666 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



Among- plants that are seldom poisonous are the dandeliou and bonesot, 

 such as have labiate corollas with seeds lying- naked on the calyx, arc 

 seldom or never poisonous ; the mint and thyme are examples of such 

 plants. The papilionaceous flowei's, as the pea and bean ; the cruciform, 

 as the radish and mustard, are seldom found to be poisonous. 



Such plants as have their stamens standing- on the cal^'x, as the rose and 

 apple are never poisonous; neither the grass-like plants with glume calyxes, 

 as wheat, rye, &c. 



But it may be said that the qualities of plants, to some extent at least, 

 are known even to the rude children of the forest. This is true, but the 

 acquiring of this knowledge is often attended with painful circumstances, 

 and it is lost with individuals. Science proceeds on sure and safe princi- 

 ples, while without it knowledge is the result of accident. It is well 

 known that the Indians, who once possessed this land, obtained all their 

 medicines from plants. The Indian women accompanied their husbands 

 •when they penetrated the deep recesses of the forest, or climbed the rugged 

 mountain side. While the husband was in pursuit of game, to nourish or 

 clothe his family, she was collecting plants to preserve or recover their 

 health. Their properties, or the likelihood, that thc}^ would answer her 

 purpose, she sought to ascertain by smell, or taste. This was the uncertain 

 and unsafe way that she acquired her knowledge of the medicinal qualities 

 of herbs. She had no sj^stem, and no written language in which to pre- 

 serve the knowledge she had acquired, consequent)}' it was lost with her- 

 self or was preserved only in tradition; but the botanist accumulates and 

 classifies, discovers and experiments, and thus transmits to succeeding 

 generations the results of his researches. 



Take for example the digitalis purpurea, or foxglove. An eminent bota- 

 nist. Dr. "Withering, says, regarding it, " The history of this plant might 

 afford a practical answer to such as sneer at the pursuits of the botanist, 

 for, digitalis grew neglected, until a botanist made known its virtues and 

 gave to medicine one of its most valuable auxiliaries. It is most beneficial 

 in dropsical and inflamatory complaints and diseases of the heart, and of 

 the lungs, but great caution is required in its use. This single reference 

 is amply suflScient to show us the value and a right use of botanical know- 

 ledge to the human family. 



After adverting; to the pleasure arising from viewing nature at different 

 seasons, the speaker concluded with the following: 



I have endeavored briefly to present to you some of the many induce- 

 ments for the study of botan3^ Yet enoug'h I trust has been said to impress 

 upon us its importance. Even if circumstances may render it unlikely that 

 we can ever pursue it to any very great extent, the smallest degree of 

 knowledge regarding it will convey a corresponding degree of pleasure. 

 The happiest hours of life may be spent in wandering through fields of 

 nature, collecting and classifj'ing the wild flowers, and contemplating the 

 evidences of skill and goodness written on each by the finger tif the great 

 creator. It is a mistake to suppose that there is anything insuperably 

 difficult in the study. An ordinary mind, with ordinary industry, may soon 

 acquire a sufficient acquaintance with it to make it at once pleasant and 

 profitable. With even a limited degree of the knowledge of botany, nature 



