Page images
PDF
EPUB
[graphic][merged small]

Before us lies a list of names by which the pine- | known anywhere on the habitable globe, wherever

apple is known in about forty languages or dialects, and the root of the majority of them is the original South American Nanas; from which the Tamul Anasa, and the Arabic Anannas, as well as the generic Latin name, by which the plant is known to botanists, is derived. There is but little doubt that America was the original home of the pine-apple, whence it became introduced into eastern and southern Asia. How it got into Africa we do not pretend to explain, nor would we like to assert that it is not

the temperature is sufficient for its production.

When Oliver Cromwell ruled in these realms, a present of pine-apples was one of the things which fell to his lot, and this was probably the first introduction of the fruit into England, although it was known on the Continent four years previously. Four years afterwards and Evelyn writes of its appearance on the royal table.

But the fruit, however much it may have been extolled, is not the only good product of this plant.

From the leaves thereof is procured a fibrous material known and appreciated by the barbarous hordes of Africa and the semi-civilized Malays. The celebrated pine-apple cloth of the Philippines, resembling the finest muslin, is woven with the delicate fibres of the uncultivated pine-apple plant. This muslin is embroidered by the nuns of the convents of Manilla with excellent skill and taste, so that the "Pina" muslin of the Philippines has become a celebrated article of manufacture. Mr. Bennett has observed in his "Wanderings," that one of the coarser fibres may be subdivided into filaments of such fineness as to be barely perceptible, and yet sufficiently strong for textile purposes.

The Malays use the fibre of the pine-apple to manufacture their fishing nets, and so plentiful is the plant in many parts of India and the East, that it forms immense thickets; and Dr. Helfer says that the fruit is so abundant in the Tenasserim provinces that it is sold in Amherst Town during June and July at the rate of two shillings for a boat load. What an inducement for the rapturous devourers of pine-apples! Should a Tenasserim Pine-apple Emigration Company (Limited) become one of the projects for 1867, we shall not permit the fact to be forgotten, that its suggestion originated with ourselves and the New Year.

[merged small][graphic][merged small][merged small][graphic]

MR.

UP-HILL WORK.

R. CHARLES BONER has recently published a very portable and useful little guide to tourists and mountain-climbers; and, although this is not exactly the season when people sling the "Rücksack" over their shoulders, and grasp the alpen-stock, with a determination to brave the dangers of the Wetterhorn, or "do" the Capel Curig ascent of Snowdon, we are, nevertheless, induced to make our readers acquainted with the mysteries of the alpen-stock as revealed by the said Charles Boner, in anticipation of next season.

"Your pole should be of your own height-six feet, we will say; light, tough, unbending, and ironshod." One who has done a little climbing every autumn adds that it should be of good, tough, old, well-seasoned ash.

"Let your whole body be as quiet as possible, slightly bending forward, and your pole before you. Such pole properly used is a great help in going up a mountain: a great assistance and support. But if you plant it behind or beside, instead of before you, thus pushing yourself on, its use will fatigue rather than otherwise. The staff being in front, you lean the whole weight of your forward-bending body upon it-thus quite resting on it-as you step.

"In coming down a 'Geröll' (sloping bed of stones), you will soon get to the bottom. With

Fig. 5.

body will carry the mass on which you alight several feet forwards. The 'Geröll' will slide on like a miniature landslip, and you slide with it. To go

down thus, leaping along, is pleasant enough, and very speedy; only be careful to come down on your heels, which, sinking somewhat in the rubbish, push it forward. You might sprain your ankle otherwise. You cannot fall; for your pole behind, which bears your whole weight, keeps you up.

"Do not look out into space, but keep your eyes fixed on the path, however narrow, before you; for the grand thing is that the eye have something to rest on, to seize, and, as it were, to hold by. You have grown giddy because the range of your vision had no boundary: it was lost in the indefinite. Let it be bounded by the small but defined form which that spot then affording you a footing presents, and your eye grows at once quieter, for it has again what its and your nature are accustomed to and require. In daily life your vision rests at every second on distinct outlines of things, and you move

[graphic]
[graphic]

Fig. 6.

