BOOK XXV. Lxvii. 114-LXX. 117 



with white spots ; the stem is short and hollow, the 

 blossom purple, the root so broad that it might be 

 taken for that of the turnip, and having a dark skin. 

 It grows in shaded spots, is called by our country- 

 men tuber terrae,*' and ought to be grown in every 

 home if it is true that wherever it grows no evil 

 spells do any harm. They call it " amulet ", and 

 say that if it is added to wine intoxication comes at 

 once. The root is also dried, cut up fine as is done 

 with the squill, and then stored away. This is 

 boiled down to the consistency of honey. It has 

 however a poisonous quaUty of its own, and it is 

 said that if a woman with child steps over this root 

 she miscarries. 



LXVIII. There is also another cyclamen with the 

 surname of cissanthemos,'' differing from the pre- 

 ceding one in that it has jointed stems of no vahie, 

 winds itself round trees, and bears berries Hke those 

 of ivy, only soft, and a handsome, white flower; 

 tlie root is of no vahie. The berries only are used ; 

 these are sharp to the taste and sticky. They are 

 dried in the shade, crushed, and cut up into lozenges. 1 



LXIX. A third kind of cyclamen has been pointed 

 out to me with the surname of cliamaecissos,*^ which 

 has only one leaf, and a branchy root fatal to fishes. 



LXX. Among the most popular pf plants is Pewedanm» 

 peucedanum, the most esteemed kind of which 

 grows in Arcadia ; next to this comes the one gi-owing 

 in Samothrace. Its stem is slender, long, hke fennel, 

 and leafy near the ground ; the root is dark, thick, 

 juicy, and with a strong smell. It grows on shaded 

 mountains and is dug up at the close of autumn. The 

 tenderest and deepest roots are the favourites. 

 These are cut up with bone knives into strips four 



221 



