they support. The secondary umbels are composed of only three or four short rays, with an involucel of three awl-shaped leaflets. The flowers are in a short spike at the extremity of each ray. Cassiodorus, as quoted by Carpenter, graphically described it as it appears on the banks of the Nile: "There rises to the view this forest without branches, this thicket without leaves, this har- vest of the waters, this ornament of the marshes." It is found in stagnant pools as well as in running streams, in which latter case, according to Bruce, one of its an- gles is always opposed to the current of the stream.
The papyrus was well known to the ancients as a plant of the waters of Egypt : " Papyrum nascitur in palustribus ^Egypti, aut quiescentibus Nili aquis, ubi eva- gatie stagnant" (Plinj-, xiii, 11). Theophrastus, at a much earlier period, described it as growing not in the deep parts, but where the water was of the depth of two cubits or even less. It was found in almost every part of Egypt inundated by the Nile, in the Delta — especial- ly in the Sebennytic nome — and in the neighborhood of Memphis, etc. Bv some it was thought peculiar to Egypt; hence the Nile is called by Ovid "amnis papy- rifer." So a modern author. Prosper Alpinus {De Plant. ^■Eggpti,c.3(}): "Papyrus,quam be7-dJEgyptn nominant, est planta fluminis Nili." Bj' others it was thought to be a native, also, of India, of the Euphrates near Baby- lon, of Syria, and of Sicily. The genus cgperus, indeed, to which it is usually referred, abounds in a great vari- ety of large aquatic species, which it is difficult for the generality of observers to distinguish from one another; but there is no reason wh\' it should not grow in the waters of hot countries, as, for instance, near Babylon or in India. In fact, modern botanists having divided the genus cyperus into several genera, one of them is called papyrus and the original species P. Nilotica. Of this genus papyrus there are several species in the waters of India (Wight, Contributions to the Botany of India, "CypereiB," p. 88).
The papyrus reed is not now found in Egypt ; it grows, however, in Syria. Dr. Hooker saw it on the banks of Lake Tiberias, a few miles north of the town. It ap- pears to have existed there from the earliest times. Theophrastus {Hist. Plant, iv, 8, § 4) says, " The i>apyrus grows also in Syria around the lake in wliich the sweet- scented reed is found from which Antigonus used to make cordage for his ships." This plant has been found also in a small stream two miles nortli of Jaffa. Dr. Hooker believes it is common in some parts of Syria. It does not occur anywhere else in Asia. It was seen by lady Callcott on the banks of the Anapus, near Syra- cuse, and Sir Joseph Banks possessed paper made of papvrus from the lake of Thrasymene {Script. Herb. p. 379).
(2.) A brief description of the uses of this plant, as given in the works of the ancients, is thus summed up W Parkinson in his Herbal, p. 1207: "The plant, say the ancients, is sweete, and used by the Egyptians, be- fore that bread of corne was known unto them, for their food, and in their time was chawed and the sweetnesse sucked forth, the rest being spit out; the roote serveth them not only for fewell to burne, but to make many sorts of vessels to use, for it yielded much matter for the purpose. Papyrus ipse (say they), that is the stalke, is profitable to many uses, as to make ships, and of the barke to weave, and make sailcs, mats, carpets, some kinds of garments, and ropes also."
a. The lower part of the papyrus reed was used as food by the ancient Egyptians; " those who wish to eat the byblus dressed in the most delicate way stew it in a hot pan and then eat it" (Herod, ii, 92; see also Theophr. Hist. Plant, iv, 9). The statement of Theophrastus with regard to the sweetness and flavor of the saji has been confirmed by some writers. The chevalier Landolina made papyrus from the pith of the plant whicli, says Heeren {//istor. Pes. Afrir. Xat. ii, 350, note), " is rather clearer than the Egyptian;" but other writers say the stem is neither juicy nor agreeable.
KUSH
159
RUSSALKI
b. The construction of papyrus boats is mentioned by Theophrastus. So Pliny (IJist. Kat. vi, 24) : " Papyra- ceis navibus armamentisque Nili ;" and again (vii, 5G) : '• Naves primum repertas in vEgypto in Nilo ex papyro." Plutarch, as quoted by Rosenmliller, says, "Isis circum- navigated the marshes in a papyrus wherry for the pur- pose of collecting the pieces of Osiris's body. From Ileliodorus's account it appears that the Ethiopians made use of similar boats, for he relates that the Ethi- opians passed in reed wherries over the Astaboras; and he adds that these reed wherries were swift-sailing, be- ing made of a light material, and not capable of carrying more than two or three men." Bruce relates that a similar kind of boat was made in Abyssinia even in his time, having a keel of acacia wood, to which the papj'- rus plants, first sewed together, are fastened, being gath- ered up before and behind, and the ends of the plants thus tied together. Representations of some Egyptian boats are given in Kitto's Pictorial Bible (ii, 135), where the editor remarks that when a boat is described as be- ing of reeds or rushes or papyrus, as in Egypt, a cover- ing of skin or bitumen is to be understood. Ludolf (Hist. yEthiop. i, 8) speaks of the Tzamic lake being navigated " monoxy lis lintribus ex ty pha priecrassa confertis," a kind of sailing, he says, which is attended with considerable danger to the navigators. Wilkinson {A nc. ^'Egypt. ii, 96, ed. 185-t) says that the right of growing and selling the papyrus plants belonged to the government, who made a profit by its monopoly, and thinks other species of the Cyperacem must be understood as affording all the vari- ous articles — such as baskets, canoes, sails, sandals, etc., which have been said to have been made from the real papyrus. Considering that Egypt abounds in Cyperacece, man\f kinds of which might have served for forming canoes, etc., it is improbable that the papyrus alone should have been used for such a purpose ; but that the true papyrus was used for boats there can be no doubt, if the testimony of Theophrastus {Hist. Plant, iv, 8, 4), Pliny {Hist. Nat. xiii, 11), Plutarch, and other ancient writers is to be believed.