Family Herbal - Electric Scotland

238 FAMILY HERBAL.
Mulberry Tree. Morus.
A large and irregular growing tree, common
in our gardens. The branches are numerous and
spreading ; the leaves are very beautiful, large,
broad, of a bright green, pointed at the end, and
delicately serrated round the edges. The flowers
are small, and inconsiderable : the fruit is sufficiently
known ; it is large, oblong, juicy, and
composed of a great number of small granules
: it is
usually black when ripe. But there is a kind with
white fruit.
The bark of the root of the mulberry tree fresh
taken off and boiled in water, makes an excellent
decoction against the jaundice ; it opens obstruc-
tions of the liver, and works by urine. A very
pleasant syrup is made from the juice of the ripe fruit,
with twice the quantity of sugar. It is cooling, and
is good for sore mouths, and to quench thirst in
levers.
White Mullen. Verbascum album.
A tall and stately wild plant, singular for
its white leaves, and long spike of yellow flow-
ers ; and frequent on our ditch banks, and on dry
places. It grows six feet high ; the leaves rising
from the root, are a foot long, as broad as ones
hand,' sharp-pointed, serrated about the edges, and
rovored with a white downy or woolly matter. The
ialk is thick, firm, and very upright, and is cover-
ed with smaller leaves of the same kind : the flow-
*'fs ;ire yellow and large :
they stand in spikes, of
i\\ feet long", three or tour only opening at a time ;
tiir seeds are small and brown, the root is long and
fclr.