SYNGENESIA : POLYGAMIA SUPERFLUA, 497 



The ftalk is ere£b, a foot high, branched, and um- 

 belliferous at the top : the leaves are either quite 

 fmooth, or (lightly hairy, very long, and finely 

 divided ; compounded firft of 20 or 25 pair of 

 ihort pwriify each of which is fubdivided into 

 three or even fevcn pair of pinrjuU^ which arc 

 again cut into trifid or quinquefid lanceolate 

 fegments, all of them dotted and reticulated ; 

 the fcales of thci:alyx are green, with pale brown 

 margins : the flowers are fmall and numerous : 

 the difc is either of a pale yellow colour or red : 

 the rays are only four or five, very fhort and 

 plain, not above half the length of the calyx, 

 and either white or red : the feed is oblong, 

 comprefs'd, and has a white margin. 



The plant has an aftringent quality, and is reckoned 

 good to flop all kinds of hoemorrhagies, and to 

 heal wounds, but is out of ufe in the prcfent 

 pradicc. The highlanders flill continue to make 

 an ointment of it to heal and dry up wounds. 

 The common people, in order to cure the head- 

 ach, do fometimes thrufl a leaf of it up their 

 noftrils, to make their nofe bleed ; an old prac- 

 tice, which gave rife to one of its Englijh names. 



Linnaeus informs us, that the inhabitants of Bale- 

 karliay in Sweden^ mix it with their ale inflead 

 of hops, and that it gives the liquor an intoxi- 

 cating quality. 



Cattle do not rcfufe to eat It. 



K k POLY 



