194 THE FRUITS OF THE COUNTRY-SIDE 



perish soon after, as do fishes also." On the other hand, 

 the older English writers call the plant the henbell, and it 

 is so far back as the Anglo-Saxon lists the henne-belle. It 

 has been conjectured that the " bell " has reference to the 

 somewhat bell-like form of the enlarged calyx, but this is 

 always seen on the plant in a position that throws its mouth 

 upwards, not at all a bell-like position. Still, in favour of 

 this view we must mention that another old name for the 

 plant is the symphoniaca, a name derived from the 

 symphonia, a series of bells of varying sizes suspended 

 from a beam and struck by a hammer. This throws no 

 light on the " hen," and the probability is that we are 

 on the wrong track altogether, and that the name has 

 no reference at all to hen, or bell, or bane in the sense 

 we ordinarily attach to those words. Prior, in his book on 

 the names of our British plants, gets so far as introducing 

 a Celtic deity, Belenus, as sponsor. 



The henbane has for many centuries been held in 

 high repute as a narcotic, soporific, and anodyne, and 

 yet holds its position in the Pharmacopoeia. Gerard, 

 we note, says that " the leaves, seed and iuyce taken 

 inwardly causeth an vnquiet sleepe like vnto the sleepe 

 of drunkenesse, which continueth long, and is deadly 

 to the party." This suggests the thought that perhaps 

 henbane is best left alone. 



That the plant may legitimately be called the bean of 

 the hog seems as open to question as that it be considered 

 the bane of the hen. One venerable authority declares 

 that " swine having fed thereon, are very much disturbed 

 thereby, yea, are in danger of their lives, if they wallow 

 not themselves in water presently thereupon : neither do 



