THE HERBALIST OF TO-DAY 131 



ments with simple single remedies, culled from 

 the soil. The word ' drug ' came originally from 

 the Anglo-Saxon verb drigan, to dry, as applied 

 to medicinal plants. 



In the Midlands and northern parts of England, 

 however, the reign of the Herbalist is not yet over. 

 Workmen in potteries and puddling furnaces have 

 found that a tea made of tonic Herbs is cheaper 

 and less intoxicating than ordinary beer. Other 

 preparations are used for colds and fevers. Not 

 long ago, while staying in the Midlands, we came 

 in for the weekly fair and market-day at an ancient 

 county town. Crockery, furniture, carpets, sweets, 

 live ducks, clothing, and all manner of other things, 

 were set out to tempt the buyer ; but what in- 

 terested us most was the stall of the Herbalist, 

 looking rather grim, with its sign of crossbones 

 and human skull, over which appeared the legend, 

 'Consult me, if you would not come to this.' A 

 little farther north again, written in very large 

 letters over a very small shop, we found the words, 

 ' Dandelion Stout sold here at 2d. a bottle.' We 

 thought this very satisfactory. Dandelion is good 

 for eating, too. Did not Betsy Prig's famous salad 

 contain * a trifle of the Herb called Dandelion *? 

 Country-folk believe that to cure sick sheep you 



