116 FLORA HISTORICA. 



LARGE-FLOWERED ST. JOHN'S-WORT. 



Hypericum Calychmm. 



Natural Order Rotacea. Hyperica, Jiiss : a Genus 

 of the Polyadelphia Polyajidria Class. 



** Hypericum all bloom." 



COWPER. 



«• 1 hold you as a thing- eiiskied and sainted." 



Shakspeare. 



We possess no fewer than thirty-nine species 

 and several varieties of the Hypericum, which 

 modern bigotry has named St. John's- Wort, and 

 which ancient superstition called Fnga Dcemo- 

 rmrriy believing that this plant would defend per- 

 sons from phantoms and spectres and drive away 

 devils. For the same reason others called it Sol 

 Terresiris, Terrestrial Sun, because they say that 

 all the spirits of darkness vanish at the approach 

 of the sun. We are disposed to adopt this latter 

 name to distinguish this flower from its thirty-eight 

 relatives, as thirty-nine Worts are too many to de- 

 dicate to any one saint ; and the Hypericum Caly- 

 cimon, growing close to the earth, with a large 

 yellow flower, whose hundreds of chives form 



