18 THE OLD ENGLISH HERBALS 



tious disease would have struck an Anglo-Saxon as ludicrous, 

 mankind being rather the victims of " flying venom." In the 

 alliterative lay in the Lacnunga, part of which is given below, 

 the wind is described as blowing these venoms, which produced 

 disease in the bodies on which they lighted, their evil effects 

 being subsequently blown away by the magician's song and the 

 efficacy of salt and water and herbs. This is generally supposed 

 to be in its origin a heathen lay of great antiquity preserved 

 down to Christian times, when allusions to the new religion 

 were inserted. It is written in the Wessex dialect and is believed 

 to be of the tenth century, but it is undoubtedly a reminiscence 

 of some far older lay. The lay or charm is in praise of nine 

 sacred herbs (one a tree) mugwort, waybroad (plantain), 

 stime (watercress), atterlothe (?), may then (camomile), wergulu 

 (nettle), crab apple, chervil and fennel. 



" These nine attack 



against nine venoms. 

 A worm came creeping, 



he tore asunder a man. 

 Then took Woden 



nine magic twigs, 

 [&] then smote the serpent 



that he in nine [bits] dispersed. 

 Now these nine herbs have power 



against nine magic outcasts 



against nine venoms 



& against nine flying things 



[& have might] against the loathed things 



that over land rove. 



Against the red venoms 



against the runlan [?] venom 



against the white venom 



against the blue [ ?] venom 



against the yellow venom 



against the green venom 



against the dusky venom 



against the brown venom 



against the purple venom. 



to any opinion on a subject which is at present almost entirely speculative : 

 yet the theory we have quoted may serve to show how complicated and 

 difficult are the issues involved." The Times, January 13, 1922. 



