PLANTS. 377 



have died from eating it. The remedies mentioned above, 

 namely, acids and mucilaginous drinks, are also proper 

 antidotes to the poison of Aconite, it 



Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), plate 31, fig. 5. Leaves 

 oblong, wrinkled, crenate, recurved ; the under side 

 downy ; flowers numerous, arranged around a long, simple 

 spike ; crimson, often white, with beautiful eye-like spots 

 within the throat, Native of Europe, where it grows on 

 high hills, and a well known, showy border flower of 

 easy culture, but much more beautiful in its wild state 

 than when cultivated in gardens. The fresh leaves, if 

 bruised in the fingers, have a most disagreeable odor, and 

 a mawkish, acrid, bitter taste. The whole plant is a 

 violent and dangerous poison ; when taken in considerable 

 quantities, producing delirium, convulsions, and death. 

 Its peculiar action on the heart is well known, and 

 although possessing such dangerous properties, in the 

 hands of the judicious physician it becomes a valuable 

 medicine, acting as a sedative, etc. Acids, such as 

 lemon juice and vinegar, mingled with mucilages, as 

 barley water, etc., may be used advantageously until 

 medical aid can be obtained. It . 



The Toad-stool (Agaricus muscarius), plate 30, fig. 4. 

 Cap, or umbrella, bright red, covered with white worts, 

 which are the fragments of the ruptured envelopes of the 

 sporules. Its leaf or leaves are white, clustered near 

 the top of the stem, which is four inches high and one in 

 diameter. Grows everywhere in the woods, and is one 

 of the handsomest of the Agarics. Sometimes it is of a 

 light citron color, and therefore may easily be mistaken 

 for the much esteemed Golden Agaric: the stem and 

 leaves, however, form a distinctive mark, those of the 

 toad-stool being white, those of the imperial yellow. 



