xliv INTRODUCTION. 



nonymy. It is a plant of which there 

 never has been any doubt, it is 'Apre/xto-ta 

 with the Greeks, Artemisia with the Latin 

 authors, and Artemisia with the druggists. 

 It is Artemisia in Itahan, and Armoise in 

 French. How is this consensus to be 

 acknowledged, and how shall the system- 

 atist supply that lack of a synonym which 

 is due to this very consensus? In what 

 manner shall the tradition be respected 

 that this is the true old veritable Artemisia 

 which was never anything but Artemisia ? 

 Here comes in the peculiar technical sig- 

 nificance of the not trivial though trivial- 

 looking badge vulgaris. The typical plant 

 of the genus always known as Artemisia 

 and by no other name, shall henceforward 

 be distinguished as Artemisia vulgaris^ 

 that is to say, the plant which everybody 

 has always called Artemisia. This is an 

 honoured use of vulgaris which reminds 

 us that the Italian language was called 

 lingua volgare, and that English is in high 

 connexion called the vulgar tongue. 



The genus Hypericum has a feature of 

 another kind. Its chief plant has for 



