LAS 
experience, for all the cones grow upon the upper 
part of the branches, and Hand ereft, having a 
ftrong, woody, central ftyle, by which it is firmly 
annexed to the branch, fo as with difficulty to be taken 
cff •, which central ftyle remains upon the branches 
after the cone is fallen to pieces, fo that they never 
drop off whole, as the Pines do. 
The wood of this famous tree is accounted proof 
againft all putrefaction of animal bodies ; the faw- 
duft of it is thought to be one of the fecrets ufed 
by thofe mountebanks, who pretend to have the em- 
balming myftery. This wood is alio faid to yield 
an oil, which is famous for preferring books and 
writings •, and the wood is thought by my Lord Ba- 
con, to continue above a thoufand years found. It 
is alfo recorded, that in the temple of Apollo at 
Utica, there was found timber of near two thou- 
fand years old. And the ftatue of the goddefs, in 
the famous Ephefian temple, was faid to be of this 
material alfo, as was molt of the timber work of that 
glorious ftru&ure. 
* This fort of timber is very dry and fubjedt to fplit, nor 
does it well endure to be fattened with nails, from 
which it ufually fhrinks, therefore pins of the fame 
wood are much preferable. 
LARKSPUR. See Delphinium. 
LASERPITIUM. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 324. tab. 
172. Lin. Gen. Plant. 306. Laferwort. 
The Characters are. 
It hath an umbellated flower, compofed of many J, mall 
umbels •, both the fmall and principal umbels have a many- 
leaved involucrum. T he general umbel is uniform \ the 
flowers have five equal petals , whofe points are heart- 
Jhaped and inflexed •, they have five jlamina which are as 
long as the petals , terminated by fingle fummits ; the round- 
iflj germen is fitnated under the flower , fupporting two 
thick acuminated ftyles , crowned by obtufe fpreading Jiig- 
mas. The germen afterward becomes an oblong fruit 
with eight longitudinal wings or membranes , refembling 
the fliers of a water-mill ; the fruit divides into two parts, 
each containing one feed. 
This genus of plants is ranged by Dr. Linnaeus's in 
the fecond fedtion of his fifth clafs, intitled Pentan- 
dria Digynia, which includes thofe plants whofe 
flowers have five ftamina and two ftyles. 
The Species are, 
1. Laserpitium ( Commune ) foliolis oblongo-cordatis, 
incifo-ferratis. Laferwort with oblong heart-Jhaped lobes , 
which are cut like a flaw. Laferpitium foliis latioribus 
lobatis.Mor. Umbel. 29. Laferwort with broader leaves, 
having lobes. 
2. Laserpitium ( Latifolium ) foliolis-cordatis incifo- 
ferratis. Hort. Cliff. 96. Laferwort with heart-f japed 
lobes cut like a flaw. Laferpitium foliis amplioribus, 
femine crifpo. Inft. R. H. 324. Laferwort with large 
leaves and curled feeds. 
3. Laserpitium (. Paludapifolium ) foliolis ovatis obtufis 
acute ferratis. Laferwort with oval obtufe lobes 
Jharply flawed. Laferpitium humilius, paludapii fo- 
lio, fiore albo. Inft. R. H. Lower Laferwort, with a 
Smallage leaf and a white flower. 
4. Laserpitium (G alii cum) foliolis cuneiformibus fur- 
catis. Lin. Sp. Plant. 248. Laferwort with wedge- 
fhaped forked\ lobes. Laferpitium Gallicum. 156. C. 
B. P. French Laferwort. 
5. Laserpitium (. Anguftifolium ) foliolis lanceolatis in- 
tegerrimis feffilibus. Hort. Cliff. 96. Laferwort with 
fpear-Jhaped entire leaves fitting clofe to the branches . 
Laferpitium anguftiffimo & oblongo folio. Inft. R. 
H. 324. Laferwort with a very narrow oblong leaf. 
6 . Laserpitium ( Selinoides ) foliolis trifidis acutis. La- 
ferwort with acute trifid lobes . Laferpitium felinoides, 
femine crifpo. Inft. R. LL Laferwort refembling fweet 
Smallage, with a curled feed. 
7. Laserpitium ( Trilobum ) foliolis trilobis incifis. Lin. 
Sp. 357. Laferwort with trifid leaves. Libanotis la- 
tifolia aquilegiae folio. C. B. P. 157. 
