I 
( 5 ) 
DRUIDICAL BOTANY. 
In the mean time, in tracing the origin 
and progrefs of botanical fcience in Britain^ 
a furvey of its ftate in the druidical times, 
Qught to claim the firft attention ; but ia 
fad:, the little information tranfmitted to us 
from the antients, relating to this extraordi- 
nary fed, being almofl: wholly confined to 
Ccefar and Fliny^ precludes any enlarged 
view refpedting my particular objed:. It is 
from Pliny we learn, that to the mi-fjeltoej 
the vervain, the felago, and the famolus^ 
thefe antient fathers of druidifm attributed 
efficacies almofc divine ; and ordained the 
coliedion, and admin ifcration of them^ 
with rites and ceremonies, not fliort of re- 
ligious ftridnefs, and fuch as countenan- 
ced the groffeft fuperftition. 
The mijj'eltoe^ for inftance, muft be cut 
only with a golden knife ; muft be gather- 
ed when the moon was fix days old ^ the 
prieft cloathed in white j the plant received 
on a white napkin 5 and laftiy, two white 
bulls v/ere to be facrificed 3 and thus con- 
B 3 - fecrated. 
