BOTANY AS APPLIED TO VETERINARY SCIENCE. 571 
are cultivated as ornamental plants, but the great majority 
are found growing wild in pastures or floating in streams. 
In a natural state they prefer moist situations; hence the 
origin of the name ranunculus, from fi rana,” a frog, and 
“ colo,” to dwell. They all possess, more or less, an acrid 
property, which is not of a fixed nature, being entirely dis¬ 
sipated by heat and drying The following is a brief de¬ 
scription of three of the varieties most commonly met with. 
“Ranunculusacris (Crowfoot).— Sepals, 5. Petals, the same 
number, with a nectariferous scale at the base. Stem, many 
flowered. Peduncles, tapering. Carpels, lenticular, com¬ 
pressed, bordered, with a beak which is rather curved, and 
much shorter than the carpel. Receptacle, smooth. Root- 
leaves, divided in a palmate manner. The segments somewhat 
lozenge-shaped, cut, and sharply toothed. The leaves of the 
stem the same shape, the uppermost divided into three linear 
segments/"’ (Lindley.) 
The chief botanical characters by which this variety may 
be distinguished are the spreading calyx, the round and even 
flower-stem, and the peculiarity of the leaves. Nearly every 
one is familiar with this indigenous perennial plant, which 
is found growing in great abundance in our meadows and 
moist pastures, its flowers, which are of a bright yellow, 
appearing in June and July. It possesses all the acrid pro¬ 
perties peculiar to the species:— ce On being applied to the 
skin it excites itching, redness, and even produces blisters, 
tumefaction, and ulceration of the part.” 
Pereira says that cc it has been applied as a rubefacient 
and epispastic, but is far inferior to cantharides and mustard, 
on account of the uncertainty of its operation.” 
“Ranunculus bulbosus (Bulbous Crowfoot).— Peduncles, fur¬ 
rowed. Sepals, 5, reflexed. Petals, 5, with a nectariferous 
scale at the base. Carpels, lenticular, compressed, bordered, 
smooth. Stem, bulbous at the base. Root-leaves, ternate or 
biternate. The leaflets trifoid, cut, and toothed.” (Lindley.) 
This plant is distinguished from the Ranunculus acris by 
its stem being bulbous at the base, by its furrowed flower- 
stem and reflexed calyx. It resembles the Ranunculus acris 
in being an indigenous plant, found growing in meadows and 
pastures, flowering in June and July, and possessing similar 
acrid properties. The attention of the profession was directed 
to this variety of the ranunculus in the Veterinarian for April, 
1860, in reference to the death of several animals in the prac¬ 
tice of Mr. Wallis, M.R.C.V.S.; and although in this instance 
I am inclined to think the death of the animals was not caused 
by the Ranunculus bulbosus , but in some measure was due 
