230   ADULTERATION  OF  SAFFRON  WITH  STAMENS  OF  CROCUS. 
another  piece  of  thin  glass  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  placed  on 
the  stage  of  the  microscope;  the  pollen  granules  will  then  be 
observed  to  be  perfect  globes,  of  a  yellow  color  and  glistening 
character.  Mixed  with  the  pollen  a  small  portion  of  some 
angular  earthy  fragments  will  also  be  noticed.  The  proportion 
of  this  earthy  matter,  however,  is  not  great,  and  hence  its  pre- 
sence is  doubtless  accidental,  and  not  an  intentional  admixture 
with  the  saffron,-  as  is  sometimes  the  case  with  sand,  etc. 
That  the  stamens  thus  used  for  adulterating  saffron  were 
those  of  the  Saffron  Crocus  ( Oroeus  sativus)  I  have  every  reason 
to  believe,  from  minute  examination  of  their  form  and  appear- 
ance, and  from  comparison  with  those  of  other  species  of  cro- 
cus ;  indeed,  there  would  be  no  inducement  to  those  by  whom 
such  an  adulteration  had  been  performed  to  throw  the  stamens 
of  the  saffron  crocus  away,  and  collect  the  corresponding  parts 
of  other  species ;  it  would  be  far  easier  to  pluck  the  stamens 
and  the  parts  constituting  genuine  saffron  from  the  same  flower 
at  the  same  time,  and  mix  them  together.  Moreover,  the  com- 
mon species  of  crocus  flower  in  spring,  while  the  saffron  crocus 
flowers  in  the  autumn  months ;  and  hence,  it  would  be  still  less 
probable  that  the  stamens  would  be  gathered  from  one  species 
at  one  season  and  the  stigmas  from  another  species  at  a  differ- 
ent period,  and  the  two  be  then  mixed  together.  It  is  possible, 
certainly,  that  the  collector  of  the  saffron  might  have  had  noth- 
ing to  do  with  the  adulteration,  but  that  the  purchaser  of  the 
genuine  drug  had  afterwards  mixed  with  it  the  stamens  of 
another  species  of  crocus,  but  having  carefully  examined  the 
stamens  in  the  present  specimen,  and  compared  them  at  the 
British  Museum  and  Kew  with  those  of  the  saffron  and  spring 
crocus,  etc.,  I  think  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  both  the 
stigmas  and  stamens  had  been  gathered  at  the  same  time  and 
from  the  same  plant,  namely,  from  the  Crocus  sativus,  and  then 
mixed  by  the  collector. 
Having  now  proved  that  the  specimen  of  saffron  under  ex- 
amination was  extensively  adulterated,  being  composed,  as 
nearly  as  I  could  ascertain,  of  about  one-third  genuine  saffron, 
and  the  remaining  two-thirds  principally  of  twisted  stamens, 
and  to  a  slight  extent  of  parts  of  the  adherent  or  separated  col- 
