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 à iiaigh," &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. 



T.YCOPODIACEyE. 



Lycopodium, from Avkos, a wolf, and •ttoí''?, a foot, from a fan- 

 cied resemblance to a wolf's foot. 



L. Selago — Fir club-moss. Gaelic : garbhag an slcihhc, 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 {sealladh), sight, and/ar/; 

 (bt). Greek : tao-is, 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 

 his bhalgaire, the fox-weed. 



Equisetace^. 



EcLuisetum, from eqinis, a horse, and sefa, 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, douisge, the names given \.o flitviatile^ palustre^ ramosuvi ; 

 and those flourishing in drier places, earbui/l-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 nisge, 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 



