rv. INTRODUCTION. 33 



of tliem, and then I will admit the uses of these vegetables." This I shall therefore 

 now endeavour to do, by summing up a few of the uses to which Algas have been 

 applied by man. 



Man, in his least cultivated state, seeks from the vegetable kingdom in the first 

 place a supply for the cravings of hunger, and afterwards medicine or articles of 

 clothing. As food, several species of Alga3 are used both by savage and civilized 

 man, but more fi'equently as condiments than as staple articles of consumption. 

 Many kinds commonly found on the shores of Europe are eaten by the peasantry. 

 The midrib of Alaria esculenta, stripped of the membranous wings, is eaten by the 

 coast population of the north of Ireland and Scotland ; but to less extent than the 

 dried fronds of Rhodymenia palmata, the Dulse of the Scotch and Dillish of the 

 Irish. This latter species varies considerably in texture and taste according to the 

 situation in which it grows. When it grows pai-asitically on the stems of the larger 

 Lamlnartce it is much tougher and less sweet, and therefore less esteemed than when 

 it grows among mussels and Balani near low water mark. It is this latter variety, 

 which, under the name of " shell dillisk," is most prized. In some places on the 

 west of Ireland, this plant forms the chief relish to his potatoes that the coast 

 peasant enjoys ; but its use is by no means confined to the extreme poor. It is 

 eaten occasionally, either from pleasure or from an opinion of its wholesomeness, 

 by individuals of all ranks, but, except among the poor, the taste for it is chiefly 

 confined to children. It is commonly exposed for sale at fruit stalls, in the towns 

 of Ireland, and may be seen in similar places in the Irish quarters of New York. 

 In the Mediterranean it forms a common ingredient in soups, but notwithstanding 

 M. Soyer's attempt in the famine years to teach this use of it to the Irish, they 

 have not yet learned to prefer it cooked. Occasionally, however, it is fried. 



Cliondrus crispus, the Carrageen or Irish Moss of the shops, is dissolved, after 

 long boiling, into a nearly colourless insipid jelly, which may then be seasoned and 

 rendered tolerably palatable. It is considered a nourishing article of diet, especially 

 for invalids, and has been recommended in consumptive cases. At one time, before 

 it was generally known to be a very common plant on rocky coasts, it fetched a 

 considerable price in the market. Though called " Irish moss," it is abundant on 

 all the shores of Europe and of the Northern States of America. It is, perhaps, 

 most palatable when prepared as a blanc-mange with milk, but it should be eaten 

 on the day it is made, being liable, when kept, to run to water. Its nourishing 

 qualities have been tested, I am informed, in the successful rearing of calves and 

 pigs partly upon it. 



Many other species, particularly various kinds of Gigartma and Gracilaria, yield 

 similar jellies when boiled, some of which are excellent. 



Gracilaria lichenoides, the Ceylon Muss of the East, where it is largely used in 

 soups and jellies ; and G. Spinosa, the Agar-Agar (or Agal-Agal) of the Chinese, 

 are among the most valuable of these. They are extensively used and form 

 important articles of traffic in the East. Another species of excellent quality, the 

 Gigartina speciosa of Sonder, is collected for similar purposes by the colonists of 

 Swan River. 



It was at one time supposed that the famous edible birds' nests of China, the 

 VOL. m. ART. 4. I" 



