PASTORAL AND AGRICULTURAL BOTANY 



I owe a cock to Asclepius: do not forget to pay it. " "It shall be done, " 

 replied Crito. "Is there anything else that you wish?" He made no 

 answer to this question; but after a short interval there was a movement, and 

 the man uncovered him, and his eyes were fixed. Then Crito closed his 

 mouth and his eyes. 



"Such was the end, Eshrecrates, of our friend, a man, I think, who 



was the wisest and justest, and the 

 best man that I have ever known. " 

 Ericaceae. This family includes 

 a number of shrubs and under 

 shrubs which are poisonous to stock. 

 As they contain essentially the same 

 poisonous principles, although 

 belonging to different genera, they 

 are described botanically first and 

 cases of poisoning are cited after- 

 wards. The general symptoms 

 and the nature of the toxic principles 

 are discussed also. 



Lamb Kill, Sheep-Laurel 

 (Kalmia angustifolia) . This is an 

 underbush growing 18 inches to 2 

 feet tall with opposite, or whorled, 

 leaves, dark-green above, light- 

 green beneath. The floweis are 

 purple, or crimson, in umbels and 

 the capsular fruit is persistent in 

 whorls on the stems for a number 



FIG. 36. Fruiting branch .of ' sheep Q f years ( Fig- ^^ The sheep . 

 laurel (Kalmia angustifolia) collected at , . v , / 



Mays Landing, N. J., January 2, 1920. laurel is found in dry woods, or in 



Successive whorls of fruits are shown of wet so {\ f rom Newfoundland to 

 different ages. TT i -r. . , 



Hudson Bay, south to Georgia and 



Michigan. It is common in the pine barrens of New Jersey and on the 

 barren soils of the Pocono plateau of Pennsylvania. 



The leaves of this plant are said to be poisonous to sheep and calves, 

 and cases of men being poisoned by eating the flesh of partridges which 

 had fed on the buds and fruits have been reported. There is a general 

 belief among farmers that the leaves of this plant are poisonous to lambs 



