26 THE WILD-FLOWERS OF SELBORNE 



mind their former use. We have ahcady noticed 

 several of these medicinal plants, the lungwort, the 

 gromwell, the Solomon's seal. Among others may 

 be mentioned such well-known herbs as fennel, and 

 borage, and comfrey, and calamint, and barm. The 

 anti-scorbutic properties of watercress {Nasturtium 

 officinale) and scurvy grass {Cochlearia officinalis) are 

 generally admitted, though since the discovery of lime- 

 juice they are seldom used medicinally. The root of 

 the dandelion still yields a well-known medicine. The 

 use of vervain ( Verbena officinalis)^ a plant often found 

 in churchyards and waste places, dates back to very 

 remote times. It was one of the four sacred plants 

 of the Druids, who attributed to it virtues almost 

 divine. It was supposed to " vanquish fevers and 

 other distempers, to be an antidote to the bite of ser- 

 pents, and a charm to cultivate friendship." But of 

 all plants used as simples, none perhaps had a greater 

 repute among our forefathers than Eiiplirasia offi- 

 cinalis, or eyebright. Its praises were sung by 

 Spenser and Milton and Thomson. Its efficacy was 

 such that, according to the old herbalist, " if the herb 

 were as much used as it is neglected, it would half 

 spoil the spectacle-maker's trade;" and he adds: "A 

 man would think that reason should teach people to 

 prefer the preservation of their natural sight before 

 artificial spectacles." The belief in the efficacy of 

 eyebright has hardly died out yet. Anne Pratt tells 

 us that, going into a small shop at Dover, she saw a 

 quantity of the plant suspended from the ceiling, and 

 was informed that it was gathered and dried as being 

 an excellent remedy for bad eyes. Still in rural dis- 

 tricts persons are met with who have " heard tell " 



