Abstract
“IT is the interest of Mankind that all persons should be cautiond of adventring upon unknown herbs and plants to their prejudice.” These words, written by John Ray more than two centuries ago, and quoted by his distinguished contemporary, John Evelyn, in his “Acetaria,” are seasonable still, and, indeed, in view of he recent adventring with regard to rhubarb-leaves, have to-day a special significance and interest. Were our famous countryman of Stuart times living at this hour, it is quite conceivable that, great experimentalist as he was, and endowed with more than the usual share of the “interest of Mankind,” he would have devoted himself with energy and skill to the solution of some of the problems that confront us now, and some pertinent remarks on the question of utilising rhubarb-leaves as a vegetable would have been likely to appear over his signature in the columns of the daily newspapers. Had he in such circumstances recommended them, we can well imagine that his recommendation would have been accompanied by a warnng similar to that quoted above, or more cogent, and printed in large clarendon capitals or italics.
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Rhubarb . Nature 99, 253–257 (1917). https://doi.org/10.1038/099253c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/099253c0