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then burn it. The Cocoa-Nut is regarded by the natives of India
as an oracle in cases of sickness. Thus, if an Indian has fallen ill,
they spin a Cocoa-Nut on its end; if the Nut falls towards the
west, he will die; if to the east, he will recover. The Deccan
Indians never commence any building without first offering Cocoa-
Nuts to their gods.—-— When a Fijian child is sick, and its friends
want to know if it will live or die, they shake a bunch of dry Cocoa-
Nuts: if all fall off, the little one will recover; if one remains, it
will die. The Fijians also spin Cocoa-Nuts, and then prophecy of
future events according to the direction in which the eye of the
Nut lies when it rests still.
C O C K L E .—The Corn Cockle, or Gith {Agrostemma Githago) is
a troublesome weed, of which Gerarde says: “ What hurt it doth
among Corne, the spoile of bread, as well as in colour, taste, and
unwholesomenesse, is better knowne than desired.” In the Book
of Job, the Cockle coming up instead of the Barley is spoken of as
a great misfortune; but it could not have been the Corn Cockle,
which is unknown in Palestine and Arabia. The plant is
alluded to in an old English nursery rhyme, in which a garden
allowed to run wild is said to be
“ Full of weeds and Cockle seeds.”
C O F F E E .—The CofFee-plant [Coffea Amhicd) derives its name
from the Kingdom of Caffa, in Africa, where it grows abundantly.
The bloom of this tree is similar to the Jasmine in figure and
fragrance, while its fruit has the appearance of a Cherry; the
liquor prepared from the fruit or berry is said to have been drunk,
in Ethiopia, from time immemorial. The Galla, a wandering
nation of Africa, in their incursions in Abyssinia, being obliged to
traverse immense deserts, and to travel swiftly, were accustomed
to carry nothing with them to eat but Coffee roasted till it could
be pulverised, and then mixed with butter into balls, and put into
a leather bag. One of these, the size of a billiard ball, was said to
keep them in strength and spirits during- a whole day’s fatigue,
better than bread or meat. To dream of drinking coffee is a
favourable omen, betokening riches and honour. To the lover it
foretells a happy marriage.
C O L C H IC U M .—The Meadow Saffron, or Colchicum, derives
its name from Colchis, a country on the eastern shore of the
Euxine, where it once grew in such abundance as to have led
Horace thus to allude to i t :—
“ Or tempered every baleful juice
Which poisonous Colchian glebes produce.”
Colchicum was one of the herbs highly prized and made use of
by the enchantress Medea. It is poisonous, and, according to
Dioscorides, kills by choking, as do poisonous Mushrooms. Gerarde
recommends anyone who has eaten Colchicum, to “ drinke the
milke of a cow, or else death presently ensueth.” Colchicum is
a herb of the Sun.
C O L T S FO O T .—The shape of its leaves has given the
Tussilago Farfara its English name of Colt’s-foot, although, as
Gerarde points out, it might more appropriately be termed Cough-
wort. The plant has its Latin name from tussis, a cough, and for
many centuries has been used in pulmonary complaints. It formed
the basis of Coltsfoot lozenges, long celebrated as a cure for coughs.
The Bavarian peasants make garlands of the sweet-scented
Colt’s-foot on Easter Day, and cast them into the fire . Colt’sfoot,
or Fo a l’s-foot, is a herb of Venus.
C O L U M B IN E .—The English name of the Aquilegia is
derived from the Latin columha, a pigeon, from the resemblance of
its nectaries to the heads of pigeons in a ring round a dish, a
favourite device of ancient artists. The generic name comes from
aquila, an eagle, from the fancied resemblance of the same parts
of the flower to the claw of the king of birds. The plant was
formerly sometimes called Herha leonis, from a belief that it was the
favourite herb of the lion. The Columbine is held to be under
the dominion of Venus.
C O N JU G A L I S H E R B A . - -This herb, De Gubernatis considers
to be, in all probability, the same as is known in Piedmont
as Concordia (according to Gerarde, a kind of wild Tansy), concerning
which M. Bernadotti had sent him the following particulars:—
“ In the valleys of Lanzo, when two lovers wish to assure themselves
that their marriage will take place, they proceed to search
for the plant called Concordia. They say that this plant is exceedingly
scarce, and hence very difficult to find. Its root is divided
into two parts, each representing a hand with five fingers. On
finding this plant, it is necessary to uproot it in order to see if the
two hands are united—a certain sign that the union will take place.
If, on the contrary, the two hands are separated, the marriage will
be broken off. (See C o n c o r d ia .)
C O R IA N D E R .—From a passage in the Book of Numbers,
where Manna is likened to Coriander-seed, it would seem that
“ Coriander’s spicy seed ” was commonly used by the Israelites.
The bitter Coriander is one of the five plants mentioned by the
Mishna as one of the “ bitter herbs ” ordained by God to be eaten
by the Jews at the Feast of the Passover. It was esteemed as a
spice by the Arabs, Egyptians, and Hindus. The plant’s foliage
has a strong and offensive odour, but its little round fruit is
pleasantly aromatic, and its seeds, when covered with sugar, form
the well-known Coriander comfits. Robert Turner, in the ‘ Brittish
Physician,’ says that the powder of the seeds taken in wine, stimulate
the passions; and Gerarde affirms that the juice of the green
leaves, “ taken in the quantity of four dragmes, killeth and
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