Sr JOHN'S WORT. 



613 



under process, in a similar manner to that by 

 which it was retained on the carded cotton. 



Safflower is imported into England from India 

 and Turkey : the Indian is very much superior, 

 being nearly double the price of the Turkish. 

 It is admitted at the trifling duty of Is. per 

 cwt. The average annual importation for the 

 last five years has been 2,942 bales, each weighing 

 one cwt. The average price of the best during 

 that time was £8 17s. per cwt. 



In Germany this plant is cultivated pretty 

 extensively on light land well pulverized. It 

 is sown in rows about eighteen inches distance, 

 and afterwards thinned to three or four inches 

 apart in the row. In September the plants 

 begin to flower, and the field is then gone over 

 once a week for six or seven weeks, to gather 

 the expanded florets, which are dried in a kiln 

 in the same manner as true saff"ron. Turkeys 

 and geese are said to feed greedily on the seed, 

 and soon fiitten on it. 



St John's Wort fh/pericum perforatum;) 

 polt/adelphia, polyandria, of Linnseus. This 

 plant grows naturally in many parts of Great 

 Britain, and can be easily propagated by layers 

 or seeds. It has a shrubby stalk about two feet 

 high. The branches gi-ow in pairs, shooting 

 forth in opposite directions. The flowers grow 

 at the ends of the stalks, and bloom in July and 

 August. These are succeeded by globular berry- 

 like capsules of a black colour. 



The juice expressed fi-om the tops and flowers 

 is perfectly soluble in water, alcohol, and vinegar; 

 a solution in the two former affords a blood-red 

 coIo\ir, in the latter a fine bright crimson; when 

 combined with other acids it exhibits a yellow 

 colour, which proves that it contains two colour- 

 ing matters, capable of separate solution in dif- 

 ferent menstrua. If alum, combined with a 

 certain portion of potash, be used as a mordant, 

 a bright yellow dye is obtained; by increasing 

 the quantity of the mordant, the colour some- 

 what inclines to green, and by the addition of a 

 solution of tin in nitro-muriatic acid, according 

 to the proportion used, rose, cherry, or crimson 

 hues, all of a fine lustre, will be produced. 



This juice can be made to assume a concrete 

 fonn by being exposed in shallow dishes to the 

 moderate heat of an oven. If then it be reduced 

 to powder, it will readily combine by trituration 

 with turpentine. The resin, thus saturated with 

 the juice, can be mixed with olive oil, and forms 

 the oil of St John's wort, sometimes used in 

 pharmacy. Incorporated with linseed oil, and 

 with the addition of a small portion of oil of 

 turpentine, a fine red varnish is produced, which 

 may be advantageously employed for coating 

 articles of furniture made of wood. 



Officinal CROTONf'croion Hnctorium.) Natural 

 family cvpliorhiace<e ; moncecia, monandria, of 

 Linnceus. This plant yields the dye called turn- 



sole. It is an annual, producing a round her- 

 baceous branching stalk with many leaves, stand- 

 ing upon long slender footstalks. It seldom 

 exceeds nine inches in height. The flowers are 

 produced in short spikes from the sides of the 

 stalks at the end of the branches. They appear 

 in July or the beginning of August, which is 

 the proper time for collecting them. At this 

 time the peasants assemble from the distance of 

 fifteen or twenty leagues round, and each gathers, 

 on his own account, the flowering tops of the 

 plants. These are immediately bruised in a 

 mill, and the dark green juice is expressed into 

 stone vessels. It is then, without loss of time, 

 poured over pieces of canvas or linen provided 

 for the purpose. These first appear of a lively 

 green, but afterwards change to a red-purple 

 hue. Thus prepared, they are packed and sold 

 by the French under the name of tournesols en 

 drapeaux. These shreds are employed to colour 

 several articles in domestic economy. The Dutch 

 buy up large quantities, which are used by them 

 to colour wines and the rinds of cheese. 



When infused with distilled water they afford 

 an excellent test. Litmus, well known to 

 chemists as a test for detecting alkalis or acids, 

 is prepared fi-om this plant. The former changes 

 its colour to blue, the latter to red. Persons 

 who formerly prepared the litmus purposely 

 concealed the source whence it was derived, pre- 

 tending that it was extracted from the heliotro- 

 pium tricocctim, in order to mislead others and 

 restrict the preparation to themselves. It is 

 now, however, well known that croton is the 

 plant from which litmus is obtained. 



Alkanet, or BuGLOss (anchusa tinctoria). 

 Natural family horaginim; pentandria, mono- 

 gynia, of Linnseus. This plant is a native of 

 the Levant, and the warmer parts of Europe. 

 France, particularly about Montpelier, produces 

 it in the greatest abundance. Our chief supplies 

 are drawn thence; for though it is raised in 

 England, the roots are much inferior to those of 

 foreign growth. It is a hardy plant, growing 

 with a branchy stem, having oval leaves set 

 alternately on the branches. The flowers come 

 forth from the summit in long spikes, growing 

 grouped together like the tiles of a house. It 

 is propagated by seed, sown in beds either in 

 spring or autumn; when sufficiently advanced 

 the young plants arc transplanted at intervals of 

 two feet from each other. The colouring matter 

 is confined to the bai'k of the roots, and therefore 

 the small roots, having more bark in proportion 

 to their bulk than the large ones, afford the most 

 colour, and are considered the best. 



Alkanet root is insoluble in water, an aqueous 

 decoction being of only a dull brownish colour; 

 but this substance imparts a deep red colour to 

 alcohol, oils, wax, and all unctuous substances. 

 In consequence the principal use made of it is 

 3x 



