542 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



with it. Speaking of mesquite, a writer at hand says of 

 it that "under the action of prairie fires it is reduced to 

 a low shrub, developing then an enormous mass of roots, 

 locally known as underground forest, of great value as 

 fuel. The wood is heavy and very hard, almost in- 

 destructible in contact with the ground; it is used for 

 the beams and underpinnings of adobe houses, for posts 

 and fencing, for fuel, and for furniture. It is of a brown 

 or red color, handsome when polished, but difficult to 

 work. The bean-like pods, before maturity, become pulpy 

 and exceedingly rich in grape-sugar. They are eaten by 

 the Indians as well as by whites, and furnish a valuable 

 fodder for horses. The shrub also exudes a gum re- 



the toads found in the neighborhood of Brownsville, for 

 example, have not as yet received any common names. 

 Of these, Hypopachus cuneus may be cited, of which 

 Miss Mary C. Dickerson reports in her "Frog-Book :" 

 "The habits and life history are not on record." 



Photographs of some of the lovely flowers of Texas 

 have been sent me by Mrs. Kate Peel Anderson, of 

 Brownsville, Texas, and among them a most attractive 

 picture of an Aristolochia, which the Texans and others 

 know as the "Duck Vine" for the reason that the un- 

 opened flower, on side view, resembles a swimming duck. 

 The richly tinted blossoms, when in full bloom, are 

 delicately dotted all over with irregularly shaped choco- 



THE BEAUTIFUL WATER HYACINTHS OF TEXAS 



Figure 12. In many parts of Texas, the Water Hyacinths grow in the greatest profusion about the borders of lakes and other small inland 

 bodies of water. This beautiful picture of the Water Hyacinths, together with the plants here shown in Figures 14 and 16, were presented to 

 the writer by Mrs. Kate Peel Anderson, of Brownsville, Texas, with permission to use them in the present connection. 



sembling a gum arabic, which in Texas and Mexico is 

 collected in considerable quantities for export." 



Along the rivers and streams in some parts of the 

 State, and around the margins of ponds and lakes, we 

 meet with great beds of the Water Hyacinths. Their 

 delicate white flowers and dark green leaves present a 

 picture of floral luxuriousness not easily forgotten (Fig. 

 12). Where they grow, one shouM be on the look-out 

 for various species of reptiles or batrachians, and their 

 habits and appearances in nature carefully observed. We 

 know very little about some of the forms, and science 

 will welcome any new facts in regard to them. Some of 

 the frogs and toads, for example, are not only very rare 

 in collections, but we are practically lacking in any field 

 notes upon their exact distribution and habits. Some of 



late colored spots, which strongly remind one of some 

 of the flowers of an orchid. Mrs. Anderson seems to 

 believe that the Duck Vine is an "insect eater," and pos- 

 sibly this is so. When the seed-pods mature, each has 

 the appearance of a charming little suspended basket, at 

 the bottom of each of which we find the flat seeds 

 of the plant. 



Thus we see that while there yet remains a great deal 

 to be examined and desired in the botany and zoology 

 of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, the 

 flora and fauna of Texas is even less known that is, 

 compared with that of some of our New England and 

 Middle States. Now that the country is gradually settling 

 down again, following upon all that was forced on it as 

 a consequence of the great war, it would seem that the 



