184 
Th BRITISH HERBAL 
DEV ELSION Ik 
Long-leaved Ceraftium. 
Ceraftium anguftifolium vafculo longo: 
The root is {mall and white, furnifhed with a 
few fibres, and infipid to the tafte. 
The ftalk is fingle, upright, and five inches 
high: it is hairy, and of a pale green: it fends 
out no branches, but at the top it divides, and 
fpreads into a large head. 
The leaves are narrow and Jong; they ftand 
in pairs, and the joints whence they rife are 
marked by a knot, and a little fwelled : the ftalk 
alfo frequently bows from joint to joint. 
The flowers are fmall and white: they fcarce 
open perfectly ; one generally ftands at the top of 
Goh aN 
FOREIGN SPECIES, 
the main ftalk, whence the principal branches 
that form the head rife; the others are placed 
on thofe branches which rife much higher. 
The feed-vefiel is long, flender, and’ a little 
crooked; fo that it refembles a cock’s fpur. 
The feeds are blackith. 
Ic is a native of Spain, and flowers in July, in 
the cornfields. 
Clufius calls it Ajfne corniculata; a name 
copied by moft, and tranflated by our Englifh 
writers with that of the author: they call ic 
Clufius’s horned chickweed. Some have been for 
making it a {pecies of cockle; but they never faw 
the plant. 
VU - 2Sice7 VIL 
> PU KR REY. 
S PREORIGOU Ld. 
HE flower is compofed of five petals, which open regularly, and fpread outs and are oval 
and hollowed: the feed-veffel is oval, and compofed of five valves; but contains only one 
cell: the cup is compofed of five oval, hollow leaves regularly difpofed, and ftands with the feed- 
veffel after the flower is fallen: the feeds are edged with a film. 
Linneus places this among his decandria pentagynia; the threads in the flower being ten, 
ftyles from the rudiment of the fruit five. 
The difference s evident between this plant and the a/fne, not only in its charaéters, 
and manner of growing; wherefore Mr. Ray judged unhappily in joining them, efpeciall 
are of each numerous {pecies. 
1. Common Spurrey. 
Spergula major. 
_ The root is fmall, flender, long, and furnifhed 
with numerous fibres. 
The ftalks are numerous, round, upright, and 
of a pale green: they have few branches toward 
the bottom, but many toward the top. 
The leaves are very narrow, oblong, of a deep 
green, and often curled: they ftand in a confide- 
rable number at each joint, furrounding the ftalk, 
in the manner of thofe of what are called the 
ftellate plants. 
The flowers are fmall and white; and they 
confift each of five undivided petals. 
The feed-veffel is large, and the feeds are {mall 
arid blackith. 
The fize of the plant varies extremely accor- 
ding to the nature of the ground: fix or eight 
inches is a common height for ic; fometimes we 
fee it more than a foot; and in Flanders, where 
they have fields of it, it is often two feet high. 
Tt is common wild on our plowed grounds 5 
but has fometimes been cultivated in England, as |) 
it is abroad, for the ufe of cattle. 
C. Bauhine calls it Aine fpergula difta major. 
Others, Spergula. 
2. Purple Spurrey. 
Spergula floribus purpureis. 
The root is long, fender, full of fibres, and 
penetrates deep. 
and the 
but form, 
y as there 
The ftalks are numerous, weak, and very 
much branched: they are five or fix inches lon 
and they lie {pread upon the ground, 2 
The leaves are humerous, {mall 
green. 
The flowers ftand at the top 
in great numbers ; and the 
beautiful pale purple. 
The feed-veffels are large, 
very numerous, and fmall. 
: It is common on dry hilly ground 
in May. We have it in Sioa ae 
PSR London; in great abundance ‘4 
- Bauhine calls it Aine Sesini 
Seu Spergula minor flore Tne eae 
; The leaves in this fpecies feem 
view, to furround the ftalk in gr 
every joint, as thofe of the commo 
when the plant is more nicely exa 
found only two principal leaves a 
the others are young fhoots in th 
ftand very thick, fo that the mi 
» and of a pale 
s of the branches 
y are fmall, but of a 
and the feeds are 
> on a flight 
eat numbers at 
a [purrey ; but, 
Mined, there are 
teach joint, and 
eir bofoms : they 
ftake i8 eafy. 
3. Large-flowered Spurrey. 
Spergula flore majore. 
The root is long, flender, 
many fibres, 
The ftalks are ny 
eight inches high. 
The leaves are 
of a deep green: 
than in the comm 
2 
and furnifhed with. 
merous, round, Jointed, and 
oblong, fomewhat broad, and 
they are of a firmer fubftance 
‘on [purrey, and do not curl, or 
turn, 
