604  Medicinal  Plants  at  Hit  chin.  {A%J™%™arm* 
iirst  day  or  two  are  often  severely  stung  by  the  bees  which  cling  most 
pertinaciously  to  the  blossoms,  and  appear  to  be  quite  intoxicated  with 
the  honey  of  the  lavender,  especially  towards  the  end  of  the  season.1 
The  water  which  comes  over  with  the  oil  during  the  first  hour,  being 
slightly  impregnated  with  oil,  is  returned  to  the  still,  but  that  which 
comes  over  afterwards  is  allowed  to  run  away. 
The  oil  which  comes  over  after  the  first  hour  and  a  half  is  either 
redistilled  or  sold  as  inferior  quality.  The  refuse  when  removed  from 
the  still  is  thrown  into  heaps,  and  when  decayed  is  returned  to  the 
lavender  fields.  In  a  good  year  the  lavender  yields  from  four  to  six 
Winchester  quarts2  of  essential  oil  per  acre,  and  as  about  fifty-three 
acres  altogether  are  cultivated  the  average  yield  of  oil  for  the  whole  of 
Hitchin  is  about  two  hundred  and  forty  Winchester  quarts  per  year. 
The  quality  of  the  oil  is  said  to  be  affected  by  the  soil  and  situation 
in  which  it  grows,  so  much  so  that  Mr.  Ransom  informs  me  he  can 
distinguish  the  oil  obtained  from  different  fields  by  the  odor  alone. 
The  oil  is  improved  by  keeping,  up  to  three  years,  after  which  it  be- 
gins to  deteriorate  unless  mixed  with  spirit. 
Redistillation  also  improves  the  quality  of  the  oil,  but  unless  con- 
ducted by  steam  heat  the  loss  sustained  is  not  compensated  for  by  in- 
crease in  commercial  value,  the  loss  being  nearly  one  pound  in  the 
gallon. 
The  stems  are  not  distilled,  as  the  oil  obtained  from  them  is  of  very 
inferior  quality,  and  is  so  small  in  quantity  that  it  does  not  pay  for  labor 
and  fuel. 
The  lavender  grown  by  Mr.  Ransom  is  distilled  by  steam  heat,  by 
which  any  tendency  to  an  empyreumatic  odor  is  avoided. 
Belladonna. — About  eight  acres  are  grown  of  this  plant,  from  which 
extract  is  made  on  the  spot.  The  plants  are  raised  from  seed,  and 
being  perennial  are  grown  on  the  same  ground  from  seven  to  ten 
years,  when  they  are  replaced  by  fresh  ones. 
The  crop  is  not  cut  the  first  year,  but  in  the  middle  of  June  of  the 
second  year,  and  again  at  the  end  of  September.  The  plants  usually 
attain  the  height  of  rather  more  than  two  feet,  but  if  heavily  manured 
they  will  grow  much  larger.    It  is  found,  however,  that  in  plants 
1After  the  first  day  or  two,  according  to  Mr.  Ransom,  the  boys  become  so  in- 
sensible to  the  poison  that  they  feel  but  little  pain  when  stung. 
2A  Winchester  quart  holds  about  five  pounds  avoirdupois. 
