CHAPTER XVI.

PLANT LORE—DRUG CHARMS—FOLK MEDICINE. The mystery of dragon’s blood—Charms and superstitious practises connected with dragon’s blood—Use of dragon’s blood by the ancients—Modern practitioners of magic—Magic properties attributed to the walnut—Sage—Rue—Henbane—Moon Wort—Solomon’s Seal—Anemone—Trefoil—St. John’s Wort—Dill—Thistle—House-leek—Pimpernell—Vervain—Magic wreathes—Hawkweed—Mountain Ash—Squill—Mandrake—Method of gathering the mandrake—Abrunes—The willow as a symbol of sorrow—Almonds—The bachelor’s button—The bean and nut—White hawthorn—Ferns and fern seeds—Leaves of peculiar shape—Black hellebore—Ceremonial rites observed when collecting the root—Peony—Forget-me-not—Elder _pages_ 147-165