TROPICAL CREEPERS. 215 



But unlike the deathlike silence of the snow-clad 

 regions of the north, or that of the desert, or the 

 prairie, this sleep of Nature in the torrid zone is al- 

 ways that of regal splendour, taking its nightly rest 

 surrounded by all the tokens of pomp and magnificence, 

 which the possession of boundless wealth and resources 

 alone can supply. 



In taking leave for the present of the subject of 

 the arborescent grasses, we think it well to remind 

 the reader that after producing their seed, the stems 

 of bamboos and of many other kinds of these great 

 grasses, wither and die, * so that a constant succession 

 has to be kept up, either by " suckers " springing from 

 the roots, or by means of seed, more especially in 

 districts where there is a long spell of dry weather ; but 

 we shall refer further on more particularly to this matter 

 in connection with the subject of the Jungle, f 



No account of the tropical forest could, however, be 

 considered at all complete without some short account 

 being given of the vast multitude of creepers of various 

 kinds, which literally seem to overspread the equato- 

 rial forest, as water spreads itself over the surface of 

 flooded lands. Some of the larger and most vigorous 

 species, such as the rattans, seem to have almost unlim- 

 ited powers of extension. Many of these kinds have 

 epiphytal roots, which attach themselves to trees and 



* Dictionary of Economic Plants, by John Smith, A.L.S., 1882, 

 article " Bamboos." 



f By some writers on botanical subjects it has been denied that 

 Bamboos can reproduce themselves by suckers arising from the roots 

 after the death of the parent plant, above ground. It can, however, 

 we think, be easily shown that this is a very erroneous view, taken 

 without due consideration of the facts. Like other grasses, though the 

 tops die down, the roots may throw up fresh shoots, and though this 

 is not common among bamboos, yet it sometimes occurs. 



