174 ENGLISH EOTANY. 



green and almost always spotted or blotched with purple, panicu- 

 iatcly hranclied. Radical leaves very large, deltoid in outline, 

 bipinnate, with the leaflets very deeply pinnatifid ; the segments 

 pinnatifid or cut, tlie ultimate segments short, oblong-acute ; stem- 

 leaves similar but smaller and less compound, with short dilated 

 petioles. Umbels terminal and axillary, shortly stalked, of 10 to 20 

 glabrous rays, J to 1 inch long. Involucre retlexed, of few leaves, 

 similar to those of the involucel. Plowers ^ inch across, slightly 

 radiant. Crcmocarp dull-green, J inch, about as long as broad, 

 tapering towards the apex, with thin elevated waved ridges. Plant 

 glabrous. 



This is the only short-fruited umbelliferous plant found in Britain 

 which has a spotted stem. 



Common Hemlochf Herb Bennet, 



French, Cigue Commune ou tachee. German, Gejlecht&r ScMerling. 



The Hemlock is such a dangerous plant, that all peoi)le living in the country- 

 should make themselves acquainted with its appearance. It is very abundant in most 

 parts of Great Britain, and to the uninstructed looks very like cow-parsley or many 

 other harmless herbs. Its poisonous principle, which is alike dangerous to man and 

 animals, resides chiefly in the roots and leaves, and may be extracted by water. Its 

 energy varies according to season and locality. The active principle is known to 

 chemists under the name of conia. It is an alkaloid, and is very soluble in alcohol 

 and ether, combining with diluted acids to form salts. It is much employed in modern 

 medicine as an antispasmodic and anodyne, and in the last edition of the British Phar- 

 macopoeia we find it prescribed in several forms. It is used in diseases of the glands, in 

 scrofulous and cutaneous disorders ; but it is far too powei'ful a remedy to be employed 

 by any but a regular practitioner. Dr. Christison's experience is, that conia, whether 

 free or combined, is a most powerful poison. Dr. Taylor tells us that as it exists in 

 Hemlock, it undoubtedly operates by absorption, yet when insulated it destroys life so 

 rapidly that it must be supposed to kill without entering the blood. It produces 

 general palsy without insensibility, and with slight occasional twitches only of the 

 limbs of the animal. He says, " It is singular that the heart does not appear to be 

 affected by the poison, as this organ pulsates even after other signs of life have ceased. 

 Death appears to be due to asphyxia, from the general paralysis of the respiratory 

 muscles." A single drop of conia applied to the eye of a labbit killed it in nine 

 minutes, and three drops killed a strong cat in a minute and a half. Cases of acci- 

 dental poisoning by Hemlock are not unfrequent, generally from its being mistaken 

 for other herbs. Orfila relates an instance where some soldiers ate it in soup. They 

 appeared as if intoxicated. The one who had eaten most became senseless in less than 

 two hours after swallowing the poison, and though emetics were soon administered, 

 he died in three hours. In some cases it causes paralysis. Dr. J. Hughes Bennett 

 relates a case of a man eating a quantity of Hemlock in mistake for parsley. Soon 

 afterwards he was seized with paralysis of the lower extremities, then of the arms and 

 body, and three hours after, having eaten the Hemlock he died. These accidents 

 should. deter any one from allowing Hemlock to grow in gardens or fields where it is 

 likely to be picked by children or ignorant persons. Ev^en the common schoolboy 



