DRINKING WATER IN A CACTUS. 1 97 



showed me his yellow breast with its black crescent. It 

 seems to me the bird must have been left behind by the 

 fall migrants, possibly to nurse a wound. Or he may 

 have lost his way when on his southern trip. Whatever 

 was the cause of his appearance here in an uncommonly 

 snowy winter, it certainl}- was unusual enough to call forth 

 this public notice of his presence. My companion, a far 

 more accurate observer than I, can corroborate this state- 

 ment — lest an}' doubt the word of 



The Pin-Feather Ornithologist. 

 Manchester, N. H., February 28, 1903. 



Drinking Water in a Cactus. 



Many a traveler in desert lands, when in danger of djnng from 

 thirst, has been saved by the plant known as the water or fishhook 

 cactus. 



During the moist season it stores up a large quantity of water 

 for the subsequent dry one, when all the ground is parched with 

 heat and only channels filled with stones mark the course of for- 

 mer rivulets. 



So well has this cactus provided for the safety of its precious 

 liquid that it is no easy task to obtain it. The exterior skin is 

 more impenetrable than the toughest leather and besides it is pro- 

 tected with long wiry spines curved into hooks at the end, yet so 

 strong and springy that if a large rock be thrown against them 

 they would remain uninjured. 



If the spines be burned off, one may, by long and tedioiis effort, 

 cut through the rind with a stout knife ; otherwise nothing but an 

 axe will enable him to get at the interior of this well-armored plant. 

 When the top is removed and a hollow made by scooping out some 

 of the soft inner part, it immediately fills with water — cool and 

 refreshing though a blistering sun may have been beating upon the 

 tough skin above it all day. The water when first obtained has a 

 whitish or smoky tint, but when settled is as clear as crystal. 

 — Omaha (Neb.) Enterprise. 



