THE DOGWOOD. 281 



The leaves and young slioots are remarkable for the 

 number and strength of their spiral vessels. So tenacious 

 are these, that if a tender twig or leaf (in any stage of 

 growth) be snapped asunder in several places, the spiral 

 vessels may be discovered, by the naked eye, holding the 

 pieces so firmly together, that if one fragment be lifted up, 

 all the others Avill remain suspended. 



The fruit of the Dogwood is bitter and styptic, and 

 yields an inferior kind of oiL The wood has long been 

 used for the manufacture of small instruments in which 

 compactness of substance is required, such as arrows, 

 ramrods, &c., and it is still much sought after as a 

 material for skewers. 



Another species, Cornus alba, the White-fruited Dog- 

 wood, is common in shrubberies : it resembles the last in 

 habit, but its branches are longer and of a yet brighter 

 red. It is a native of Siberia and North America. 



The Cornus, Cornel, or Cornelian Cherry of the ancients, 

 is another species, the Cornus mas of botanists. It grows 

 wild hi all the southern countries of Europe, except Great 

 Britain, and may be distmguished from the preceding by 

 its yellow flowers, ash-coloured twigs, and scarlet berries, 

 which are as large as acorns, but worthless as fruit. 

 Mention of it occurs in several of the legends of the 

 Romans, and its wood was much used for making spears. 

 Our Dogwood appears to be the shrub alluded to by Pliny 

 under the name of Virga sanguinea, Bloody-twig. 



