156 Mr. Hardy's Botanical Notices. 



have been a common name prevalent among several people, 

 which caught up from a vulgar, had become transmitted in a 

 classical channel. In Tragus, the German name for Spar- 

 ganium is " Ried " or " Riedt." He has also " Riedt-gras " 

 for several rough grasses, inclusive of Carex, This word is 

 still in use in England, in the form of " Reits," expressive 

 of sea or river weeds, of which it is also significative in 

 modern German. We have it in the Scottish form of "Reyss," 

 i.e. coarse grass in marshy places, or on the sea-shore. Thus, 

 Blind Harry, in Wallace — 



"Thai trowit that bog myoht mak thaim litill waill, 

 Growyn our with reyss." (New Edit. p. 123). 



There is also the Anglo-Saxon " rise," a rush ; ' ' reisk," 

 Scottice, grass that grows on downs, &c. ; " reezlie," cold 

 land producing coarse grass ; whence, perhaps, the first 

 syllable of Riselaw, a Berwickshire farm. The modern 

 German " Rieth " comprehends the most of those meanings ; 

 as well as " reeds," and " canes," and " flags." 



The Germans have other good names for Sparganium ; 

 " Igelsknospen," (hedge-hog buttons) ; " Schwertel-Riet," 

 (Sword-reed) ; and such like. A Flemish name, " Candel- 

 aers," the chandileer, is sufficiently picturesque. Another 

 Belgic name is, " seer snydende drycantich Lisch,"* almost 

 Lowland Scottish ; its exponent in English being, " sore 

 cutting triangular flag." This reminds us that the " Bouto- 

 mos " of Theophrastus has strong claims to be regarded as 

 Sparganium ; and of several ingenious etymological misses 

 recorded by J. Bodseus a Stapel, in his edition, Amst., 1644, p. 

 462 ; none of them being the obvious explanation of De 

 Theis, that it is so called beciuse the sharp leaves bleed the 

 cattle's mouths which eat it. (" Spiegazione Etomologica, 

 &c, Vicenza, 1815.) 



That the broad leaves of Sparganium ever formed swaddling 

 bands for Grecian nurses to strap their children, as some of 

 the older botanists (C. Bauhin, " Theat. Bot." p. 221) allege 

 from the etymology of the word, I do not believe. The word 

 was taken metaphorically from some fancied resemblance ; 

 and here De Theis also agrees. It is true that its leaves 

 when withered become pliant and innocuous, and may have 

 thus become adapted for tying. The female " Butomos " of 

 Theophrastus was " ad nexus utilis." C. Bauhin (" Theat. 



* The Belgic lisch agrees with the Italian lisca, a reed ; and the A. S. risen 

 and our rush appear to be other forms of the word, 



