LICHEN. 



739 



Thi species, like the former, occurs sparingly on the 

 """"<""" * sea-rocks of the South of England ; but it is said to 

 abound in the East Indies, especially on the shores of 

 Sumatra, and might deserve the notice of some of our 

 enterprizing countrymen. 



The names of Orchal and Orseille are bestowed also on 

 I.ecanora tartarea, which has to a considerable extent 

 been employed as a substitute for the other. This species 

 has long been noted for its property of yielding co- 

 piously a red, or brownish red colour, equally beautiful, 

 it is thought, but less durable, than the colour yielded 

 by the true orchal. Its use was early known in West 

 Gothland ; and, to this day, it is collected in Sweden 

 and Norway, and brought in whole cargoes to Britain. 

 Castor. At Glasgow it is called ctidltcar a denomination which 

 it has acquired from a corrupt pronunciation of the 

 OKritian name of the chemist who first employed it on 

 the great scale (Dr. CutMxrl Gordon) ; at least it is 

 the principal species used in the cudbear manufac- 

 ture, for UrceoUria calcaria, and some other kinds, 

 are commonly intermixed, being gathered promiscu- 

 ously by' the people employed. The true cudbear 

 lichen might easily be distinguished by its yellow 

 saucers, while U. calcaria might as readily be discri- 

 minated by its black tubercles. It is not uncommon 

 on the rocks of this country. In the rocky districts 

 of Westmoreland and Cumberland, it is gathered by 

 the peasantry for dyers, who pay them at the rate of 

 Id. a pound ; and it is likewise collected in vari- 

 ous parts of Scotland, where it often covers the dif- 

 ferent kinds of trap and clay-stone rocks. Consider- 

 able quantities of the dye-stuff are sold to manufac- 

 turer* engaged in the woollen and silk trade, gene- 

 rally at the rate of about 10 per cwt. ; and the 

 maker* of the article, themselves, employ a part of it in 

 Cottons of a Turkey-nil colour. Tin- cotton 

 handkerchief* of Glasgow are dyed with this 

 preparation; and the fixedness of the colour is well 

 known. 



Dillentus first took notice of a specie* of lichen, which 

 he observed to be in use among the natives of Caer- 

 narvonshire for dyeing scarlet, and which they pre- 

 ferred even to orchal. He describes it : " tartarciim, 

 tinctorium, candidum, tuberculis atris." From thence 

 rt ha* been considered as the Lichen calcarius of 

 Linrarux, or Urceolaria calcaria, Ach. which has just 

 been mentioned as usually intermixed with cudbear 

 lichen. Dilleniu* supposed that this is the species 

 mentioned by Martin, in his Hittory of the Western 

 IttamU of SmlLinrl, under the name of corkir, and 

 with which the inhabitant* produce a reddish colour. 

 This lichen doe* occur in these islands ; but it is not 

 common, the great body of rocks not being calcare- 

 ous, or of the kind to which this species is almost 

 peculiar. The cudbear lichen, Lecanora tartarea, is 

 '..: the true corcttr of the Scottish Highlanders, and 

 which, as mentioned by Lightfoot, they employ for 

 dyeing claret or pompadour colour. It is usually 

 prepared by pounding the lichen, and mixing it with 

 stale chamber-ley, to which a little salt or kelp is add- 

 ed ; this mixture is kept in a state of maceration for 

 teveral weeks; being then brought to the consist- 

 ence of coarse paste, it is made up into balls, with a 

 little lime or burnt shells, and is kept ready for use. 

 \\ i,i-ii ii-. . I. it is coarsely powdered, and a small por- 

 tim of ilium in generally added. The other lichens em- 

 ployed by the country people as dye-stuffs are prepared 

 much in the same way. 



