600  Medicinal  Plants  at  Hit  chin  {^ilZ'f^T' 
dialyser  to  free  it  from  sodium  chloride  ;  pepsin  again  dissolves,  and  is 
mixed  with  an  equal  weight  of  glycerin.  This  solution  keeps  well,  and 
its  activity  is  not  impaired  by  keeping  it  for  two  years  without  special 
precautions. — your,  de  Phar.  et  de  Chim.,  Aug. 
CULTIVATION  of  MEDICINAL  PLANTS  at  HITCHIN. 
By  E.  M.  Holmes,  F.L.S. 
Curator  of  the  Museum  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Society. 
The  neighborhood  of  Hitchin  is  one  which  is  intetesting  on  many 
accounts.  The  spot  which  Dickens  has  immortalized  as  Tom  Tid- 
dler's Ground  is  within  a  few  miles  of  the  town.  The  geologist  will 
notice  here  the  outcrop  of  the  London  basin,  and  the  antiquary  will 
meet  with  much  to  examine  in  the  way  of  flint  implements  and  other 
ancient  relics.  The  botanist  will  find  in  the  spring  abundance  of  the 
rare  Anemone  Pulsatilla  within  a  few  miles  of  the  town,  and  cannot  fail 
to  admire  the  row  of  ancient  box  trees,  with  trunks  fully  a  foot  in 
diameter,  and  about  twenty  feet  high,  which  are  conspicuous  by  the 
roadside  near  the  centre  of  the  town.  These  are  probably  the  largest 
and  oldest  box  trees  in  England.  A  curious  feature  in  this  district  is 
the  straw  plaiting,  which  is  carried  on  almost  mechanically  by  women, 
even  as  they  walk  along  the  streets  or  through  the  fields  to  their  work  ; 
their  eyes  keenly  observant  of  all  around  them,  and  their  talk  seasoned 
with  remarks,  often  more  shrewd  than  polite,  upon  the  passers-by.  On 
a  Tuesday,  which  is  the  market  day,  the  town  often  presents  a  busy 
scene,  sometimes  as  mueh  as  <£i,ooo  worth  of  straw  plait  changing 
hands  in  one  day.  This  is  chiefly  bought  up  by  middlemen  from  Luton 
and  Dunstable,  who  supply  the  peasantry  with  prepared  straws  for  the 
purpose.  For  the  pharmaceutist,  however,  the  chief  attraction  of 
course  lies  in  the  fields  of  medicinal  plants  which  are  scattered  all 
around  the  town. 
The  plant  which  is  most  extensively  grown  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Hitchin  is  the  lavender  {Lavandula  vera,  D.  C).  The  cultivation  of 
this  plant  was  commenced  in  1823,  by  Mr.  Perks,  and  at  the  present 
time  is  carried  on  by  his  son,  and  also  by  Mr.  Ransom,  who  com- 
menced its  cultivation  in  1847.  ^  *s  to  tnese  two  gentlemen  that  our 
readers  are  indebted  for  most  of  the  interesting  facts  which  are  embodied 
in  this  paper.    Both  these  gentlemen  have  received  medals  for  the  ex- 
