442 M Y R 
part lying in the middle ■, whereas, in the dioecous plants 
the broadeft part is near the apex, and the leaves in gene¬ 
ral are much fmaller. See the Plate, fig. 3,4. 
The leaves have a bitter tafte, and an agreeable odour, 
like thofe of myrtle. Their efl'ential oil rifes in diftilla- 
tion. The northern nations formerly ufed this plant in- 
itead of hops; and it is (till in ufe for that purpofe in 
fome of the Weftern Ifles, and a few places of the High¬ 
lands of Scotland. Unlefs it be boiled along time, it is 
reported to occafion head-ache. The catkins or cones, 
boiled in water, throw up a fcum refembling bees-wax, 
which gathered in fufficient quantity would make candles. 
From the next l'pecies, candles are prepared in America. 
It is ufed to tan calf-fkins. Gathered in the autumn, it 
dies wool yellow, and is ufed for that purpofe both in 
Sweden and Wales. The Swedes fometimes ufe a ftrong 
decodfion of it to kill bugs and lice, and to cure the itch. 
The Welfli lay branches of it upon and under their beds, 
to keep off fleas and moths, and give it as a vermifuge in 
powder and infuflon, applying it alfo externally to the ab¬ 
domen. In molt of the Hebrides, as well as in the High¬ 
lands of Scotland, an infuflon of the leaves is frequently 
given to children to deftroy worms. In Ilia and Jura, 
the inhabitants garnifh their dirties with it, and lay it be¬ 
tween their linen and other garments, to give them a fine 
fcent, and to drive away moths. When it grows within 
reach of a port, the failors make befoms of it for fweep- 
ing their fhips. In the Ifle of Ely they make faggots with 
it to heat their ovens. Linnaeus W'as induced to fufpedf, 
from the fmell of this fhrub, that camphor might portibly 
be prepared from it. Horfes and goats eat it; fheep and 
cows refufe it. It is a native of the northern parts of 
Europe, and of North of America in bogs; flowering 
with us in May. Not unfrequent in many parts of Eng¬ 
land, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, particularly in the 
northern and weftern counties ; alio in Windfor Park, and 
near Tunbridge Wells; in the fens of the Ifle of Ely 5 
about Wareham in Dorfetfhire, between Shap and Anna 
Well in Weftmoreland : Gerard fays, it grows by Cole- 
brooke, and in fundry other places ; Darfingham Moor, 
in Norfolk : frequent in the Highlands of Scotland. In 
England it has the names of fweet gale, goule, gaule, 
fweet willow, wild myrtle, and Dutch myrtle. The 
Scotch call it gaul; and the Irifh mofs-gaul. Our gaul is 
from the German and Dutch gag-el. In thofe languages, 
as well as in the Danifh and Swedifli, it is alfo called pors, 
or pojl. In French it is, gale odorant, piment royal, myrthe 
hdtard, or du Brabant, and piment des tnarais. So little 
was the tea-ftirub known formerly, that Simon Paulli af- 
ferted it to be the fame with our f weet gale. 
z. Myrica cerifera, or American candleberry myrtle: 
of which there are two varieties ; a. angujl folia, the com¬ 
mon, or narrow-leaved; and fat folia, the broad-leaved. 
Specific character: leaves lanceolate fubferrate ; ftem ar- 
borefcent. American candleberry myrtle is a fhrub, or 
a tree acquiring a height of thirty feet: the bark is warted ; 
the branches unequal and ftraight. Leaves evergreen, 
lomewhat cluftered, blunt at the end, membranaceous-ri¬ 
gid, wrinkled, fmooth, covered underneath with very mi¬ 
nute, (Inning, orange-coloured, glandular pores. Flowers 
in aments, on different individuals. Gsertner, finding the 
ripe fruit to be farinaceous, as Miller and Kalm had de- 
fcribed it, calls it a drupe; which is juicelefs, fuperior, 
imall, ovate-globular, defended at the bale by the four 
calycine leaflets, acuminate above, covered all over with 
a white farinaceous fubftance mixed with many hard 
dufky.granules, making the whole of the rind in the ripe 
fruit : ihell ovate-acuminate, bony, thickifh, one-celled, 
valvelefs. Seed filling the cavity of the (hell, pale yellow', 
with dufky veins, and a white fear at the bafe. Willich 
remarks, that he finds fometimes four, and fometimes fix, 
ftamens. 
