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BIRD-LIME. 
428 
fruit is nauseously and austerely sweet, and, like 
the leaves, contains traces of prussic acid; but 
it is very greedily devoured by birds, and is often 
used for imparting a brandy-like flavour to Bri- 
tish wines.—The red Cornish bird-cherry, Cerasus 
padus rubra, is sometimes regarded as a distinct 
species, yet is merely a variety of the common 
bird-cherry. It flowers two or three weeks ear- 
lier than the common sort, and has red instead 
of black fruit. Two varieties which have been 
introduced from the continent are the small- 
flowered and the long-bracted,—C. p. parveflora 
and C. p. bracteosa. The bird- cherry { is called in 
Scotland hogberry. 
BIRD-LIME. A glutinous matter of a very 
peculiar nature, employed for catching birds, 
mice, and other vermin; and prepared from dif- 
ferent substances, in a ian) variety of ways. In 
former times, it was made chiefly from the ber- 
ries of the misletoe of oak, which were first boiled 
in water, then pounded, and the water poured 
off, in order to carry away the seeds and rhind. 
In England, it is generally made from the middle 
bark of holly, which is boiled in water, seven or 
eight hours, till it becomes soft and fended After 
the water has been drained off, it is laid in masses 
in the earth, covered with stones, and left to 
ferment ce a fortnight or three weeks. When 
thus changed into a kind of mucilage, it is taken 
from the pit ; pounded in mortars till reduced to 
a paste; washed and kneaded in river water till 
freed from all extraneous matters. It is left in 
earthen vessels, four or five days, to purify itself 
by fermentation; and is then put up for use or 
commerce. In every kingdom, however, and al- 
most in every district, there is a different mode 
of preparing this pec and some profess to 
make a secret of their peculiar process. The 
mode employed by M. Bouillon Lagrange is, to 
take a sufficient quantity of the second bark of 
holly, to bruise it well, and boil it in water four 
or five hours; to pour off the water, to deposit 
the bark in pits in earthen pans, to moisten it 
from time to time with a little water; to let it 
remain till it become viscous, and to eicanee it 
by washing, when it has obtained a proper de- 
gree of fermentation. Bird-lime may be pro- 
cured from the young shoots of the common 
elder tree, and from the second bark of the 
viburnum, or wild vine; from the roots of hya- 
cinth, narcissus, paaihodlell and black bryony; 
from lees snails, and the pods of certain cater- 
pillars; but the best is that which is made from 
the prickly holly, and which is of a greenish col- 
our. That which comes from Italy is made from 
the misletoe; and that from Damascus is sup- 
posed to be prachned from sebestins, as their 
kernels are frequently found amongst it. The 
bird-lime of commerce, in general, is seldom in a 
pure state, and is frequently a mixture of vege- 
table and animal substances. The common nd 
of bird-lime readily loses its tenacious quality, 
when long exposed to the air, and particularly 
BIRD'S EYE. 
when subjected to moisture; but it may be ren- 
dered capable of sustaining the action of water, 
by the following process :—Take a pound of com- 
mon bird-lime, and wash it thoroughly with 
spring water, till its hardness be destroyed. 
Then pound it completely, that its water may 
be entirely separated ; and, when it is well dried, 
put it into an earthen pot, with as much goose 
or capon’s grease as will make it run. Add two 
spoonfuls of strong vinegar, one of oil, and a 
small quantity of Venice turpentine; and let the 
whole boil for a few minutes over a moderate 
fire, stirring it all the time. It is then ready 
for use; and is the only kind that can be success- 
fully wsed for snipes and other birds, which fre- 
quent wet situations. 
When bird-lime is about to be applied to use, 
it should be made hot; and the rods or twigs 
should be warmed a little before they be dipped 
in it. When straws and cords are to be limed, 
it should be very hot; and, after they are pre- 
pared, they should be Trent in a leather bag till 
used. In order to prevent bird-lime from being 
congealed by cold, it should be mixed with a 
little oil of aan 3 and, indeed, before the 
common kind can be used at all, it must he 
melted over the fire with a third part of nut oil, 
or any thin grease, if that has not been added in | 
the preparation. 
Bird-lime has generally been classed among 
the immediate productions of vegetables ; and 
Fourcroy was the first person who considered it 
as of a glutinous nature. It has been carefully 
analyzed by M. Bouillon Lagrange, and has been 
found to resemble gluten in many particulars; 
but differs from it essentially 1 in the acetous acid | 
which it contains; in being very slightly animal- 
ized ; in the save ee and extractive matter 
which may be obtained from it; in the great 
quantity of resin which it yields by means of | 
nitric acid; and in its solubility in ether. 
BIRD- PEPPER ,—botanically Capsicum bacca- 
tum. A tender evergreen, under-shrub, of the 
cayenne pepper genus. It is a native of the West 
Indies, and was introduced to the hothouses of 
Great Britain in 1731. Its stem is ligneous, and 
rises commonly to the height of 3 feet, and fre- 
quently to the height of four or five; its leaves 
are broad, lucid green, and rounder at the ends 
than those of Behe species of capsicum; its 
flowers are white, and grow at tne division of the 
branches, and appear from June till September ; 
and its fruit is small, oval, bright red, and much 
sharper and more biting than that af the other 
capsicums. Cayenne butter or American pepper 
pot is manufactured from this fruit, by drying 
it in the air, exsiccating it in an oven, and bak- 
ing it up with flour.; and, besides being capable 
of use in all the meinede of common pepper, it 
is peculiarly esteemed for flavouring meat and 
sauces, assisting digestion, and acting as a car- 
minative. See the article Capsicum. 
BIRD’S EYE. A species of scl tnd of prim- 
