NETTLES. 



URTICE^E. Urtica JJioica. 



Urtica Pilutifcra. 



ASSELQUIST found both these varieties of the nettle exist- 

 I ing in Palestine. It grows near cultivated spots, and 

 MS* frequently in neglected and ruined places. Every ob- 

 Q) servant traveller can testify to the luxuriant growth of 

 the nettle amid the broken walls and ancient remains 

 of the Holy Land. The truth of the words of the prophets 

 Zephaniah, Ilosea, and Isaiah seems to be written on all the 

 fallen palaces and fortresses throughout the land: &quot;Thorns 

 shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the 

 fortresses thereof.&quot; 



In each of the five places where the word &quot;nettle&quot; occurs, 

 the signification seems plainly the same, and the plants alluded 

 to must be very similar in nature although there are two 

 different words in the original. The difference between the two, 

 however, may not be greater than that which exists between 

 the words &quot; briers&quot; and &quot;thorns&quot; in English. It is the very 

 plant which, on account of its sting, would be first eradicated 

 from the garden. Hence the force of the remark of the prophet 

 that it should be found in the ruined palaces and houses. 



There seems to have been a kind used as a potherb, and one 

 which had the quality of curdling milk without communi- 



