92 SYLVA FLORIFERA. 



" She shakes her myrtle javelin ; and behind, 

 Her Lycian quiver dances in the wind." 



iENEiD, vii. 



The ancients made great use of this plant 

 in medicine, and they formed a kind of wine 

 from the berries, as well as an oil which they 

 extracted from the ripe fruit of the myrtle. 

 The Romans flavoured their wine with the ber- 

 ries, as well as many of their dishes in cookery, 

 before the use of pepper was known to them, 

 and even then it was in high estimation for 

 making sauce for the brawn of the wild boar. 



The myrtle is a native of Asia, Africa, and 

 the southern parts of Europe. It grows com- 

 mon in Italy as an underwood; yet Pliny 

 considered it as not being a native of that 

 country, or of any part of Europe. He tells 

 us, that the first myrtle which was seen in 

 Europe was near Circeii, where the tomb of 

 Elpenor, one of Ulysses' companions, stood ; 

 and he remarks, that in his time it retained 

 the Greek name, from which he also consi- 

 dered it a stranger. It is indeed the Greek 

 name of this tree, Mup™$-, which has been fol- 

 lowed by iall the European languages. In 

 Latin, it was called Myrtus; in German, Myrte ; 

 in Dutch, Myrtus; in Danish, Myrter; in Swed- 

 ish, Myrten ; in French, Mirte ; in Italian and 

 Spanish, Mirto ; in . Portugueze, Myrta, or 

 Uurta. The Arabians call it Ae$> Alas, and As. 

 10 



