Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 12.djvu/188

 fLANtS

150

PLANTS

a land of wheat, and barlej", and vinej'ards, wherein fig-trees and pomegranates, and oUveyards grow: a land of oil and honey" (Deut., viii, 7-8). This glow- ing description, sketched exclusively from an utilita- rian point of view, was far from doing justice to the wonderful variety of the country's productions, to which several causes contributed. First the differ- ences of elevation; for between Lebanon, 10,000 feet above sea level, and the shores of the Dead Sea, 1285 feet below the ^lediterranean, every gradation of alti- tude is to be found, witliin less than 200 miles. Sinuous valleys furrow the highland, causing an incredible vari- ation in topography; hence, cultivated land lies almost side by side with patches of desert. The soil is now of clay, now of clay mixed with lime, farther on of sand; the surface rock is soft limestone, and basalt. In addi- tion to these factors, variations of climate consequent on change of altitude and geographical position cause forms of vegetation which elsewhere grow far apart to thrive side by- side within the nar- row limits of Pales- tine. The vegeta- tion along the west coast, like that of Spain, southern Italy, Sicily, and Algeria, is composed of characteristic species of Mediter- ranean flora. Near the perennial snows of the northern peaks grow the fa- miliar plants of Alpine and sub- Alpine regions; the highlands of Pales- tine and the eastern slopes of the north- ern ranges produce the Oriental vegeta- tion of the steppes: whereas the peculiar climatic conditions prevailing along the Ghor and about the Dead Sea favour a sub-tropical flora, characterized by species resembUng those which thrive in Nubia and Abyssinia.

Over 3000 species of Palestinian flora are known to exist, but the Holy Land of our day can give only an imperfect idea of what it was in BibMcal times. The hill-country of Juda and the Negeb are, as formerly, the grazing lands of the Judean herds, yet groves, woods, and forest flourished everywhere, few traces of which remain. The cedar-forests of Lebanon had a world-wide reputation; the slopes of Hermon and the mountains of Galaad were covered with luxuriant pine woods; oak forests were the distinctive feature of Basan; throughout Ephraim clumps of terebinths dot- ted the land, while extensive palm groves were both the ornament and wealth of the Jordan Valley. The arable land, much of which now lies fallow, was all culti- vated and amply rewarded the tiller. The husband- man derived from his orchards and vineyards abun- dant crops of olives, figs, pomegranates, and grapes. Nearly every Jewish peasant had his "garden of herbs", furnishing in season vegetables and fruits for the table, flowers, and medicinal plants. Only some 130 plants are mentioned in Scripture, which is not surprising since orrlinary people are interested only in a few, whether ornamental or useful. The first at- tempt to cla,ssify this flora is in Gen., i, 11-12, where it is divided into: (1) <lcshe, signifying all low plants, e. g., cryptogamia; (2) 'esebh, including herbaceous

Paptr

plants; (3) 'es peri, embracing all trees. In the course of time, the curiosity of men was attracted by the riches of Palestinian vegetation ; Solomon, in particular, is said to have treated about the trees (i. c., plants) from the lofty cedar "unto the h}'ssop that cometh out of the wall" (III Kings, iv, 33). Of the plants mentioned in the Bible, the most common varieties ma}' be identified either with certainty or probability; but a large proportion of the biblical plant-names are generic rather than specific, e. g., briers, grass, nettles, etc.; and just what plants are meant in some cases is impossible to determine, e. g., algum, cockle, gafl, etc. A complete alphabetical list of the plant-names found in the English Versions is here given, with an attempt at identification. Acacia. See Setim. Acanth. See Brier.

Algum (A. V., II Chron., ii, 8; D. V., ix, 10, 11, "thyine trees", "fir trees"), WTitten "almug" in A. v., I Kings, X, 11, 12). No doult tl e sametree issifrificd, the double name be- ing due to a n.eie accidental transpo- sition of the letters; if hnguistic analogy may be trusted in, altnug is correct (cf. Tamil, valguka). The algum tree is spoken of as a valu- able exotic product imported to Pales- tine by Hiram's and Solomon's fleets (III Kings, X, 11; II Par., ii, 8; ix, 10), suitable for fine joinery and making musical in- struments (III Kings, X, 12; II Par., ix, 11). Jose- I.hus (Anf., VIII, \ii, 1) says it was fomewhat like the wood of the fig tree, but whiter and more gUttering. Accord- ing to most modern scholars and certain rabbis, the red sandal -wood, Plerocarpus sanlalina, is in- tended, though some of the uses made of it appear to re- quire a stouter material. The identification proposed by Vulg. (see Thyine) is much more satisfactory.

Almond tree, Heb. luz (Gen., xxx, 37; "hazel" in A. V. is a mistranslation; cf. Arab, lauz), apparently an old word later supplanted bj' shaqed (Gen., xliii, 11 ; Num., x\-ii, 8; Eccles., xii, 5); which alludes to the early blossoming of the tree. Almonds are (Gen., xliii, 11) considered one of the best fruits in the Orient, and the tree, Amygdalus cotnmimis, has always been cultivated there. Several varieties, A. orientalis, Ait., or A. argentea, A. hjcioides, Spach, A. spartioides, Spach, grow wild in districts such as Lebanon, Carmel, Moab.

Almtig. See Algutn.

Alnct (Prov., vii, 17; Cant., iv, 14; John, xix, 39; A. v., Ps. xlv, 8) is reckoned among "the chief per- fumes". In A. v.. Num., xxiv, 6 ("lignaloes"; D. V., "tabernacles" is an erroneous translation), a tree is clearly intended. The officinal aloes, Liliacea, is not alluded to; the aloes of the Bible is the product of a tree of the genus Aquilaria, perhaps A. agallocha, Roxb., a native of northern India; at a certain stage of decay, the wood develops a fragrance well known to the ancients (Dioscorides, i, 21), and from it a rare perfume was obtained.