piciat rerum
naturas lactucoe sylvaticoe folium evellere et succo ejus sibi oculos
tangere, et maximam inde claritudinem accipere."

After the death of Adonis, Venus is related to have thrown herself
on a bed of lettuces to assuage her grief. "In lactuca occultatum a
Venere Adonin--cecinit Callimachus--quod allegorice interpretatus
Athenoeus illuc referendum putat quod in venerem hebetiores fiunt
lactucas vescentes assidue."

The Pythagoreans called this plant "the Eunuch"; and there is a
saying in Surrey, "O'er much Lettuce in [309] the garden will stop a
young wife's bearing." During the middle ages it was thought an evil
spirit lurked among the Lettuces adverse to mothers, and causing
grievous ills to new-born infants.

The Romans, in the reign of Domitian, had the lettuce prepared with
eggs, and served with the last course at their tables, so as to
stimulate their appetites afresh. Martial wonders that it had since
then become customary to take it rather at the beginning of the
meal:--

"Claudere quae caenas lactuca solebat avorum
Dic mihi cur nostras inchoat illa dapes."

Antoninus Musa cured Caesar Augustus of hypochondriasis by
means of this plant.

The most common variety of the wild Lettuce, improved by
frequent cultivation, is the Cabbage Lettuce, or Roman, "which is
the best to boil, stew, or put into hodge-podge." Different sorts of
the Cos Lettuce follow next onwards. The _Lactuca sylvatica_ is a
variety of the wild Lettuce producing similar effects. From this a
medicinal tincture (H.) is prepared, and an extract from the
flowering herb is given in doses of from five to fifteen grains. No
attempt was made to cultivate the Lettuce in this country until the
fourth year of Elizabeth's reign.

When bleached by gardeners the lettuce becomes tender, sweet, and
succulent, being easily digested, even by dyspeptic persons, as to its
crisp, leafy parts, but not its hard stalk. It now contains but little
nutriment of any sort, but supplies some mineral salts, especially
nitre. In the stem there still lingers a small quantity of the
sleep-inducing principle, "lactucarin," particularly when the plant is
flowering. Galen, when sleepless from [310] advanced age and
infirmities, with hard study, took decoction of the Lettuce at night;
and Pope says, with reference to our garden sort:--

"If you want rest,
Lettuce, and cowslip wine:--'probatum est.'"

But if Lettuces are taken at supper with th