"Always descend with your face turned thither

where you are going. descending a ladder. Should you do so you could make no use of your pole, and that is certainly of greater assistance to you than your hands afford by thus holding the rocks; for you only thus go backwards in order not to relinquish your hold of them; besides, your pole would be in your way if you were to descend in this manner. As was said above, keep your pole behind you in coming down, never before you. Neglect of this rule will make your task of descending doubly difficult.

Never go backwards like one

"Inclimbing convince yourself that the chief thing to be considered is whether the spot your foot rests on be firm. You do not want much space to obtain a firm footing, for you may stand well on anything not larger than the palm of your hand, but it must be sure. If your head be steady, you may in reality walk along a ledge not broader than the soles of your shoes, but then you must have the conviction that the ground beneath your feet is as firm as the mountain. Should you have to walk along such place lean your body inwards.

Fig. 7.

among them safely, your eye helping you to avoid them; but they also, by your sight finding something to rest on to lean upon, as it were-in their turn give a support and lead you along progressingly.

"On moving over certain ground you cannot help loosening larger or smaller stones. In such places do not follow directly behind him who precedes you, but a little to the side, so that when a stone comes leaping down it may fly by and not against your head or shins. Should you loosen a stone, call at once to those behind to look out, so that they may jump aside as it comes bounding towards them. Stones thus sent rolling fly down with terrible force and inflict serious injury."

In this manner Mr. Boner gives plain and easy instructions to bill-climbers, in familiar language, and without affectation. Every paragraph contains

some good practical advice, or friendly caution; and for the inexperienced, who for the first time emulates to climb a mountain, his little volume is as

Fig. 8.

indispensable as the "Rücksack," or the "alpenstock," and those who have trodden the rugged path will doubtless do it better the next time after taking a little of his advice.

PERILS OF A NATURALIST.

FROM

ROM a letter by Mr. William Gray (District Inspector of Public Works in Ireland), published in the Belfast Northern Whig of December 15th last, we glean the following singular narrative. Being in Londonderry on the Wednesday previous, he resolved to find a correspondent, whom he had not seen. Not knowing where to find the street he inquired of a man on the footpath for Pump Street. This individual not only pointed the way, but offered to go with Mr. Gray and show him. During the walk the conductor in "seedy uniform" says that

he is a "harbour-constable." Arrived at the street, and the number, the name on the door-plate proved to be some other than the one which Mr. Gray was seeking; he resolved, therefore, on returning to his hotel without further inquiry. The officious conductor steps up to his side, learns the name of the person sought, and again offers his services, this time more pressingly, and urges that it is all on the way to the hotel. Pulling up at a doorway, they enter, two or three policemen are standing about, the conductor inquires for the sergeant, and Mr. Gray for Mr. Greer for whom he was seeking. Light then broke in upon him as his "seedy" friend announced, in not very choice language, "You are my prisoner; I arrest you on suspicion; I charge you with coming down Pump Street and knocking at every house you passed." Protestations were vain, the prisoner was taken into the kitchen of the police-barrack; he explained who and what he was, gave his card, announced his business, and produced the following letter:

"19, Pump Street, Londonderry, March 2, 1866. "DEAR SIR,-I would take it as a particular favour if you would let me have a small quantity of the Diatomaceous earth you refer to in SCIENCE GOSSIP. I enclose two stamps, and remain yours, &c."

[graphic]
[ocr errors]

The fact was made clear that he was a naturalist and had exchanged letters with this gentleman through the medium of a publication called SCIENCE GOSSIP, but had never seen his correspondent, and had been in search of him. By dint of perseverance he was permitted to go again, under the protection of two police, in search of his unknown correspondent. This time the search was successful, one of the police soon presented himself with Mr. Greer. The latter apologized that since his note was written the number on the door had been altered. The rain poured in torrents as the five individuals marched to see the mayor. This functionary was entertaining a large dinner party, but did attend to his unbidden visitors. The "seedy harbour-constable' made the charge, the prisoner denied, and ultimately it was understood that the mayor was satisfied that the prisoner need not be detained, but should be taken to the head-constable and have his papers examined, and if he was satisfied Mr. Gray might be released. The head-constable was not at home. For an hour or more he was waited for. In the interval Mr. Gray and Mr. Greer had time to talk over their favourite pursuits. This did not improve matters with the "harbour-constable," who, of course, took care to hear all. "For," says Mr. G.," when we talked of the thousands of Diatomacea to be had in my district, the beauty of the Polycystins, the movements of Navicule, and the best way of mounting Algæ and Polyzoa, the poor constable seemed utterly bewildered, and expressed his feelings by saying, 'It was d-d quare that fellows

