470 THE VEGETABLE WORLD. 
Marvellous properties are ascribed to the Egg Plant by ancient 
writers. Mandeville, an old English writer of wonderful travels, 
speaking of the Dead Sea, tells us that “besyden growen trees 
that baren fulle faire apples, and faire of colour to beholden, but 
whosoe breakethe them or cuttethe them in two, he shall find them 
within coles and cyndres.’’ Milton, alluding to this tradition, 
finely apostrophises the breakers or cutters :— 
“They, fondly thinking to allay 
Their appetite with gust; instead of fruit 
Chewed bitter ‘ashes.” 
The Egg-shaped Morell (Solanum oviferum), the fruit of which is 
the shape, colour, and about the size of a hen’s egg, is eaten cut 
up in slices and fried. 
Around the Solanum are grouped many interesting plants which 
we ought to mention did our space permit. 
The Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum) is cultivated in most 
gardens, and produces a fruit called the Love Apple, of a lively 
red colour, with round lobes, filled with an orange, sourish pulp, 
having a very agreeable perfume. 
The Belladonna, or Deadly Nightshade ( Atropa belladonna), is a 
perennial herbaceous plant, of elegant carriage, but suspec 
physiognomy, with sombre leaves, livid flowers, and fruit resembling 
little black cherries. The sweet flavour of 
these fruits is deceitful, for their juices 
constitute a deadly poison. In some 
circumstances the medicine drawn from 
the berry (Fig. 429) has powerful narcotic 
and soothing properties. The expressed 
juice of the leaves produces a remarkable 
dilation of the pupil of the eyes—a singue 
‘ lar property which has been utilised 1 
Mestenatiies cou seco operations for cataract to facilitate the 
extraction or lowering of the crystalline. The juice of the berry 
applied as a cosmetic pales the cheek. : 
_ The Mandrake (Mandragora officinarum), the properties of which 
are analogous to those of Belladonna, but less violent, in olden 
times, was employed by pretended magicians and false sorcerers 
to produce mental hallucinations and disturb the reason. 