8. Laserpitium ( 'Prutenicum ) foliolis lanceolatis inte- 
gerrimis extirnis coalitis. Laferwort with fpear-fhaped 
entire lobes , whofe cuter ones coaelefce . Laferpitium 
LAS 
daucoides jbrutenicum wifcofo femine. Breyn. Cent? 
1 67. 
9. Laserpitium (. Hktredanoides ) foliolis lineari-ianceo- 
latis venofo-ftriatis diftinctis Amoenit. Acad. 4 ^ . p. 
310. Laferwort with linear fpear-f japed leaves, which 
are diftinh and veined. Laferpitium exoticum, lobis 
anguftiffimis integris. Pluk. Phyt. tab. 96. f. 2. 
10. Laserpitium {Siler) foliolis ovato-lanceolatis inte- 
gerrimis petiolatis. Hort. Cliff. 96. Laferwort with 
oval , fpear-f japed, entire, leaves, having foot-fialks. Siler 
Montanum. Mor. Hift. 3. p. 276. 
11. Laserpitium (Chironium) foliolis oblique cordatis, 
petiolis hirfutis. Lin. Sp. 358. Laferwort with oblique 
heart-Jhaped lobes , having hairy foot-fialks. Panax He- 
racleum. Mor. Hift. 3. p. 315. Herculuis All-heal. 
12. Laserpitium {Ferulaceum) foliolis linearibus. Lin. 
Sp. 358. Laferwort with linear leaves. Cachrys Orien- 
talis, ferulas folio tenuiore, fruftu alato piano. Tourn. 
Cor. 23. 
There are fome other varieties, if not diftind: fpe- 
cies of this plant ; fome of which have been put 
down as diftind fpecies, which differ only in the co- 
lour of their flowers, therefore fhould not be regarded 
as fuch •, but the number of fpecies has been greatly 
leffened by fome late writers, who have erred as much 
in leffening, as thofe before them had done in multi- 
plying of the fpecies : which miftake they may have 
fallen into by fowing of the feeds near old plants of 
the fame genus, or on ground where fome of thefe 
forts have grown, fo that their feeds have been icat- 
tered and buried in the ground, where they will re- 
main two or three years, and afterward grow ; fo that 
unlefs their feeds are fown at a diftance from any of 
the other fpecies, there will commonly fome other 
fpecies come up, whereby people have been often con- 
fufed in diftinguiffiing thefe plants *, nay, I have fre- 
quently obferved the feeds of one fpecies fall, and the 
plants come up on the head of another plant which 
grew near it ; and this young plant, if not timely 
rooted out, has gotten the better of the old plant, 
and deftroyed it ; therefore where there is not great 
care taken to prevent this, the different forts cannot 
be preferved in gardens where the fpecies grow near 
each other. 
Thefe plants grow naturally in the fouth of France, 
in Italy, and Germany, and are preferved in botanic 
gardens for the fake of variety •, but as they have no 
great beauty, fo are feldom cultivated in other gar- 
dens : they require much room, for their roots ex- 
tend far every way, and the leaves of many forts 
will fpread three feet, when the plants are ftrong ; 
their flower-ftalks rife four or five feet high, and 
their umbels of flowers are very large ; they have 
all of them perennial roots but annual ftalks. They 
flower in June, and the feeds ripen in September. 
It is generally fuppofed, that the Silphium of the an- 
tients was procured from one fpecies of this genus, 
but from which of them we are at prefent ignorant. 
All the fpecies, if wounded, drop a very acrid juice, 
which turns to a refinous gummy fubftance, very acri- 
monious. This was externally applied by the antients 
to take av/ay black and blue fpots that came by 
bruifes and blows, as alfo to take away excrefcences j 
it was alfo by fome of the antients prefcribed in in- 
ternal medicines, but others have cautioned people 
not to make ufe of it this way, from the effeds which 
they mention to have feen produced from the violence 
of its acrimony. 
All thefe plants are extreme hardy, except the laft, 
which requires a warmer fituation, otherwife will be 
killed in fharp winters ; the other forts will thrive in 
moll foils and fituations •, they are propagated by feed, 
which if fown in autumn, the plants will come up the 
following fpring •, but when they are fown in the 
fpring, the feeds commonly remain in the ground a 
whole year. The plants fhould be tranfplanted the 
following autumn where they are defigned to remain, 
for they fend out long deep roots, which are fre- 
quently broken by tranfplanting if tjiey are large 5 
when the plants are removed, they fhould be planted 
' three 
l 
'•A>. 
