OUR POISONOUS PLANTS. +] 
(Solanum melongena), the tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum), the 
strawberry tomato (Physalis), are well known esculent vegetables ; 
but even with these, certain portions of the plant are often poison- 
ous or narcotic, as in the case of the potato, where the berries 
and leaves are injurious. I once saw a boy in New Brunswick 
eating the large green potato berries, but to my mild remonstrance 
he replied that he had often done so before without any resulting 
trouble. It would therefore appear that if actually dangerous, 
the fruit may not be so to all constitutions. 
It is doubtful whether the br ight red berries of the bitter-sweet 
(Solanum duleamara) are in any degree injurious, but so long as 
their innocence is not established, it is just as well to treat them 
with caution. The common nightshade (Solanum nigrum), often 
found about houses, is more cer tainly dangerous. Young children, 
unless prevented, are almost sure to eat the berries of the bitter- 
sweet, attracted by their brilliant and luscious appearance. The 
bright blue, showy flowers bear a striking resemblance to those of 
potato. The thorn-apple (Datura str amonium) always found 
growing in waste places may be known by its morning-glory-like 
flowers, white, shaded with violet, its large, spiny seed pods, and its 
most offensive odor. As with the potato, the bitter-sweet, and 
other members of the genus Solanum, the leaves are always found 
perforated by insects. The seeds are said to have been used by 
the Delphic priests to excite their mad ravings, which the Greeks 
understood as prophecies. 
In the order Liliaceæ, we have the American white hellebore 
(Veratrum viride), the root of which is a deadly poison. The 
plant is known familiarly as Indian poke, and has coarse fibrous 
roots, and elegantly plaited leaves, which in early spring may be 
seen by the banks of streams, generally in company with the 
skunk-cabbage, from which, however, it is easily distinguishable. 
The latter throws up its curiously painted, shell-like spathe in . 
early April or even in March, the flower preceding te mo o 
while the hellebore blooms in the summer, and has a ght 
spike of greenish flowers, in no respect resembling those of its 
neighbor. The active principle contained, is the alkaloid veratria, 
used to some extent in medicine. 
The jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisema triphyllum) i is found i in similar 
- localities and, although not strictly a poison, its root is very acrid 
and miae as the children with the rae pepenatty | wr inves- 
