S 1 s 



S I s 



which compole the univeife ; by the filence of the night ; 

 by the fandiuary in the temple of Coptos ; by the increafe 

 of the Nile ; by the myfteries of Memphis ; and by the 

 fillrum of Pharos." By Pharos, an Egyptian ifland, was 

 here figuratively meant, all Egypt. 



Mr. Malcolm takes the filtrum to have been no better 

 than a kind of rattle. .Ter. Bofius has an exprefs treatife on 

 the filtrum, intitlcd, " Ifiacus de Siilro." 



Oifelius obferves, that the fiilrum is found reprefented on 

 feveral medals ; and alfo on talifmans. Ofiris, on fome 

 medals, is painted with the head of a dog, and with a fiftrum 

 in his hand. 



SISUPALA, in Hindoo Mythology, is the name of a 

 malignant perfonage, into whofe body an infolent celeflial 

 was doomed to be re-born on earth, as an expiation of his 

 offence. He was flain by Krifhna. 



&\S>Y -fur-Ourcq, in Geography. See l^lZY-fur-Ourcq. 



SISYMBRIUM, in Botany, Z^<7v^^.;^'yj of the Greeks, 

 at leait the 5;. Hsfov of Diofcorides is probably included under 

 our prefent genus. His firil fpecies, celebrated for its 

 fragrance, has been fuppofed Wild Thyme, and by fome 

 nrur Mentha hirfuta, which laft has alfo occafionally a very 

 fweet fmell. De Theis feems not to have been aware of 

 this ; nor might the plant in queftion find a place in gar- 

 lands dedicated to Venus, fo much on account of its odour, 

 as of its warm and cordial properties. — Linn. Gen. 338 

 Schreb. 441. Willd. Sp. PI. v. 3. 489. Mart. Mill. Diet. 

 V.4. Sm. Fl. Brit. 700. Prodr. Fl. Gric. Sibth. V. 2. iS. 

 Ait. Hort. Kew. V. 4. III. Purfh 440. Jull. 239. La- 

 marck Diet. V. 7. 201. Illuftr. t. 565. — Clafs and order, 

 Tetr adynamia Siliquofa. Nat. Ord. Siliquofa, Linn. Cru- 

 eiferte, JufT. 



Gen. Ch. Cal. Perianth inferior, of four lanceolate- 

 linear, fpreading, coloured, deciduous leaves. Cor. cruci- 

 form, of four oblong fpreading petals, often lefs than the 

 calyx with very fmall claws. Stam. Filaments fix, longer 

 than the calyx, of which the two oppofite ones are rather 

 thelhorteft; anthers fimple. Pijl. Germen oblong-thread- 

 (haped ; ftyle fcarcely any ; ftigma obtufe. Peric. Pod 

 long, incurved, gibbous, round, with two cells and two 

 ftraight valves, which are rather fhorter than the partition. 

 Seeds numerous, fmall. 



Ed. Ch. Pod burfting, with nearly ftraight valves. 

 Calyx and corolla fpreading. 



A copious genus, tolerably natural as to habit, but not 

 very diftmftly defined ; of which the 14th edition of Linn. 

 Sylt. Veg. contains twenty-nine fpecies, and Willdenow's 

 Sp. PI. fifty-three. Nine of them are found wild in Britain. 

 We (hall defcribe all the latter, and give a general view of the 

 five feftions, into which the whole genus is divided by Lin- 

 naeus. Mr. Brown, in his very ingenious attempt at re- 

 forming the genera of the clafs Tetradynamia, in Ait. Hort. 

 Kew. has feparated fome fpecies, principally of the firll 

 feftion, into a genus called Najlurtium, and he has referred 

 two of the Britifh ones to Sinapis, (fee that article,) and 

 one to Br.'Vssica. Refpefting thefe very fpecies, there 

 has heretofore been a difference of opinion among botanilts, 

 as will appear when we come to fpeak of them in order. 

 The whole genus is herbaceous, either annual or perennial, 

 with alternate leaves, various, and fometimes inconilant, 

 in fhape and divifion mollly fmooth. The fo^vers are 

 almoll invariably yellow ; though always white in the firft 

 fpecies. 



Seft. I . Pods declining, part. Eleven fpecie* in Will- 

 denow. 



S. Najlurtium. Common Water-crefs. Linn. Sp. PI. 

 916. Willd. n. I. Fl. Brit. n. i. Engl. Bot. t. %-^^. 



7 



Curt. Lend. fafc. 6. t. 44. Woodv. Med. Bot. t. 4S. 

 Fl. Dan. t. 690. (Nallurtium officinale; Br. in Ai'. 

