1859.] CHAPTERS ON BRITISH BOTANY. 173 



is probably Myrica or Tamarix ; " and that " Pants Smicti Jo- 

 hannis is the husks that the prodigal ate.^' The Doctor has 

 no doubt about the Mustard being Sinapis nigra of modern bo- 

 tanists. 



The learned Michaelis^ in his introduction^ informs us that 

 there are " in the Sacred Scriptures upwards of 250 botanical 

 terms ; which none use so frequently as the prophets." 



Among sacred pliytologists is to be included Dr. Bromfield, 

 who is well entitled to rank among the most illustrious martyrs 

 of science, and who perished before completing his labours in 

 the interesting field of Oriental and sacred botany. This lamented 

 traveller, in his ' Letters from Egypt and Syria/ notices the 

 plant Malva rotundifolia, Linn.^ as still common, and eaten in 

 the East. Hiller (p. 457) says, Malluach, Heb., Malva, is a kind 

 of Halimus ; and Scheuchzer agrees with him. 



Lady Calcott's work on sacred botany is the most recent 

 treatise on the Scripture plants that has appeared in England. 

 And it is now^ nearly twenty years since this was published. 



There is much information on the Natural History of the 

 Holy Land in Dr. Kitto's ' Pictorial Bible/ and especially in his 

 ' Physical History of Palestine.^ These works are Avell known 

 and very popular; and they are all professedly compilations: 

 none of them lay claim to originality of matter. 



The Natural History of Palestine is one of our desiderata ; it 

 is an unaccomplished task. It is a field in which laurels may be 

 fairly won and worn ; and he who wishes to win his spurs has a 

 fine opportiinity. Let him, if he has a few years to spare, depart 

 for Syria ; but he should not take Egypt in the way, as most of 

 our naturalists have done. The land of Misraim, though most 

 interesting to the civil historian, antiquarian, and artist, is but a 

 barren soil for the botanist. The latter should betake himself to 

 the mountains, vales, rivers, and lakes of Palestine. Here he 

 will not be disappointed. The monks of Syria are too incurious 

 and lazy to accomplish this task, but they might afford some help 

 to an enterprising naturalist. 



There is one purely botanical object which waits for some 

 adventurous author to accomplish, viz. the botany of that part 

 of Syria or Arabia which lies between the Mediterranean on the 

 west, and the Euphrates on the east, and between Egypt on 

 the south, and the Lebanon chain of mountains on the north. 



