AGALLOCHA OF ECONOMIC PLANTS. 5 



poisons, and tlie roots are also kno-wn as Bikh. A. lycoc- 

 tonum, yellow-flowered Wolf s-bane, a common plant in the 

 North of Europe, is also poisonous. Linnaeus, in his M%stoTy of 

 Laipland, says : ''All over the country through which I passed 

 this day A. lycodonum was as common as heath ; as it is not 

 eaten by cattle it increases abundantly." 



Adam's Apple, a fanciful name given to varieties of the 

 fruit of the Lime, belonging to the Orange family. 



Adam's Needle, a common name for the different species of 

 Yiocca, a genus of the Lily family (Liliacese), native of Mexico, 

 Southern United States, and other parts of America. Some 

 species are stemless, while F. gloriosa and others have palmid 

 stems, which under favourable conditions in tliis country attain 

 the height of 4 to 6 feet, and 6 or more inches in diameter. 

 They are often branched, each branch being terminated by a 

 tuft of lanceolate or sword-shaped leaves, from which rises a 

 panicle 2 to 3 feet high, bearing large pendulous white flowers. 

 All the species contain a large quantity of fibre in their leaves 

 which is extensively used in the countries where they are 

 abundant. In Morida F. filamentosa is called Bear Grass. It 

 occupies extensive tracts of country ; its fibre is strong, and 

 used as a substitute for hemp. 



Adder's Tongue, a common name for Ophioglossum vul- 

 gatum, a small one-leaved perennial herb of the Fern alliance, 

 native of this country, growing on moist banks and meadows. 

 Its leaves (fronds) are mucilaginous, and are used in the pre- 

 paration of salves. 



Agallocha, a name in India for Mccecaria Agallochum, a 

 small tree of the Spurge family (Euphorbiacese), native of India, 

 generally found growing near the sea, abundant on the Sunder- 

 bunds of the Ganges. Its milky juice is very acrid, blisters 

 the skin, and is much dreaded by woodcutters. The wood is 

 used for making charcoal, but the smoke is injurious to the 

 eyes. It is also a native of some of the Polynesian Islands, 

 where it is as much dreaded by the natives as the manchineal of 

 America. In Fiji it is employed for the cure of leprosy, its 



