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<v Speaker 1>Section twenty one of Birds and All Nature, Volume seven,

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<v Speaker 1>two February nineteen hundred. This is a LibriVox recording on LibriVox.

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<v Speaker 1>Recordings are in the public domain. For more information not

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<v Speaker 1>a volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by Tavarish

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<v Speaker 1>licorice Griziza labra, doctor Albert Schneider, Northwestern University, School of Pharmacy.

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<v Speaker 1>But first he cheweth grain and liquorice to smell and sweet.

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<v Speaker 1>Miller's tale line five O four Chaucer. The liquorice yielding

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<v Speaker 1>plant is a perennial herb with a thick root stock,

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<v Speaker 1>having a number of long, sparingly branched roots and very

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<v Speaker 1>long runners of rhizomes. It belongs to the same family

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<v Speaker 1>as the peas and beans leguminos. It has purplish flowers

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<v Speaker 1>with the irregular corolla characteristic of the family. The pods

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<v Speaker 1>are rather small, much compressed, each with from two to

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<v Speaker 1>five seeds. The plant is, in all probability a native

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<v Speaker 1>of the warm parts of the Mediterranean region. There are

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<v Speaker 1>several varieties of Gliresa glabra, all of which are more

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<v Speaker 1>or less extensively cultivated and placed upon the market. As

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<v Speaker 1>to the exact habitat of licorice, there is some difference

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<v Speaker 1>of opinion. According to some authorities, its native home is

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<v Speaker 1>in the vicinity of the Sea of Azov. Diascaridis was

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<v Speaker 1>among the first to give a description of the plant,

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<v Speaker 1>and designated the Pontic lands and Cappadonia of Asia Minor

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<v Speaker 1>as its home. The Romans named the plant glyrisa Celsius, Scribonius, Largus,

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<v Speaker 1>and Plinius described it as Radix dulcis sweet root on

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<v Speaker 1>account of its sweet taste. Galenus, the eminent Roman physician,

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<v Speaker 1>made extensive medicinal use of the roots, as well as

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<v Speaker 1>of the Jews. Alexander Tralianus also recommended licorice very highly.

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<v Speaker 1>Although this plant enjoyed extensive use during the Middle Ages,

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<v Speaker 1>it was apparently not included in the herbal list of

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<v Speaker 1>Charlemagne Carl der Grosse. In the thirteenth century, licorice was

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<v Speaker 1>highly prized in Switzerland as a remedy for land troubles.

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<v Speaker 1>It was similarly used in Wales and in Denmark. Pieto

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<v Speaker 1>di Crescenzi of Bologna thirteen o five was the first

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<v Speaker 1>to give a full report of the occurrence and cultivation

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<v Speaker 1>of licorice. The Benedictine monks of Saint Mikhaelis cultivated it

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<v Speaker 1>extensively in the vicinity of Bamberg. The eminent authority Flukiga

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<v Speaker 1>reports a peculiar practice by these monks. A new hand

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<v Speaker 1>in the horticultural work was initiated by requiring him to

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<v Speaker 1>dig up a complete root of a liquorice plant with

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<v Speaker 1>all its branches, including the rhizome. This was by no

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<v Speaker 1>means an easy task on account of the ramification of

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<v Speaker 1>the roots and the extreme length of the rhizome. Glitzi

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<v Speaker 1>risa is extensively cultivated in Greece, Italy, France, Russia, Germany,

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<v Speaker 1>the Danubian provinces, Southern China, Northern Africa, and to some

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<v Speaker 1>extent in England. In the Italian province of Calabria, licorice

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<v Speaker 1>is planted with peas and corn. In the course of

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<v Speaker 1>three years, the routes are collected, the jews expressed and

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<v Speaker 1>route evaporated to the proper consis instancy for shipping. New

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<v Speaker 1>crops are grown from cuttings of the rhizomes. There is

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<v Speaker 1>an excellent quality of liquorice grown in the vicinity of Smyrna.

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<v Speaker 1>The principal commercial varieties are grown in Spain, Southern Russia, Turkey,

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<v Speaker 1>and Italy. Spanish and Russian licorice root is dried and

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<v Speaker 1>shipped in bales or bundles. Spanish liquorice root is unpeeled

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<v Speaker 1>and occurs in pieces several feet in length. Russian liquorice

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<v Speaker 1>is usually peeled. Most of the liquorice used in the

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<v Speaker 1>United States is obtained from Italy, Russia, and Germany. Some

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<v Speaker 1>of the liquores found upon the market is quite fragmentary

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<v Speaker 1>and very dirty. The liquorice raised in England is intended

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<v Speaker 1>for home consumption and is placed upon the market In

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<v Speaker 1>both the fresh and dried state. The fresh roots have

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<v Speaker 1>an earthy and somewhat nauseous odor. The peel or bar

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<v Speaker 1>of the roots contains tannic acid and a resinous oil,

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<v Speaker 1>both of which are undesirable. Hence the peeled article is

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<v Speaker 1>usually preferred. The characteristically sweet taste of the licorice roots

