THE LIME-TREE. 



TiLIA EUROP^A. 



Natural Order — TiLiACEiE. 

 Class — PoLYANDRiA. Order — Polygynia. 



The Lime or Linden-tree was well known to the 

 Greeks under the name of Philyra ; and the 

 Romans, Pliny tells us, held it in great repute 

 for its " thousand uses." The timber was em- 

 ployed in making agricultural implements, and 

 was also considered to be well adapted for shields, 

 as it was said to deaden the blow of a weapon 

 better than any other kind of wood. Pliny states 

 also, that it was not liable to be worm-eaten. 

 The bark was a common writing material, and 

 when split into ribands was made into head- 

 dresses, which were worn on festive occasions. 

 In medicine its supposed virtues were very great ; 

 the leaves and bark had a healing power, and 

 decoctions of various parts beautified the skin 

 and promoted the growth of the hair. The seed 

 was said to be eaten by no animal. Evelyn 

 mentions that a book written on the inner bark 

 of the Lime, " was brought to the Count of St. 

 Amant, governor of Arras, 1662, for which there 

 were given eight thousand ducats by the Em- 

 peror ; it contained a work of Cicero, De ordi- 

 nanda Hepublicd, et de inveniendis orationum 

 exordiis ; a piece inestimable, but never pub- 



