322 FAMILY HERBAL. 



Indian Spikenard. Nardus Indlea. 



An East Indian plant, of the grass kind, with 

 triangular stalks, and yellowish flowers. It re- 

 sembles not a little that common yellow tufted grass, 

 which is frequent in our meadows in spring. It is 

 six or eight inches high. The leaves are long, 

 narrow, and of a pale green ; they are very numer- 

 ous, and stand in a thick tuft almost growing together 

 at the bases. The stalks rise among these ; they are 

 naked, triangular, and of a pale, green colour ; the 

 flowers stand in tufts, of the bigness of an horse- 

 bean, on the tops of the stalks ; they are blackish, 

 but ornamented with yellow threads, which give the 

 whole a yellowish appearance. This is the plant, 

 some samples of which have been of late brought 

 over as the Indian spikenard, and there is reason 

 and authority for supposing they are so. The tops 

 of the roots have that sort of tuft of hairy matter, 

 which we call Indian spikenard, growing to them ; 

 and it is of the nature of the hairy top of the spignel 

 root, owing to the fibres of decayed leaves. Breynius 

 also calls the plant which affords the Indian spikenard, 

 a kind of cyperus grass. 



The tuft of fibres at the tops of the root of thisr 

 plant, is what we call Indian spikenard ; they are 

 brown, flattish, matted together, and of a pleasant 

 smell : they are good in disorders of (he nerves, and 

 hysteric cases ; but so many better medicines are at 

 hand, that it is rarely used. 



Sponge. Spongia. 



A sea plant of a very singular kind and form. 

 It has neither leaves, stalks, nor branches, nor has 

 it the colour or aspect of our ordinary plants. 

 It more approaches to the nature of the mushrooms, 