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<v Speaker 1>and rhizomes is due to glycirizin and some sugar. Glycerizin

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<v Speaker 1>is a glucoside which splits up into glucose, a substance

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<v Speaker 1>closely akin to sugar and glyciretin, a bitter substance. The

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<v Speaker 1>extract of licorice is prepared by crushing the fresh roots

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<v Speaker 1>or rhizomes, then boiling repeatedly in water, expressing and then

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<v Speaker 1>condensing the sap in copper kettles until it is quite

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<v Speaker 1>hard when cooled. In Calabria, the condensed juice, while still

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<v Speaker 1>warm and pliable, is rolled into sticks and stamped with

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<v Speaker 1>the name of the locality where it was prepared. In

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<v Speaker 1>those countries where the fresh roots cannot be obtained, the

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<v Speaker 1>dried roots are crushed and then treated as above. The

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<v Speaker 1>liquorice sticks prepared in this country usually have stamped upon

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<v Speaker 1>them the initials on the manufacturing firm. Much of the

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<v Speaker 1>evaporated juice is also placed upon the market in large

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<v Speaker 1>lumps or masses. The pure licorice extract prepared as indicated

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<v Speaker 1>above is a glossy black, very brittle with a glossy fracture.

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<v Speaker 1>For shipment, it must be carefully packed to prevent its

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<v Speaker 1>being broken into small bits. To reduce the brittleness, various

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<v Speaker 1>substances are added as starch and gum. Arabic liquorice extract

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<v Speaker 1>is a highly appreciated sweetmeat, but unfortunately it is often

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<v Speaker 1>grossly adulterated with dextrin, starch, sugar, and gum arabic. Many

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<v Speaker 1>of the liquorice drops, et cetera contain very little liquorice,

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<v Speaker 1>but even the poorest article seems to be highly prized

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<v Speaker 1>by the average child. Licorice extract in mass is known

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<v Speaker 1>as licorice paste and is extensively employed in preparing chewing

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<v Speaker 1>tobacco and in brewing beer, to which substances it imparts

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<v Speaker 1>a peculiar flavor and a dark color. Licorice extract is

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<v Speaker 1>a popular remedy for colds and sore throat, though its

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<v Speaker 1>curative powers are certainly very slight. Physicians make extensive use

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<v Speaker 1>of it to disguise the disagreeable taste of medicines such

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<v Speaker 1>as quinine. It is an ingredient of many calf remedies.

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<v Speaker 1>The finely powdered roots are dusted over pills to prevent

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<v Speaker 1>their adhesion and to give them consistency. Licorice roots have

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<v Speaker 1>the same properties as they extract, and may be similarly

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<v Speaker 1>used when children prefer the dried roots obtained at the

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<v Speaker 1>drug's store to the stick licorice or the licorice drops.

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<v Speaker 1>This choice is in many respects a good one. The

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<v Speaker 1>roots are at least not adulterated. But of course only

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<v Speaker 1>the juice should be swallowed, a precaution which is not

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<v Speaker 1>necessary to emphasize, as the fibrous nature of the wood

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<v Speaker 1>makes it difficult to swallow. Even if a little of

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<v Speaker 1>it is swallowed, no particular harm would be done as

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<v Speaker 1>it is not in the least poisonous, though the fibers

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<v Speaker 1>may act as an irritant to the stomach. As already indicated,

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<v Speaker 1>there are several species of Glycerisa of which the roots

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<v Speaker 1>and rhizomes are used, like those of Glycerisa glabra. But

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<v Speaker 1>in addition to these, there are a number of other

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<v Speaker 1>plants designated as licorice. Indian liquorice or the wild licorice

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<v Speaker 1>of India. Abrus precatorius is a woody, twining plant growing

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<v Speaker 1>quite abundantly in India. It is sometimes substituted for true licorice.

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<v Speaker 1>Frickly licorice. Glycerisa echinata resembles true licorice quite closely. The

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<v Speaker 1>wild licorice of America. Glycerisa lepidotta, is found in the northwest.

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<v Speaker 1>Its roots are quite sweet and often used as a

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<v Speaker 1>substitute for true licorice. The European plant known as rest

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<v Speaker 1>harrow Oronis spinosa, so called because its tangled roots impede

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<v Speaker 1>the progress of the harrow, has roots with an odor

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<v Speaker 1>and taste resembling licorice. The roots are extensively employed by

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<v Speaker 1>the country practitioners of France and Germany in the treatment

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<v Speaker 1>of jaundice, dropsy, gout, rheumatism, toothache, ulcers, and eruptive diseases

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<v Speaker 1>of the sculp. The name wild licorice also applies to

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<v Speaker 1>Gallium circusans and Gallium lanceolatum on account of the Swedish roots.

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<v Speaker 1>The wild licorice of Australia is Teocrium corimbosum. Licorice vetch

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<v Speaker 1>Astragalus glysiphilus has sweet roots. Licoriceweed Scoparia dulchis is a

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<v Speaker 1>common tropical plant which also has sweet tasting roots. End

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<v Speaker 1>of Section twenty one.