52 YELLOW GOAT's-BEARD. 



with purple, the petals of a fourth arc va- 

 ried with stripes of white and lilac. Tbe« 

 common yarrow is extremely fragrant, the 

 scent of the henbane is, on the contrary, 

 most unpleasant. The sweet and nutri- 

 tious roots of the goat's-beard have the 

 flavour of asparagus, while those of the 

 strong-scented lettuce, yield an acrid and 

 bitter juice that resembles opium, and pos- 

 sesses its narcotic qualities. These effects 

 can be alone referred to the agency of the 

 vital principle, though this cannot to our 

 understanding explain them : they are evi- 

 dently the result of chemical depositions 

 and combinations, but we know not what 

 these depositions and combinations are, nor 

 the agents, nor the laws by which they 

 are produced and regulated. The root, too, 

 of the goat's-beard, how curious it is ! 

 Formed on the principle of a wedge, it 

 penetrates readily into the earth, while 