that never knew each other should have so many acquaintances; and, look here,' he says to one of the police, there's something quare about this; just read that word.' 'Well,' says the policeman, 'I am not a great reader, read it yourself.' And he began to spell—' di-i-a-t-o-&c.' Observing his perplexity, I told him that the word was 'Diatomaceous earth,' and if he required to know further, he must refer to 'Pritchard's Infusoria' or 'Smith's Diatomaceæ.' He professed to know all that, but still he was certain 'there was something about it that required to be explained!"" Suffice it to say that on the return of the head-constable, his exanination of the papers, &c., after some altercation, to the great annoyance and chagrin of the "harbourconstable," Mr. Gray obtained his liberty again between 10 and 11 o'clock at night. We regret that our space would not allow us to reprint Mr. Gray's letter in full. It is a most amusing episode, as good as a farce to any but our unfortunate correspondent.

WHEAT MILDEW (Puccinia graminis). THE wheat mildew is but too well known in its

external appearances to all who are interested in agriculture, to need much description, and even amongst townsmen there are but few who have not heard of it, many that on account of its reputation have made acquaintance with its uninviting exterior.

a

scopically in the autumn the globose or elliptical spores of the rust (fig. d) will be found in all stages intermediate between the simple form and the elongated septate spores of the "mildew" (fig. c). The mature mildew occurs on the yellow straw, and fading leaves at harvest time, in elongated darkbrown, almost black sori, or compact tufts, bursting through the cuticle (fig. a); and if a portion is removed with the point of a penknife and placed with a drop of water on a slide the tufts will be seen to be composed (fig. b) of a mass of stalked spores, each divided transversely by a medial wall or partition, dividing each spore into two nearly equal parts, of which the upper is more deeply coloured than the lower, and blunt or obtuse at the apex.

It was long believed in agricultural districts that wheat grown in the neighbourhood of Berberry bushes was sure to be mildewed, and that there was some mysterious connection between the Berberry and the mildew. In consequence of this belief the Berberry was carefully extirpated from the neighbourhood of cornfields. Scarcely more than twelve months ago Dr. De Bary announced that as the result of careful experiments he had come to the conclusion that the parasite (Ecidium) of the Berberry was only another condition of the mildew of the wheat. Although his observations require confirmation before they are accepted as incontrovertible fact, there is every reason to believe that there is a mysterious link which unites the two parasites. For many years mycologists have strenuously opposed the popular belief as a vulgar error, and in 1843 an eminent authority in the pages of the "Gardener's Chronicle" (p. 694) observed, "we should as soon soon believe that a hen's egg would be hatched into toads as that the seed of an Ecidium would produce Uredo or Puccinia." Twenty-one years after this and there is every probability of its becoming an admitted fact that Uredo (or Trichobasis) and Ecidium are the same plants as Puccinia in different conditions of a kind of "alternation of generations." M. C. C.

Fig. 9.

Of its internal and microscopical character very few of those who know it as a pest have any experience, and it is with a view to its better acquaintance that we have selected it for illustration. Early in the year and whilst the plant is still green the leaves of wheat and grass become more or less covered with a bright rust-coloured or orange powder, which bursts through the cuticle and disperses itself over the surface of the plant. This is what has been called the "rust," and is undoubtedly a stage or condition of the mildew, and if examined micro

ZOOLOGY.

SPIDER POISON.-I have read with some interest the discussion which has appeared from time to time in the pages of SCIENCE GOSSIP regarding the poisonous property of the spider. The little article in a recent number has, I should presume, settled the fact that the insect is endowed with a poison apparatus. I have been curious to observe if any of your readers' experience on this point has been similar to my own, and as no one has as yet quoted personal experience, I now venture to state mine. One summer morning, feeling a smart degree of irritation about the middle of the forearm, instead of rubbing the part as one instinctively does, I cautiously turned up my shirt-sleeve a little, when,

« EelmineJätka »