ARE BUTTERCUPS POISONOUS? 167 



not envy him his sensations j when boiled, they disorder the 

 stomach, and if eaten raw, act as an emetic. 



It was formerly thought, says a pleasing writer, that crow- 

 foot (the buttercup is a species of crowfoot), mingled with the 

 pasture, improved its nature, and that the butter yielded by 

 cows which fed upon this mixture was of a superior quality. 

 Nous avons change tout cela ; we are wiser now ; and have dis- 

 covered that cows carefully avoid eating buttercups, and that 

 several kinds of crowfoot are even poisonous to cattle. On 

 some pasture-lands, in those countries where the produce of 

 the dairy receives particular attention, women and children 

 are employed to destroy the crowfoot, which they do either 

 by pulling up the root, or by plucking off the flower, and pre- 

 venting it from dispersing its seed. The root of the buttercup 

 is of a highly stimulating property if taken in an uncooked 

 state, and its juice will occasion sneezing; but boiling deprives 

 this, as well as many other vegetable productions, of its in- 

 jurious properties. A similar effect is produced by drying it 

 in the sun ; wherefore the hay crop is not at all deteriorated 

 by its acrid nature. 



A very beautiful ornament of still pools and gently-flowing 

 streams is the Water-ranunculus (Ranunculus aqua atilis\ whose 

 leaves vary according to the depth, or calmness, or swiftness 

 of their watery habitat, and are thus adapted to permit the 

 passage of water without suffering any injury from its force. 

 The leaves on the surface have a round lobed shape ; those 

 immersed hang down in thin small fibres, which offer but little 

 resistance to the current. 



