S"wainp of Oracles 179 



food in the juices of such golden petals to cause him 

 to tear the flower apart. He may, however, have fer- 

 tilized the species in the act ; yet the destruction of its 

 parts would have weakened the possible chances of the 

 seed-capsule maturing properly. 



In the bend of Ball Brook, amid the ferns, the Tall 

 Northern Green Orchis {Habe?iaria hyperbored) blooms, 

 its seeds having floated down here from the seed-cap- 

 sules ripening on plants bordering the stream above. 



Wild Ginger - Root {Asarum Canadensc) grows 

 abundantly along the sphagnous edges of the Swamp 

 of Oracles. This plant produces bell-shaped blossoms, 

 which invariably turn downward, hiding in the soft 

 soil beneath the leaves. Its creeping roots are of a 

 spicy, ginger-like flavor. The leaves — kidney-shaped 

 — appear as small burdocks at a distance. The generic 

 name is verj^ obscure, although the plant was known 

 to the early Greeks, and later known in lyatin as Asa- 

 nun, Nardus rustica, and Perpensa. Macer called it 

 Vulgago, while it was known in England and Germany 

 in 1578 as Asarabacca, Folefoot, and Hazlewort. It was 

 used by the ancients as an antidote for venomous ser- 

 pent bites, sciatica, difficult respiration, and various 

 other diseases. 



On June 15th I made my farewell journey to Etcho- 

 wog. Turning into the thicket, east of the Barber 

 Mill, I followed a path as far as possible, and then 

 waded through sphagnum into a meadow-like clearing 

 of three acres or more, concealed in the deepest of soli- 

 tude. It was closed in on all sides by low alders, 



