?aa£ l9or'e, Iseger^Ci/, ari^ Isijric/'. 29 1 



milke of a cow, or else death presently ensueth." Colchicum is 



a herb of the Sun. 



COLTSFOOT.— The shape of its leaves has given the 

 Tussilago Favfarti its English name of Colt's-foot, although, as 

 Gerarde points out, it might more appropriately be termed Cough- 

 wort. The plant has its Latin name from tussis, a cough, and for 

 many centuries has been used in pulmonary complaints. It formed 

 the basis of Coltsfoot lozenges, long celebrated as a cure for coughs. 



The Bavarian peasants make garlands of the sweet-scented 



Colt's-foot on Easter Day, and cast them into the fire. Colt's- 

 foot, or Foal's-foot, is a herb of Venus. 



COLUMBINE. — The English name of the Aquilegia is 

 derived from the Latin columba, a pigeon, from the resemblance of 

 its nectaries to the heads of pigeons in a ring round a dish, a 

 favourite device of ancient artists. The generic name comes from 

 aquila, an eagle, from the fancied resemblance of the same parts 



of the flower to the claw of the king of birds. The plant was 



formerly sometimes called Herha leonis, from a belief that it was the 



favourite herb of the lion. The Columbine is held to be under 



the dominion of Venus. 



CONJUGALIS HERBA.— This herb, De Gubernatis con- 

 siders to be, in all probability, the same as is known in Piedmont 

 as Concordia (according to Gerarde, a kind of wild Tansy), concern- 

 ing which M. Bernadotti had sent him the following particulars: — 

 " In the valleys of Lanzo, when two lovers wish to assure them- 

 selves that their marriage will take place, they proceed to search 

 for the plant called Concordia. They say that this plant is exceed- 

 ingly scarce, and hence very difficult to find. Its root is divided 

 into two parts, each representing a hand with five fingers. On 

 finding this plant, it is necessary to uproot it in order to see if the 

 two hands are united — a certain sign that the union will take place. 

 If, on the contrary, the two hands are separated, the marriage will 

 be broken off. (See Concordia.) 



CORIANDER. — From a passage in the Book of Numbers, 

 where Manna is likened to Coriander-seed, it would seem that 

 " Coriander's spicy seed " was commonly used by the Israelites. 

 The bitter Coriander is one of the five plants mentioned by the 

 Mishna as one of the " bitter herbs " ordained by God to be eaten 

 by the Jews at the Feast of the Passover. It was esteemed as a 

 spice by the Arabs, Egyptians, and Hindus. The plant's foliage 

 has a strong and offensive odour, but its little round fruit is 

 pleasantly aromatic, and its seeds, when covered with sugar, form 

 the well-known Coriander comfits. Robert Turner, in the ' Brittish 

 Physician,' says that the powder of the seeds taken in wine, stimu- 

 late the passions; and Gerarde affirms that the juice of the green 

 leaves, " taken in the quantity of four dragmes, killeth and 



u — 2 



