SMALLER BERRIES. Q7S 



Europe, where it thrives best upon light and chalky 

 soils. It £i;re\v formerly wild, in o-reat quantities, 

 in the hedgerows of England, but has been uni- 

 versally banished, from a general belief that its pre- 

 sence is injiu'ious to the growth of corn. Duhamel, 

 Broussonet, and other scientific writers, treat this be- 

 lief as a vulgar prejudice. It should, however, be 

 remarked, that the fructification of the barberry is 

 incomplete, unless the stamens be irritated by insects, 

 when the filaments suddenly contract in a most re- 

 markable manner towards the germ. The flowers 

 are, therefore, by a beautiful arrangement of nature, 

 peculiarly attractive to insects ; and thus the barberry 

 may become injurious to neighbouring plants. The 

 berries grow in bunches, and are so very acid, that 

 they are seldom eaten ; but with the requisite quan- 

 tity of sugar they make an excellent jelly. 



The Elder — Sajnbucus. 



The elder is a native of this country ; is very gene- 

 rally diffused ; grows with singular rapidity, though 

 it never arrives at great size ; and endures the most 

 bleak situations, though in the northern parts of 

 Scotland the fruit seldom ripens. The berries of the 

 elder are fermented into a wine, which, when spiced 

 and drunk warm, is a pleasing winter beverage. They 

 are supposed to contain a portion of the narcotic 

 principle. The black variety is chiefly cultivated 

 for this purpose ; but the berries of the yellow and 

 green are also applicable to wine making. 



The elder-tree furnishes the unscientific prac- 

 titioner of the healing art with many of the most 

 appi'oved remedies ; and perhaps not without reason. 

 Eoerhaave, the great physician, is said to have re- 

 garded the elder with such reverence, for its medi- 

 cinal virtues, that he sometimes took ofl" his hat in 

 passing a tree of this species. 



2 B 2 



