1022 ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. PART III. 



on the common lime tree, at Shardeloes, in Buckinghamshire ; and on the 

 black poplar, at Sutton Place, in Surrey. 



History. The mistletoe was known to the Greeks and Romans. In speak- 

 ing of that which grows on the oak, we must not forget that Pliny says that 

 " the Gauls held this plant in the greatest veneration ; and that their magicians, 

 whom they call druids, consider nothing more sacred." The Greeks and 

 Romans appear to have valued it chiefly for its medicinal qualities ; and more 

 especially as an antidote to poisons. The Persian magi gathered the mistle- 

 toe with great care, and used it in their religious ceremonies. According to 

 Gerard, the mistletoe, in his time, was valued for several properties ; but he 

 says nothing respecting its propagation or culture. The first botanist who 

 appears to have attempted this was the celebrated Du Hamel ; and, since 

 his time, its propagation has been attended with success, both in this country 

 and on the Continent. 



Properties and Uses. The berries have, from a very early period, been used 

 as birdlime ; which, Gerard says, is greatly to be preferred to birdlime made 

 from the holly. The contrary of this, however, is asserted by Du Hamel. 

 As a medicine, the mistletoe was frequently employed, in England, as a cure 

 for epilepsy ; but it no longer holds a place in the British materia medica. 

 The berries are eaten by the blackbird, the fieldfare, and thrush ; especially by 

 the large, or missel, thrush. It was formerly believed that birdlime was only 

 the excrements of the thrush, which feeds chiefly on the berries of this tree, 

 and that the bird was often caught by what it had itself voided. Hence the 

 Latin proverb, " Turdus malum sibi cacat." The principal use made of the 

 entire plant is, to hang up in kitchens of farm-houses, &c., at Christmas. 

 In Herefordshire, where the berries are very abundant, a birdlime is sometimes 

 made from them, by boiling them in water till they burst, and afterwards 

 beating them up in water, and washing them, till all the husks are separated 

 from the pulp. The Italians add oil to their mistletoe birdlime, after it has 

 been thus prepared. 



Mythological, poetical, and legendary Allusions- The mistletoe, particularly 

 that which grows on the oak, was held in great veneration by the ancient 

 Britons. At the beginning of their year, the druids went in solemn procession 

 into the forests, and raised a grass altar at the foot of the finest oak, on 

 which they inscribed the names of those gods which were considered as the 

 most powerful. After this, the principal druid, clad in a white garment, 

 ascended the tree, and cropped the mistletoe with a consecrated golden pruning- 

 hook, the other druids receiving it in a piece of pure white cloth, which they 

 held beneath the tree. The mistletoe was then dipped in water by the chief 

 druid, and distributed among the people, as a preservative against witchcraft 

 and diseases. If any part of the plant touched the ground, it was considered 

 to be the omen of some dreadful misfortune, which was about to fall upon the 

 land. The ceremony was always performed when the moon was 6 days old, 

 and two white bulls were sacrificed when it was concluded. The following 

 fable respecting the mistletoe is abridged from the Edda : Friga, the 

 Scandinavian Venus, having discovered, through her skill in divination, 

 that some evil threatened her son Balder (Apollo), exacted an oath 

 from fire, earth, air, and water, and every thing that sprang from them, not 

 to injure him. Loke, the evil spirit, finding, at a kind of tournament held soon 

 after by the Scandinavian gods (who, it must be remembered, were very 

 warlike deities), that none of the lances, &c., ever touched Balder, but glanced 

 away, as though afraid of approaching him, suspected that they were under the 

 influence of some charm, and determined, if possible, to discover what it 

 was. For this purpose, he disguised himself as an old woman, and, intro- 

 ducing himself to Friga, contrived to insinuate himself into her confidence; 

 when Friga told him that every thing that grew on the earth, flew in the air, 

 swam in the sea, &c., had taken an oath not to hurt her son. Loke pointed 

 to the mistletoe, which neither grew in earth, nor water, and asked her if 

 it was included in the charm. Friga owned that it was not ; but added, that so 



