[ 376 1 



diadelphous or leguminous herbs : of this clafs Is- 

 the Clover^ fo much cultivated in England j the 

 Saint Foin^ or Cocks-head and the Lucern^ or Medic- 

 fodder, in France, Befides thefe, our horfes, 

 horned cattle, fheep, ^c, will all, in their turn, 

 eat with equal pleafure, and fome with more avi- 

 dity, a great variety of other vegetables. Nume- 

 rous inftances occur where one fpecies of animals 

 will feed greedily upon thofe herbs which others 

 refufe to touch, and will even almoft familh rather 

 than eat. Some plants are highly noxious, and even 

 poifonous, to certain kinds of animals, while they 

 are eaten by others without the leaft fubfequent 

 ill effect ; to inftance, the Cicuta Virofa^ or long- 

 leaved Water Hemlock, the moft virulent plant 

 which grows fpontaneoufly in England^ (but hap- 

 pily is not common) is fatal to cows, when, 

 through fcarcity of food j they are obliged to eat it j 

 yet (heep and horfes feed on it with impunity, and 

 goats even greedily devour it. 



Videre licet pinguefcere f^pe Cicuta 



Barhigeras pecudes^ homini qu^e eji acre venenum, 



LircR. 



Fadls of this kind muft, in fome meafure, have 

 been obvious to the mjdft incurious of mankind, 

 even in the earlieft ages. The firft race of fhep- 

 herds had daily inftances, among their flocks, of 

 the fele6lion and refufal of particular hefbs, and 

 fubfequent obfervations muft have multiplied and 

 confirmed them. But they were ftill only known 

 in the general, and no experiments had been infti- 

 tuted^ to afcertain the preci/e fpecies thus eaten or 



rejeded^ 



s 