The pertUt or Ortrtlle d'Auvergne, prepared from Le- 

 canora parella, was long a favourite material among 



the teinturiers of France, before the lichen was collected Lichen, 

 for economical purposes in this country. It is now, ac- 'T" 1 "' 

 cording to Withering, gathered in considerable quanti- 

 ties on the rocks in the north of England, and sent to Lon- 

 don in casks. From this species the finest litmus is pre- Litmus. 

 pared ; slips of unsized paper stained with which, are 

 well known to chemists as delicate tests for ascertaining 

 the presence of minute portions of uncombined acids. 

 It may be noticed, that M. de Cocq, in a memoir in the 

 Amtalts de Chimie, has created some doubt as to the 

 species of lichen from which the perelle or orchal of 

 Auvergne is procured : It is possible that the dye-stuff 

 sold under those names may, in a great measure, be 

 manufactured from the common Roccella ; but in the 

 Flore Frangaise of Lamarck and Decandolle, the Pa- 

 tellaria (Lecanora) parella is, without hesitation, refer- 

 red to as the genuine source. Dr. Westring mentions 

 Lichen parellus as the only one which yielded to him 

 a real blue ; this it did merely by infusion ; but he 

 adds, that the colour is fugitive, nor could he discover 

 any mordant capable of fixing it. 



The Parmelia saxatilis, is still used in some parts of 

 Scotland for dyeing woollen yarns, and is known to the 

 peasantry by me name of stane-rarv. It is also common- Stane-raw. 

 ly employed in Sweden, and other northern countries, 

 for the same purpose. Dr. Withering mentions, that, in 

 these countries, it gives a purple colour ; but, as managed 

 in Scotland, it yields only a dirty orange. Parmelia om- 

 phalodes is much used by the Scottish Highlanders, un- 

 der the name ofcrolal, for dyeing a reddish-brown. Ac- Crotal. 

 cording to Rutty, Parmelia caperata is used in the north 

 of Ireland and in the Isle of Man for dyeing wool of an 

 orange colour, and is often called arcc/l. The Sticta 

 pulmonacea, already repeatedly mentioned, is sometimes 

 resorted to by the same class of people for tinging 

 their yarn of a brown colour. In the north and west 

 of Scotland these lichens are sometimes promiscuous- 

 ly called crottlet ; in England, it is believed, they 

 often get the name of rags or hazel-rags, and in the 

 south of Scotland /uizcl-rnw. Although several spe- 

 cies of lichen very different in habit and qualities, 

 are thus used by the common people of this coun- 

 try, so very defective are the means employed, that they 

 procure scarcely more than one colour. Linnaeus men. 

 tions that a beautiful red colour may be prepared from 

 Lichen pustulatus (Gyrophora pustulate, Ach.); and Dr. 

 Withering informs us, that it also yields a very deep 

 black paint. A lichen allied to this, and which has 

 already been mentioned as an edible species, Gyrophora 

 cylindrica, is used by the Icelanders for dyeing woollen 

 stuffs of a brownish-green colour. In Sweden, espe- 

 cially in Smoland, and also in Norway, Evernia vulpina, 

 (the poisonous property of which has before been no- 

 ticed,) is used for dyeing woollen-stuffs yellow. The 

 Cetraria Islandica, which has already been spoken of, 

 both as an article of food and as a medicine, is used in 

 Iceland for dyeing brown. The colour resides in the 

 extractive matter, which is separated by slight boiling or 

 by merely steeping in warm water. We have the au- 

 thority of Bartram, the traveller, for stating, that Li- 

 chen barbatus (Usnea barbata, Ach.) is collected in , 

 quantities from the trees in Pennsylvania, and employ- 

 ed by the people for communicating an orange hue to 

 yarn. 



The species which have been mentioned are remark- Bxperi- 

 able for abounding in colouring matter, and for the menu on 

 facility with which they communicate it to woollen, the colour- 

 cotton, or silken fabrics. Many other species, however, Jl^^ 1 "*" 

 afford colour, and some minute lichens give the finest 

 tints. The writer of this article, many years ago, made 



