96 



them being but newly shod, and no reason known, which caused 

 much admiration ; and the herb described usually grows upon 

 heaths." — Culpepper. 



Ferns frequently formed components in charms. 



" Faigh naoi gasan rainaich 

 Air an gearradh, le tuaigh, 

 A's tri chnaimhean seann-duine 



Air an tarruinn a uaigh," &c. — M'Intyre. 



Get nine branches of ferns 



Cut with an axe, 

 And three old man's bones 



Pulled from the grave. 



''Fern seeds were looked upon as magical, and must be 

 gathered on Midsummer eve." — Scottish and Irish Superstition. 



Lycopodiace^.. 



Lycopodium, from A-vVo?, a wolf, and ttol-?, a foot, from a fan- 

 cied resemblance to a wolf's foot. 



L. Selago — Fir club-moss. Gaelic : ga?'bhag an sleibhe, the 

 rough one of the hill. " The Highlanders make use of this 

 plant instead of alum to fix the colours in dying. They also 

 take an infusion of it as an emetic and cathartic ; but it operates 

 violently, and, unless taken in a small dose, brings on giddiness 

 and convulsions." — Lightfoot. According to De Theis, "Se- 

 lago " is derived from the Celtic, sel {seaHadk), sight, and/ar// 

 {he). Greek : tao-t?, a remedy, being useful for complaints in 

 the eyes. 



Badge of Clan M'Rae. 



L. clavatum, annotinum, and the rest of this family are called 

 I us bhalgairCj the fox-weed. 



EgUISETACEiE. 



Equisetum, from eqinis, a horse, and seta, hair, in allusion to 

 the fine hair-like branches of the species. Those plants of this 

 order growing in watery places are called in Gaelic and Irish, 

 clois, clouisge, the names given \.o fliiviatile, palustre, ramosum; 

 and those flourishing in drier places, earbiiiU-each, horse-tail. 

 Clois seems a contraction of do-uisge (O'Reilly), — do, a nail-pen 

 or peg, perhaps suggested by the appearance of the fruiting 

 stems, and uisge, water. 



E. hyemale — Dutch rushes, shave-grass. Gaelic : a bhiorag, 

 — b\or, a pointed small stick, anything sharp or prickly. Or 

 water {see Appendix). This species was at one time extensively 



