The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1891-05-30

Il Is to be doubted whether any bet
Ter instance could be found OF the
wealth of tradition, Legend, and story
ihat centers in a single little plant than
ihat which has acc imulated round the
mandrake. II has literature all to IL.
self, and learning seems to have ex-
hausted itself over its etymology. The
plant itself is SO insignificant that it
would not naturally excite any great
interest It's leaves are long, sharp
pointed, and hairy, rising Immediately
from the ground, and are of a vivid
dark green. It's flowers are dingy white,
stained with veins of purple, and its
fruit of pale orange, about the size Of
q nutmeg. The root is spindle shaped.
often divided into two OF three forks,
and Tudely resembles the human form,
from which possibly it takes its name.
But If we turn from the plant itself to
the monument Of learning that has been
erected around it, it is impossible not TO
be struck with the universal interest it
has possessed for all people in all ages.
We do not know how many Shakes
pearean commentators have puzzled over
the allusion in Juliets immortal solilo-
guy;
And shrieks like mandrakes torn out of the
earth,
That living mortals hearing them run mad
and contrasted it with the parallel
spostrophe of Stuff TX in "King Henry
vi, who, asked by Queen Margaret
whether he has not spirit to curse his
enemies, replies:
Would curses kill, as doth the mandrakes
groan,
IwouId invent as bitter searching terms
AZ curst, ss harsh, as horrible TO hear
As the legend runs, in order to pro-
cure the magic plant it was necessary
GO cut away all the suckers to the main
rOot before pulling it up, which would
cause death to any man or creature who
heard the human screams it made.
They had an ingenious If cowardly way
of getting over the difficulty, which
would not commend itself nowadays
to tie Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals. After carefully
stopping their ears, they took a dog
and tied its tail securely to the plant,
and then walking away to a short dis.
tance called the dog to follow. In doing
this the luckless animal would pull up
the much coveted root but would fall
dead upon the spot This was, at any
rate, according to Josephus, the old
Jewish practice, but the tradition at
least long survived. Whatever may be
the origin for the theory that the root
shrieked OF groaned when pulled up
or separated from the earth, it cer-
tainly remained current tradition long
after Shakespeare immortalized it.
Since, however, the root is named from
its imaginary resemblance to the human
figure, it is not unnatural to suppose
that it may have been credited with
possessing some of the attributes of
human feeling. Langhorne, in the
latter part of the eighteenth century,
tells us to
Mark how that rooted mandrake wears
His human feet, his human hands.
Among its names In this connection
are those of the Owls Food, " and the
"Devil's Apple, the "Tuphach ell
Sheitan," of the Arabs. That this un-
canny belief continued down to almost
modern times is shown by an anecdote
for which Madame du Meyer is respon-
sible. According to this, on the murder
of Marechal de Fdbert in 1862, which
was popularly attributed to his having
broken a compact with the devil, two
mandrakes of extraordinary beauty
were found by his friends in his rooms,
and these we're regarded as conclusive
proofs of the diabolical league, of which
they failed to find, as they hoped any
written record. 1t has always been in
great vogue in the East, both Jews and
Arabs having from time immemorial
also valued it for the magic virtues
which were so long commonly attached
TO love philter This attribute, which
dates at least from the Old Testament
times remained current in Italy until
the Middle Ages, for there are plenty
of records showing that there was &
brisk demand for the root among the
Italian ladies' Perhaps the most ex-
traordinary of the properties attributed
TO it are those which it shared in com
mon with the Rastrivtrava, of Russia
of enabling house breakers to pick locks
which is certainly one Of the mos
amusing developments of the sola,
theory. "Love," it is said, "laughs a
locksmiths;" but the connection be
tween the mandrake and "burgling
seems a little forced. There is q ira
dition that the moonwort will unsho'
horses if they step upon the plant, anC
similar powers have been attributed t
the vervain and the mandrake. =
[Chamber's Journal.