163 THE WITCH HAZEL 



in the peculiar ways and manners of the herbs they 

 gathered and prescribed* 



The Witch Hazel, with its peculiar habit of burst- 

 ing into flower after shedding its leaves in the fall, 

 was naturally regarded as possessing unusual qualities. 

 Any tree or shrub that could afford to so far ignore 

 and disregard the established usages of the forest 

 was confidingly credited with extraordinary powers. 

 It is a shrub approaching the dignity of a tree, 

 sometimes reaching a height of twenty feet, and is 

 abundant wherever it has an opportunity in southern 

 Ontario* Its rich, green, pear-shaped or oval leaves 

 have wavy -toothed edges and are conspicuously 

 though not quite evenly divided by a depression 

 along the mid-rib. It bears some resemblance to the 

 leaf of the Hazel, and that accounts for its name. 

 People who see resemblances can never conceive of 

 the amount of trouble and confusion chargeable to 

 their account. 



After the leaves fall the little globular buds which 

 have been forming in clusters during the summer 

 open suddenly into picturesque yellow flowers, each 

 with four long, narrow, crumpling petals forming an 

 irregular cross. Such handsome and striking adorn- 

 ment at so unusual a season has enabled the Witch 

 Hazel to achieve a place of distinction. Its attributes 

 are not only medicinal but esoteric. The Witch 

 Hazel not only effects a wide range of wonderful 



