8 



Its drooping, smooth, green, round-leaved water-cress growing so radiantly, 

 treast-high, trimly ; under its remarkably perfect white flower. 

 "Dobhrach bhallach mhln."— Macintyre. 

 Smooth-spotted water-cress." 

 Biorar — Bior-fheir, water-cress. Bior, water. Welsh : Berwr y 

 dwr. Berwr, cress ; dwr, water. Biolar Frang — French cress or 

 garden cress. 



A curious old superstition respecting the power of this plant as 

 a charm to facilitate milk-stealing was common in Scotland and 

 Ireland. "Not long ago, an old woman was found, on a May 

 morning, at a spring well, cutting the tops of water-cresses with a 

 pair of scissors, muttering strange words, and the names of certain 

 persons who had cows, also the words — " '.S leamsa leth do chuid- 

 sa'' (half thine is mine). She repeated these words as often as 

 she cut a sprig, which personated the individual she intended to 

 rob of his milk and cream." "Some women make use of the root 

 of groundsel as an amulet against such charms, by putting it 

 amongst the cream." — Martin. Among the poorer classes, water- 

 cress formed a most important auxiliary to their ordinary food. 

 *' If they found a plot of water-cresses or shamrock, there they 

 flocked as to a feast for the time." — Spencer. 



Sisymbrium Sophia— Flixweed. Gaelic: fineal Mhuire, the 

 Virgin Mary's fennel. Welsh : piblys, pipe-weed. Manx : lus-y- 

 jiargey, flux-herb, used for curing flux. Flux was a terrible 

 scourge in Britain and the Isle of Man in the seventeenth and 

 eighteenth centuries. 



Erysimum alliaria and officinalis— Garlic mustard, sauce alone. 

 Gaelic: garbhraitheach, rough, threatening. Gairleach colluid, 

 hedge garlick. Manx : mustard chleigee, hedge mustard 



Cheiranthus cheiri— Wallflower, gilly-flower. Gaelic : lus leth 

 an t-samhraidh, half the summer plant. Irish : the same Welsh : 

 Moden gorphenaf, July flower or gilly-flower. Wedgewood says 

 gilly-flower is from the French giroflee. Manx: blaa yn eail Eoin, 

 the flower of St. John's Feast. 



Matthiola incana — Stock. Pincin (O'Reilly). The "Queen 

 Stock " of the gardens, well known to every one. 



Brassica rapa — Common turnip. Gaelic, neup; Irish, neip; 

 Welsh, maipen; Scotch, neep (and navew, French, navet); corrup- 

 tions from Latin napus. 



