39^ 
The BRITISH HERBAL. 
Croffwort. 
Crucuita •vulgaris. 
The root is fibrous. 
The (lalks are numerous, upright, fquare, and 
not much branched : they are rough on the fur- 
face, and weak. 
TJie leaver arc placed in an elegant manner, 
four at a joint, at confiderable dil^ances ; and 
they are oblong, broad, of a bright, but fome- 
what yellowifh green, and hairy. 
The flowers are fmall and yellow ; and they 
grow in cluftcrs from the bofoms of the upper 
leaves. 
It is not uncommon in dry paftures. A great 
deal of it fpreads over the grave of Mr. Doody 
in the church-yard of Hampftead ; perhaps ori- 
ginally planted there to perpetuate the little fpot 
that holds the remains of that diligent and careful 
botanift. 
C. Bauhine calls it Criuiala hirfiila. Others 
only Criuiala. 
It is an aftringent. The tops, dried and pow- 
dered, are good againft the overflowings of the 
menfes, and in the Jiuor aibus. 
GENUS II. ■ 
MADDER. 
R U B I J. 
'T'Hr. flower is formed of a fingle petal, hollow at the bafe, and deeply divided into four feg- 
ments. The cup is very fmall : it is formed of a fingle piece, divided into four parts ; and 
is placed upon the rudiment of the fruit. The feeds are two after every flower : they are covered 
with a pulpy matter, and furrounded with a fkin; fo that they rcfemble two berries ftuck clofe to- 
gether. 
Lin nsus places this among the tetrr.ndria monogpiia ; the threads in the flower being four, and 
the Ilyle fingle. 
Madder. 
Ruhia fylvt'firis afpern. 
The root is compoled of numerous, long, and 
thick parts, which run under the furfacc, and 
fpread to a great difl;ance : it is of a red colour, 
and confifls of a hard fubftance on the centre, 
witli a tender juicy covering. 
The ft:alks are numerous, fquare, not very 
firm, branched, and a foot and half- high: they 
arc of a pale green, and are very rough to the 
touch, and will flick to any thing, like the ftalks 
of cleavers. 
The leaves are placed with great regularity at 
the joints, five or fix at each ; and they fpread out 
in the manner of rays. 
The flowers are very numerous, and grow in 
clufl:ers at the tops of the branches and they are 
of a faint yellowifh green. 
The fruit is large, and dark coloured. 
We have it in plenty in our wellern counties. 
It flowers in July, 
C. Bauhine calls it Ruljia fyl-vejlris afpera qii.t 
Tliojcoridis. Others, Ruhia tin^ioriwi. 
Mr. Ray has joined the common writers in fe- 
parating as diftinft fpecies madder thus in its wild 
flate, and fuch as is cultivated; but there is no 
other diflirence between them, than that the 
cultivated kind is large becaufe better nourifhed. 
It is of vaft ufe in dying, and is alfo employed 
in medicine. It is good againfl: obflruftions of 
the vifcera, and in habitual purgings. 
GENUS III. 
LITTLE MADDER. 
RUBEOLA. 
rpHE flower is formed of a fingle petal -, and is tubular at the bafe, and divided at the edge 
X into four parts. The cup is very fmall, and is placed upon the rudiment of the fruit : it is 
formed alfo of a fingle piece, and divided into four fegments. The feeds are two after every flower • 
and they are connected lengthways into an oblong fruit, crowned at the top : when feparated', 
each is flat on one fide, rounded on the other, and lharp-pointed. 
LinnEcus places this among the tetrandria mmagynia ; the threads in the flower being four, and 
the ftyle fingle. He takes away the received name rahola, and calls the genus fljerardia. 
Little Field-Madder. 
Rubeola arvrafjs c.nulca. 
The root is long and flender, and is hung 
about with many fibres. 
The fl:alks are numerous and weak, and for 
the moft part procumbent ; they are fquare, hairy, 
and fcldom branched. 
The leaves ftand feveral together in a regular 
manner, difpofed like rays, fix or eight at a joint : 
they are oblong, pointed, and of a fine green. 
T'he flowers are fmall and blue. 
The feeds are oblong and large. 
It is common in plowed lands, and flowers in 
July. 
C. Bauhine calls it Rubeola repens arvenfu ca- 
rulea. 
Its virtues are not certainly kno wn. 
7 
GENU S 
