ere tamarisk, which no green leaf adorns,
And there the spicy Syrian costos burns;
There centaury supplies the wholesome flame,
That from Therssalian Chiron takes its name;
The gummy larch tree, and the thapsos there,
Woundwort and maidenweed perfume the air,
There the long branches of the long-lived hart
With southernwood their odours strong impart,
The monsters of the land, the serpents fell,
Fly far away and shun the hostile smell."

The smoke of the juniper was equally repellent to serpents, and the
juice of dittany "drives away venomous beasts, and doth astonish them."
In olden times, for serpent bites, agrimony, chamomile, and the fruit of
the bramble, were held efficacious, and Gerarde recommends the root of
the bugloss, "as it keepeth such from being stung as have drunk it
before; the leaves and seeds do the same." On the other hand, some
plants had the reputation of attracting serpents, one of these being the
moneywort or creeping loosestrife, with which they were said to heal
themselves when wounded. As far back as the time of Pliny serpents were
supposed to be very fond of fennel, restoring to them their youth by
enabling them to cast their old skins. There is a belief in Thuringia
that the possession of fern seed causes the bearer to be pursued by
serpents till thrown away; and, according to a curious Eussian proverb,
"from all old trees proceeds either an owl or a devil," in reference, no
doubt, to their often bare and sterile appearance.

Footnotes:

1. See Tylor's "Primitive Culture," ii. 316.

2. Thorpe's "Northern Mythology," iii. 193.

3. "Plant-lore Legends and Lyrics," p. 486.

4. Mr. Conway, _Fraser's Magazine_, 1870, p. 593.

5. Mr. Conway, _Fraser's Magazine_, 1870, p. 107.

6. "Plant-lore Legends and Lyrics," p. 411.

7. Folkard's "Plant-lore Legends and Lyrics," p. 448.

8. See Friend's "Flower-lore," i. 68.

9. Thorpe's "Northern Mythology," ii. 104.

10. "Mystic Trees and Flowers," Fraser's Magazine.

CHAPTER VII.

PLANTS IN FAIRY-LORE.

Many plants have gained a notoriety from their connection with
fairyland, and although the belief in this romantic source of
superstition has almost died out, yet it has left its traces in the
numerous legends which have survived amongst us. Thus the delicate white
flowers of the wood-sorrel are known in Wales as "fairy bells," from a
belief once current that these tiny beings were summoned to their
moonlig