LYCOPODIUM. 199 



these buds which were caused to germinate. The buds 

 themselves offer much analogy to the larger spores or oopho- 

 ridia produced by some other species, and afford an addi- 

 tional argument in support of the view which regards these 

 oophoridia as gemmse, or buds. 



There is no doubt this plant possesses some medicinal 

 properties, though it is not now used in regular practice. 

 It is powerfully irritant, and is used by country people, in 

 the form of an ointment, as a counter-irritant in parts near 

 the eye, as a remedy for diseases of that organ ; it appears 

 to be also sometimes employed as an emetic and cathartic, 

 but not without danger. A decoction is, on the authority 

 of Linnseus, used in Sweden to destroy vermin on cattle. 

 It is also employed for dyeing purposes, and to fix the colour 

 of woollen cloths. 



The Lycopodiums are not frequently seen in cultivation, but 

 they nevertheless, equally with the Ferns, would become a 

 source of much interest if brought constantly under the eye 

 in a living state ; and in an equal degree the study of them 

 in this condition the watching of their progress and deve- 



