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' NATURAL HISTORY, . 223 
are propagated in gardens by feeds, which fhould be 
fown upon a bed of light earth ‘oon after they are 
gathered. In this fituation they fhould remain until 
the latter end of Auguit. Having kept them during 
this time free from weeds, they fhould be tranfplantea 
into the places of their future vegetative exiftence. 
‘The foil of thefe fhould be light and deep, in order 
to admit the roots penetrating fo low into the earth 
as they are by nature formed to fix themfelyes. ‘Thus 
tranfplanted, they will produce great quantities of 
_ flowers and fruits for a feries of years. The man- 
drake is mentioned in the thirtieth chapter of Genefis, 
where Reuben is faid to have’ found one in the field 
during the wheat harveft: It being faid in the Canti- 
cles, ‘‘ The mandrakes give a {mell, and at ouf gates 
are all manner of pleaiant fruit,’ feems as if the fruit 
of the mandrake was delightful in fell; for furely 
Solomon mu{t mean a grateful {mell, otherwife he 
would never have chofen it as an embellithment of 
a paftoral fong. However, the mandrake known to 
us at prefent has no fuch delightful quality as to ren- 
der it fo valuable as to caufe a woman to exchange 
her hufband, as Rachel did, for one of them. 
= OPE SE EO HE 
BALM OF GILEAD, 
From the trunk of this plant flows a white liquid 
balfam, which bears the name of the vegetable. “Che 
plant bears leaves like rue; and white, ftarry flowers, 
which produce, in their middle, berries enclofing a 
fmaligernel. When the balfam firft runs, it is of the 
confilfénce of oil of fweet almonds; but age caufes 
it torefemble turpentine ; when it lofes great part of 
its perfume, and turns rather blackifh. When freth, 
the fmell is moft agreeably aromatic, and the tafte like 
‘citfon peel. Jericho was the only place where this 


