Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/153

 NARCISSUS anthus narcissus, which originated from JV. Tazetta, perhaps crossed with other species; the catalogues give numerous named varieties ; in all the bulbs are large, the flat leaves about NARD 145 Polyanthus Narcissus (N. Tazetta). a foot long, and the flower stem, of about the same height, produces a cluster or umbel of six to ten large very fragrant flowers ; in the different varieties corolla and cup are both of different shades of yellow, or the one is white while the other is yellow, and in some the cup is double. While this is the finest, it is the most tender of all ; but in the climate of New York city, if planted 6 in. deep, and cov- ered with litter, it flowers freely in spring. It is very popular for forcing for winter bloom- ing. The species known as jonquil (diminu- Daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarcissus). tiye of Span, junco, from Lat. juncus, a rush) is N. jonquilla, which has narrow rush-like or half cylindrical leaves, which with the flower scapes are about a foot long ; flowers two to five, small, yellow, and fragrant; there is a double variety. The daffodil, which in Eng- land more than in this country is called daffo- dilly and daffadowndilly, derives its name from asphodelus, through affodilly, &c. ; the species generally known by this name is N. pseudo- narcissus^ which has flat leaves and the scape bearing a single large flower having a large crown or cup; in the typical form the cup and petals are of a uniform yellow color, but in the variety bicolor the petals are white and the cup yellow, and there are several other varieties, including double and dwarf ones. One of the plants known by the garden name of "butter and eggs" is the double form of the incomparable daffodil (2f. incomparabi- lis in which large lemon-colored petals are in- termingled with smaller orange-colored ones. There are several other species, but they are rarely seen in ordinary cultivation. The com- mon poets' and two-flowered narcissus, the jonquil, and daffodil are very common in gar- dens, especially in country places, where they remain in the same place year after year, and form large clumps which show a small num- ber of flowers for the quantity of foliage; being so hardy, they are left to themselves until the soil about them becomes filled with bulbs and roots and completely exhausted. To have them flower satisfactorily the clumps should be taken up in autumn, divided, and set in fresh soil. The treatment of the tender sorts is indicated under POLYANTHUS. The method of forcing in pots is the same as for similar bulbs (see HYACINTH). The varieties of polyanthus are those most generally seen in window culture, but the commoner species are bright and welcome in winter, and might be more generally* used for indoor blooming than they are. The gardeners near New York and other cities force great quantities of the poets' narcissus, daffodils, &c., and send them to mar- ket in early spring in full bloom. NARCOTICS (Gr. vapw, torpor), substances which when taken into the blood affect all parts of the nervous system, but especially the higher nervous centres, in the direction of pa- ralysis. A primary stage of stimulation some- times precedes the true narcotic effect, but much of what is called stimulation, as for instance the noisiness or restlessness of alco- hol, is in reality the beginning of narcotism, being due to a gradual removal of the restraints imposed by the higher faculties, by custom, or by timidity, upon the lower impulses. In the later stages of narcotism the faculties of sensation, of voluntary and reflex motion, are abolished, and death may result from paralysis of the centres that govern the circulation and respiration. Familiar examples of this class of drugs are opium, alcohol, and chloroform. The symptoms of narcotism manifested by special drugs are described under the titles of those drugs, and to them the reader is referred. NARCOTIffA. See OPIUM. NARD. See SPIKENAED.