-rrAl'R PLANTS. 27 



the period of the moon's decrease, appears turbid, 

 but that at the time of the full moon, it is as clear 

 as crystal. Yet water is not found in the spaces 

 between each joint alike, but alternately. Thus, if 

 a space in the cane is opened which proves empty, 

 the two contiguous ones are uniformly full. Nor are 

 the contents of each portion of the cane from joint 

 to joint, a meagre draught, for the canes are as re- 

 markable for their length and thickness, as for the 

 liquid contained in their tubes. Their diameter is 

 at least six inches, and when opened, they form a 

 board of nearly a foot and a half in breadth ; hence, 

 considerable houses are frequently erected with this 

 light and elegant material. The water, too, which 

 they contain, is an excellent preservative against the 

 ill effects of bruises. Those who traverse the rough 

 and dangerous tracts of the Andes, are often equally 

 exposed to accident and thirst. These vegetable 

 fountains, which rise in arid and dangerous parts, 

 answer a double purpose : they refresh the weary 

 traveller, and remove the dangerous effects that 

 might otherwise result from frequent falls. 



Their construction, too, is well deserving of con- 

 sideration. They illustrate the striking fact, that a 

 hollow cylinder is uniformly given to such plants as 

 carry a considerable weight at the end of a long and 

 flexible stem ; or of which the material is peculiarly 

 fragile. Bamboos spring out of the ground like 

 grasses, they wave in the slightest breeze, and often 

 grow on high places, swept over by fierce winds ; 

 they consequently require an organization very dif- 

 ferent from that of forest-trees, and hence in order 

 to prevent them from being uprooted by the gale, 



