12 
BRITISH WILD FLOWERS. 
The following verses on the same plant, and said to be by the same poet, are not so generally known :— 
“ There is a flower, the lesser Celandine, 
That shrinks, like many more, from cold and rain ; 
But the first moment that the sun may shine, 
Bright as the sun himself is out again ! 
“ When hailstones have been falling, swarm on swarm, 
Or blasts the green fields and the trees distrest, 
Oft have I seen it muffled up from harm, 
In close self-shelter, like a thing at rest.” 
It does not appear that the Ficaria has ever been cultivated in gardens, though many flowers of less beauty 
have been so. This plant is frequently called the Pile-wort, from its ancient use in medicine, and sometimes 
Small-wort, probably from its dwarf stature. 
§ 2. Leaves lobed or cut. 
4.—THE UPRIGHT MEADOW CROW-FOOT, OR TALL BUTTER-CUP. (Ranunculus acris, Lin.) 
Engravings. — Eng. Bot., t. G52 ; 2d ed., t. 789 ; and our fig. 2, | even ; leaves in three deep lobed and cut segments ; those of the 
in Pi. 2. I uppermost linear and entire; stem erect, covered with close hairs. 
Specific Character. —Calyx spreading; flower-stalks round and ] (Smith.) 
Description, &c.— This species is supposed to be the common Butter-cup, or King-cup, of the meadows ; 
though some persons assert that R. hulbosus is the Butter-cup, and that this ought to be called only King-cup, 
from its lofty stature. It is extremely common in rich meadows ; and, as the cows fed in such meadows are 
most likely to produce abundance of butter, this circumstance, combined with the rich yellow of the flowers of 
the plant, no doubt gave rise to the idea that the cows ate it, and that it made their butter yellow. This, 
however, is so far from being the case, that it is now well known that cows will not touch the Butter-cup, and 
that, in fields where cows have been kept, the stalks of this plant are generally left standing untouched, while 
the grass is eaten close all round them. The plant is, indeed, so acrid, that no cow could eat it without 
blistering her lips. The flowers of this plant, though showy, are too glaring to be general favourites. 
Wordsworth calls them— 
“■ Butter-cups, that will be seen, 
Whether we will see or no 
and the older writers on flowers made them the emblem of Jealousy, though, in the modern books on flowers, 
they are said to signify Ingratitude. The flowers of this species become double when cultivated ; and 
are the yellow Batchelor s Buttons of our gardens. 
5—THE BULBOUS CROW-FOOT, OR COMMON BUTTER-CUP. (R. bulbosus, Lin.) 
Engravings. —Eng. Bat., t. 515 ; and 2d edit., t. 791. I stem upright, many-flowered ; leaves compound ; root bulbous ; fruit 
Specific Character. — Calyx reflexed; flower-stalks furrowed; | smooth. (Smith.) 
Description, &c.— This species, which is said by many persons to be the true Butter-cup, differs considerably 
from A. acris , and can easily be distinguished from that plant, even without seeing its bulbous root, as the 
calyx is reflexed, and the flower-stalks furrowed; whereas, in R. acris , the calyx is spreading, and the flower- 
stalks smooth. This species is extremely common everywhere, particularly in meadows that are rather damp; 
and it is in some places called St. Anthony’s Turnip, from the turnip-like protuberance at the base of its stem. 
This bulb has a pungent taste, like a radish, and is not poisonous when taken in small quantities. It is often 
eaten by children, who like its sharp biting taste ; and pheasants are so fond of it, that I have seen several 
