasted or boiled, and 
‘then eaten, or, dried in the sun, and ground and made into bread: they are palatable, 
and taste like roasted potatoes, and would be very valuable if they could by culture be 
enlarged in size, so as tobe less troublesome in gathering and cleaning. The roots of 
Scirpus dubius of Roxb. (Teling. allike) are also described by him as being boiled and 
eaten by the natives, who say that they are as good as -yams,—so likewise the round 
turnip-shaped tubers of Scirpus tuberosus of Roxburgh, the P2-tsi of the Chinese, some- 
times called water-chestnut, which Professor Nees von Esenbeck considers to be only a 
bulbiferous form of Limnochloa plantaginea, and which is mentioned by the Abbé Gro- 
sier and others by the name of MJaa-tai and Pi-tse, are highly esteemed by the Chinese, 
both as an article of diet and as a medicine, and the plant is therefore extensively 
cultivated in ponds in China, whence it was transmitted from Canton to the Calcutta 
Botanic Garden by Mr. Duncan, at the desire of the Governor-general. uae Gig 
_ The roots of some other of the Cyperacee are employed in Europe for medicinal 
purposes, as the long-trailing roots of Carer arenaria, and the nearly-allied species | 
of C. disticha, C. hirta, and C. spicata, under the name of German Sarsaparilla, which 
contain about one-sixth of fecula, a small portion of bitter and of aromatic principle, 
_ Closely allied to the Grasses as are the Sedges, it is remarkable that so few of them 
should be useful, as pasture grasses; none, indeed, are mentioned among those in 
the ‘‘ Hortus Gramineus Woburnensis,” and they yield in Europe very indifferent 
fodder, though useful for bedding and litter ; but Scirpus cespitosus forms a great portion 
of the food of cattle and sheep in the Highlands of Scotland in March and till “the 
end of May; and the several varieties of S. maritimus, found in different countries, 
are greedily eaten by cattle. As Cyperacee are much more abundant in India than 
in Europe, we have few pastures there free from them, and Dr. Roxburgh enu- 
merates species of Kyllingia, Courtoisia, Cyperus, Abildgaardia, Scirpus, Isolepis, 
Fuirena, Fimbristylis, and. Trichelostylis, as common in pasture grounds in India, though 
only a few, as Cyperus dubius, and hexastachyus, are particularly specified as being eaten 
by cattle. e 7 7 
Papyrus of the banks of the Nile, Papyrus antiguorum, of which boats, paper, 
and ropes were made, is a plant of this family; it is said to be called dbabeer in 
Syria, and is described by the Arabians (Avic, c. 543) by the name fafeer and — 
burdee, the former evidently of the same origin as the Greek and Syrian names. 
A species of the genus Papyrus, (P.corymbosus, N. ab. E. P, Pangorei ex Arnott) 
is hardly of less use in India, being extensively employed for making the mats 
so much used there for covering the floors of rooms, and which are also so much 
esteemed in Europe. Dr, Ainslie says that a species, called kora and toonghi, which 
he refers to, C. tevtilis of ‘Thunberg, is employed in the Peninsula for the same 
purpose. Some of the species of Scirpus, especially S. lacustris, are sometimes substi- 
tuted for rushes in making baskets and chair-bottoms, &c. ; Cyperus textilis is employed 
In 
