Medical Botany. 49 
more nearly to that of the Fung, than to any other class of 
vegetables. Ht Re 
Tenth. The Clavus is said to be so like S. compactum- 
and S. stercorartum, that its analogy can hardly be denied, 
by any, who have seen them together. 
Eleventh. The Abbe Fontana is said to have planted in 
his garden, a number of grains of wheat and rye, and upon 
the top of each to have placed several grains of Clavus. 
The result was a crop, in which both the wheat and rye, 
were infested with Clavus. 'This has been considered an 
evidence of the contagious nature of Clavus ; but does it 
not rather prove propagation by seeds; for Decandolle in- 
forms us, that, contrary to the opinions of 'Tode and Per- 
soon, Sclerotium should be ranked between Elvella and 
Clavaria, as belonging to that group which have external 
organs of reproduction, and not internal ones, as in Truffle, 
to which it has been approximated. Indeed the difference 
of Sclerotium and Clavaria, are said to be so slight, as to 
occasion difficulty in characterizing them. 
The Clavus, as it commonly appears, is externally of a 
violet colour, and internally white. Its form is cylindrical, 
tapering at the two extremities, occasionally straight, but 
generally curved somewhat into the shape of a crescent, in 
most instances with a longitudinal groove both upen the con- 
vex and concave side, though sometimes destitute of it on 
one, or even both sides. Its dimensions are from four to 
twelve lines in length, and from two to three in diameter. 
Its flavour is, at first, imperceptible, but after some time, it 
is disagreeable, nauseous, and sub-acrid. If chewed for a 
considerable while, it produces a sense of fullaess in the 
throat. | 
A grain of it cut transversely and viewed through a micro- 
scope, is said to present an assemblage of small and brilliant 
grains like starch.. The external and coloured pellicle, seen 
under similar circumstances, appears as a mass of a violet 
colour, strewed with small whitish spots. 
When a grain is inflamed, by contact with a lighted can- 
dle, it burns with a white flame, distilling some drops of an oily 
liquid, emitting a dense black smoke, and smelling like burnt 
bread. 
Willdenow speaks of two varieties of Clavus, the first of 
which he denominates sumple, and describes as of a pale 
Vou. IT.....No. 1. 
