188 CHAPTER XXV. 



for they may come up under some plant which you 

 cannot disturb, and then it is difficult to get rid of 

 them. 



The terminal spikes, and those carved spines 

 which border the leaf, inflict a painful wound, which 

 becomes inflamed ; for this reason the Agave is better 

 suited for a barrier or for some dry waste corner than 

 for the frequented part of any garden. This plant 

 is equal to a man -trap ; woe betide the thief who 

 climbs over a wall and drops into an Agave upon the 

 other side ! The spines* are merciless, and the name 

 is most appropriate ; for did not the Theban Agave, 

 in orgiastic frenzy, tear to pieces her own son, Pentheus, 

 on the pine -clad slopes of Mount Cithoeron ? I may 

 mention here that we have altered the quantity of 

 this word, and changed it to a dactyl. The middle 

 vowel is long, thus " Agave." 



The Mexican national drink, " pulque," is 

 obtained by cutting off the flowering bud. The 

 saccharine juice then flows out so abundantly that 

 one plant will yield from one to ten litres daily for 

 six months. When fermented, this juice contains 

 about as much alcohol as good cider. The frugal 

 Scotchman would find the Agave a great resource, if 

 it could be planted north of the Tweed ; especially 

 in those districts where the blue ribbon prevails. 

 But " pulque " is a poor substitute for the genuine 

 Scotch whiskey. It .is to be hoped that this 

 Bacchanalian vegetable will never be introduced into 

 the Emerald Isle. An Agave to each mud cabin : 



*A. applanata has perhaps the most formidable spikes of any, and it 

 is said to have been adopted by the French as a military defence in some 

 parts of Africa. T. H. 