Mr. Miller makes two fpecies of this. The common 
or narrow-leaved fort, according to him, riles with many 
ftrong fhrubhy ftalks eight or ten feet high, fending out 
I C A. 
many branches. Leaves ft iff, near three inches long, and 
one inch broad in the middle; fmooth, entire, of a yel- 
loufifh lucid green on their upper fide, but paler on their 
under. Male and female flowers on different plants. 
Male catkins about an inch long, ereft. The female 
flowers come out on the fide of the branches in longifh 
bunches; and are fucceeded by fmall roundifh berries, 
covered with a fort of meal. 
The broad-leaved American candleberry myrtle, My¬ 
rica Carolinienfis as he names it, does not rife fo high as 
the former; the branches are not fo ftrong, and they'have 
a greyifh bark. The leaves are fhorter, broader, and fer¬ 
rate. In other refpedts it is like the preceding, and the 
berries are collected for the fame purpofe. 
They are natives of North America ; and of Jamaica, 
in the higheft mountains. The common fort was culti¬ 
vated in 1699, by the duchefs of Beaufort. They flower 
in May and June. Candles are made from the berries in 
North America, whence it is called there the tallow-Jhrub, 
or candleberry-tree ; fome alfo name it the bayberry-bujh. 
It grows abundantly on a wet foil, and feems to thrive 
particularly w'ell in the neighbourhood of the fea, nor 
does it feem ever to be found high up in the country. 
The berries intended for making candles are gathered 
late in autumn, and are thrown in a pot of boiling water 5 
their fat melts out, floats at the top of the water, and may 
be fkimmed off. The fat when congealed looks like tal¬ 
low or wax, but has a dirty green colour : it is therefore 
melted again and refined, by which means it acquires a 
fine and pretty-tranfparent green colour. It is dearer 
than common tallow, but cheaper than wax. They ufu- 
ally mix fome tallow with it. Candles of this kind do 
not eafily bend or melt in fummer, as common candles 
do ; they burn better and flow'er, nor do they caufe any 
fmoke, but rather yield an agreeable fmell, when they are 
extinguifhed. At prefent, not many candles of this kind 
are ufed; animal tallow being readily come at, and it 
being very troublefome to gather the berries. They are 
chiefly ufed by poor people, who live near where the 
bufhes grow, and have not cattle enough to fupply them. 
A foap is made from the fat, which has an agreeable fcent, 
and is excellent for (having; and it is ufed by furgeons 
for plafters. In Carolina they likewife make fealing-wax 
from thefe berries. The root is accounted a lpecific in 
the tooth-ache. 
3. Myrica faya, or Azorian candleberry myrtle: leaves 
elliptic-lanceolate, fubferrate ; male aments compound ; 
drupe with a four-celled nucleus. Native of Madeira 
and the Azores, where it was found by Mr. Francis Maf- 
fon : introduced in 1777. It flowers in June and July. 
4. Myrica iEthiopica, or African candleberry myrtle: 
leaves lanceolate, or elliptic, toothed ; the loweft entire. 
This is an obfeure fhrub, approaching to M. gale and 
cerifera. Native of the Cape of Good Hope. 
5. Myrica montana, or mountain candleberry myrtle: 
leaves lanceolate, ferrate, not dotted underneath; aments 
globular. This is a fhrub, with round, fmooth, branches. 
Leaves an inch long; narrow-lanceolate, attenuated to 
both ends, fmooth, having five or fix minute (harp ap¬ 
proximating ferratures towards the tip. It has the habit 
and fruit of Myrica, but differs from it in having a four¬ 
leaved calyx, in the fame manner as the next fpecies, 
which Gtertner has diftinguifhed under the name of 
Nageia. 
6. Myrica nagi, or Japonefe candleberry myrtle: leaves 
lanceolate, entire, veinlefs. Native of Japan. 
7. Myrica quercifolia, or oak-leaved candleberry myr¬ 
tle : leaves oblong, oppoiitely-flnuate. Stalks (lender, 
fhrubby, about tour feet high, dividing into fmaller 
branches. Leaves about an inch and a half long, and al- 
moft an inch broad, fome of them having two, others 
three, deep oppofite indentures on their tides ; they fit 
dole to the branches, and end in obtufe indented points : 
between the leaves come out fome oval catkins, which 
drop off. This fpecies retains its leaves all the year- 