 Hort. Kew. v. 4. no. N. aquaticum, five Crates f 

 Sium ; Ger. Em. 257.) — Pods declining. Leaves pin- 

 nate ; leaflets roundifh-heart-lhaped. — In clear rivulets aid 

 fprings throughout Europe, from Sweden to Greece, :i; 

 well as in North America ; and, according to Mr. Purfli, 

 on the high mountains of the ifland of Dominica. It 

 is perennial, flowering in June and July. No Britifh plant 

 is in fuch popular requell as a falad ; the young leaves 

 having a pleafantly warm pungent flavour, and being fup- 

 pofed, like fcurvy-grafs, to purify the blood. They/Vij 

 are branched, angular and leafy, floating by the help of their 

 foliage, fending down long, white, fibrous roots, and termi. 

 nating in afcending corymbofe tufts, of numerous, while, 

 purplifli-tinted^owirrj. fucceeded by long clultcrs of (hort, 

 gibbous, recurved, ftalked pods. The leaves are fmooth, 

 of a dark fhining green, confilting of five or feven leaflets, 

 the terminal one largeft. There can be little doubt of this 

 being o-i5-u/.(/3fiov sls^oy of Diofcorides. The modern Greeks 

 call it vEfoi-.y'foapov ; a word fynonimous with Water-crefs. 



S. fylvejlre. Creeping Water Rocket. Linn. Sp. Pi. 

 916. Willd. n. 2. Fl. Brit. n. 2. Engl. Bot. t. 2324. 

 Curt. Lond. fafc. 3. t. 41. (Nafturtium fylveilre ; Br. 

 in Ait. Hort. Kew. v. 4. no. Eruca aquatica ; Ger. 

 Em. 248. Brachiolobos fylvedris ; Allien. Pedem. v. i. 

 278. t. 56. f. 2. ) — Pods declining. Leaves pinnate ; 

 leaflets lanC'tolate, deeply ferrated or cut. — Native of gra- 

 velly walle ground, in marfliy places, or near rivers, 

 flowering from June to September, in feveral parts of 

 England, as well as in Germany, Switzerland, and France. 

 Dr. Sibthorp obferved it on mount Hsemus. The root 

 creeps fo extenfively, that the pods are moltly abortive. 

 Stems ereft, leafy, angular, zig-zag, roaghiih, fomewhat 

 panicled. Leaves fmooth ; the leaflets of the lower ones 

 decurrent, varioufly toothed ; of the upper narrower, more 

 flightly cut or ferrated. i^/owfrj of a golden yellow ; their 

 cluiters after flowering elongated and zig-zag. 



Willdei-iow fuppofes S. lippi:e.enfe, Jacq. Ic. Rar. t. 505, 

 to be a variety of this, with more entire leaflets ; but it is 

 drawn with a fibrous, not creeping, root. 



S. terrejlre. Annual Water Rocket. Curt. Lond. 

 fafc. 5. t. 49. Fl. Brit. n. 3. Engl. Bot. t. 1747. 

 (S. palufl;re; Willd. n. 3. PoUich v. 2. 230. Purfh n. 2. 

 S. amphibium a. ; Hudf. 296. Nafturtium terreftre ; Br. 

 in Ait. Hort. Kew. v. 4. no. Raphanus aquaticus, foliis 

 in profundas lacinias divifis ; Bauh. Prodr. 38 ) — Pods de- 

 clining, turgid. Leaves pinnalifid, unequally toothed. 

 Root limply fibrous. Petals fcarcely fo long as the calyx. 

 — Found in watery places, about the fides of ditches, in the 

 north of Europe, as well as America. Very plentiful 



about London, flowering from June to September The 



root is annual, fometimes branching at the top, but not 

 creeping. Stem a foot high, nearly upright, branched, 

 leafy, furrowed, fmooth. Leaves lyrate, unequally toothed. 

 Flowers numerous, yellow, fmall and inconfpicuous, fuc- 

 ceeded by fliort, turgid, ereft pods, whofe partial flalks are 

 widely extended. 



S. amphibium. Great Water Rocket, or Radifh. Linn. 

 Sp. PL 917. Willd. n. 4. Fl. Brit. n. 4. Engl. Bot. 

 t. 1840. Purflin. 3. Fl. Dan. t. 984. ( S. amphibium^ ; 

 Hudf. 296, and y, 297. Nafturtium amphibium ; Br. in 

 Ait. Hort. Kew. v. 4. no. Raphanus aquaticus alter; 

 Bauh. Prodr. 38. R. aquaticus; Ger. Em. 240.) — Pods 

 declining, on longifli partial italks. Leaves oblong, pin- 

 natifid or ferrated. Petals longer than the calyx. — Not 

 rare in the rivers and ditches of America, and the north of 



Europe ; 



