ASP 



ASP 



Gen. Char. Cal. none ; corolla onc-petalled, fix-paitoc^ ; 

 divifions lanceolate, flat, fprc-ading ; ncdaiy, fix very fiuall 

 valves, converging into a globe, inferted into tlie bafe of 

 the corolla. Slam, filaments fix, fubulate, inferted into the 

 valves of the nedlary, bowed; alternately fliorter ; anthers 

 oblong, incumbent, rifing. Pl/l. germ roundifli within the 

 nedary ; ftyle Tubulate, in thefame fituation with the llamens; 

 iligma truncate. Per. cnpfule globular, flefliy, thrce-lobcd, 

 three-celled. Seeds, feveral, triangular, gibbous on one fide. 



Eir. Gen. Char. Cor. fix-parted ; ne£lary fix valves cover- 

 ing the genu. 



Species, I. A. luteus ; yellow afphodel, or king's-fpear, 

 Jacq. Hort. I. 32. t. 77. " Stem leafy, leaves three-fided, 

 llrialed." Root compofed of flefhy long thick tubers ; llalks 

 round, fimple, about three feet high, and wholly covered 

 with long triangular boat-diaped leaves. The upper part of 

 tlic (lalk is crowned with yellow llar-diaped flowers, which 

 open in fuccefTion, about the beginning of June. Pedun- 

 cles onc-flowcrcd, arifing from the axillx of the bra<5tes, 

 which are membranaceous, fmall, whitifh. The corolla has 

 a fweet fmell, and is fo deeply divided as not to feem mono- 

 petalou?, and the divifions or petals are alternately narrower. 

 It is a native of Sicily. 2. A. rawj/ui ; branched afphodel. 

 Villar's Dauph. 2. zCt^. Murray in Com. Gott. 1776. 37. 

 t.7./3. A. albus. Mill. Did. n. 3. " Stem naked, leaves 

 enfiform, keeled, fmooth." Root compofed of many tubers 

 and fibres ; leaves long, flexible, Iharp at the edges, growing 

 in irregular cluftei-s from the crown of the root ; ftalks three 

 feet high, fending off naked branches, from the upper part 

 <jf which arife many rtar-fhaped flowers, which are white, 

 with a longitudinal purple line along the outfide of each 

 fegment. A native of the fouth of Europe. 3. A.fjluhjfi's ; 

 oaion-leaved afphodel. G:crtn. Fruft. 1.68. Gouan. Hurt. 

 1 74. " Stemnaked,ieavesiUff,fubulate, llriated,fubfiftulofe ;"' 

 annual ; roots confiit of many flefhy yellow fibres ; leaves 

 in a large clufter from the crown of the root, convex on 

 their under fide, flat above and hollow. Flower ilalks rife 

 immediately from the root, and grow to the height of two 

 feet, dividing towards the top into three or four branches, 

 which are adorned with white ftarry flowers, having purple 

 lines on the outfide ; thefe come out in July and Auguft, 

 and their feeds ripen in Oflober. A native of the fouth of 

 France, Spain, and the ifland of Crete. Scopoli has de- 

 fcribed and figured another fpccies, which he named afpho- 

 del'ms Uburnicus ; it has yellow pendulous flowers, ft.reaked with 

 fivebrownifli lines, and has faffron-coloured filaments. It was 

 found in Iftria by Mygind. See Flor. Carn. n.411. 1. 12. 

 The three former fpecics were cultivated by Gerard in 1596. 



Propagation and Cullure. The firft fpecies multiplies very 

 fall by roots, and will foon overfpread a large border, if 

 fuffered to remain undifturbed. The fecond does not in- 

 creafe very rapidly by roots, nor fliould it be often tranfplant- 

 cd, for that will weaken it ; therefore the btft way is to 

 propagate it by feeds. Thefe afphodels are pretty orna- 

 ments in a garden, and requiring very little trouble to cul- 

 tivate, are rendered more acceptable. They may be propa- 

 gated by feeds which fliould be fown foon after they are 

 ripe, on a warm border of light frefh earth : in the fpring 

 the plants will appear, when they are to be carefully cleared 

 from weeds, and in dry weather frequently watered, by 

 which means the plants will be in a proper ftate to be trans- 

 planted the Michaelmas following. A bed mull then be 

 prepared in the flower nurfery of frefli earth, into which you 

 ihould plant the roots, at about fix inches dlflance, and fo 

 deep that the top of the roots may be three or four inches un- 

 der the furface of the bed ; and fome old tan or dung fpread 

 over the bed to keep out the frofl. In thie bed they are to 



remain one year, by which time the roots having acquired 

 llrength enough to produce flowers the following year, they 

 Ihould in autumn, when their leaves are decayed, be careluliy 

 taken up and tranfplantcd into the flower garden, oblcrving 

 to place them in the middle of the borders among other hardy 

 kinds of flowers, whire being properly intermixed, they will 

 make an agreeable variety, and.continue a long time in flower. 

 The third fort is an annual, and can only be propagated by 

 feeds which (hould be fown in autumn, and not removed till 

 they have put out four or five leaves, when they are to be 

 tranfplantcd into the places where they are to remain. If 

 the feeds of this plant ai-e permitted to fcatter, they will 

 come up without care, and thole which are not removed 

 will be the llrongeft, and produce a greater number of 

 flowers. See Martyn'a Miller's Dift. 



ASPHYXIA, in Medicine, a term which, in its liter.il 

 fenfe, fignifies a want of pulfation, being derived from, a 

 privative, and a-^i^t-:, f'^fus. It is ufed to denote apparent 

 death. Such fufpcnfions of the vital aftions are referred by 

 Cullen to apoplexy and fyncope ; but in the fyftem of Sau- 

 vages they conilitute a diilintt genus, wider the above name. 

 The l.'.ll-mentioned nofologill has been too minute in his 

 fuhdivifion of this, as well as of many other difcafes. The 

 following appear to us to be the only legitimate fpecies ; 

 viz. A. fiibnurff/rum, apparent death from Drowning ; 

 which fee. A. fiifpeuj'orum, apparent death from Hanging; 

 which fee. A. congetatoruw, apparent death from expofure 

 to extreme cold. This we fhall notice here, as the moft 

 convenient place. In the northern latitudes, frequent in- 

 ftances occur, during the winter feafon, of perfons being 

 frozen to d^ath. Before this event takes place, they arc 

 feized with a general numbnefs, and an irrefillible projienfity 

 to fleep, folhnved by llnpor, and inienfihility. In this ap- 

 parently lifelefs flate they he for feveral hours, more or lefs, 

 according to the intenfity of the cold, and tlie previous 

 condition of the body. They are, however, yet recover- 

 able by proper treatment ; which confifts in taking ofi" the 

 perfon's clothes, and rubbing the body all over with fnow, 

 or dafliing cold water upon it. The fritlion fliould be con- 

 tinued for many hours, until figns of fife appear ; when the 

 patient fliould be wiped diy, and put into a cold bed, in a 

 room without fire : he fhould have but few clothes upon him 

 at firft. When the power of fwallowing is reftored, a fmall 

 quantity of white wine and water (two parts of water to 

 one of wine) fliould be given in a tepid ftate ; but on no 

 account any fpirituous liquors, fuch as brandy, rum, &c. 

 Afterwards he may have tea, with a large proportion of milk, 

 increafing the quantity of nourifhment gradually. He fliould 

 avoid a heated room for a day or two, as well as all ftrong 

 drinks and feafoned food ; otherwife a fever, or dangerous 

 local inflammations, will be excited. Travellers or otl'.crs who 

 are about to be expofed to extreme degrees of cold, (hould be 

 cautioned againft the ufe of fpirituous liquors, and every effort 

 fliould be exerted by their companions to prevent them from 

 falling afleep. For the treatment of partial injuries from 

 cold, fee the article Frost-bitten. A. a carhone (A. 

 carboniea, as we would term it), fuffocation from the fumes 

 of charcoal, from the gas thrown out by fermenting liquors, 

 &c. [I.e. fuffocation from the carbonic acid gas.) See 

 Suffocation. A. a mephidite (A. azoliea), fuffocatien 

 from foul air orazotic gas. See Suffocation. A. neophy- 

 torum, apparent death of new-born infants. Sec Mid- 

 wifery. 



ASPIA, \n Arieient Geography, a river of Italy, in Pice- 

 num, north-eaft of Auxinum. 



ASPIC, Fr. in yirii/kry, a piece of ordnance, weighing 

 4250 ftj and cairying a 12 ft fliot. 



Aspic, 



