THE COLORS OF NORTHERN FLOWERS. 685 



called " the jelly," and a similar substance is found near the head. 

 When only part of this jelly has been eaten its effects are a pecul- 

 iar vertigo, nausea, vomiting, pains all over the body, more espe- 

 cially in the limbs. The feeling of vertigo is similar to that of in- 

 toxication, hence the fish has been called " drunken fish." 



The " filefishes," or " trigger fishes," when found in the tropics, 

 where they feed on coral polypi, have the reputation of being most 

 unwholesome. 



In the West Indies " sea eels," or murenas, are only eaten by 

 the negroes. The blood of eels is said by Mosso to contain a poison 

 like that of vipers. It is related that a man drank some eel's blood 

 mixed with wine, and was in consequence seized with severe diar- 

 rhoea, disturbance of vision, foaming at the mouth, and stertorous 

 breathing. He ultimately recovered after vigorous treatment. 



Dr. Gordon, of Montego Bay, Jamaica, records a case of death 

 from eating the flesh and liver of a species of coast conger (Gymno- 

 thorax restrains). In spite of treatment, the man died after a lin- 

 gering illness. 



Space will not permit me to dwell in this article on the remain- 

 ing noxious fishes, but it is to be hoped that enough has been writ- 

 ten to teach people to be cautious in their selection of fish when in 

 the West Indies. 



THE COLOES OF NORTHERN FLOWERS. 



BY JOHN H. LOVELL. 



OR profusion of bloom and brilliancy of coloring, the land of 

 the tropics, with all its luxuriance of vegetation, can offer 

 nothing to compare with a New England meadow in June. Along 

 the great rivers of the South or in the islands of the East strange 

 and beautiful flowers occur individually or in small groups, but the 

 traveler looks in vain for myriads of blossoms giving a distinctive 

 coloring to the landscape itself. It was long the popular notion 

 that the colors of flowers were of no importance except as they 

 gave human pleasure. This idea has been made familiar by a well- 

 known line of Gray's Elegy. It was a German pastor, Christian 

 Conrad Sprengel, at the close of the last century, who first pointed 

 out their true significance. So enthusiastically did he pursue his 

 botanical studies that he neglected the duties of his office, and finally 

 even omitted the Sunday sermon. The natural result followed, 

 that he was deprived of his parish. In straitened circumstances 

 he then sought unsuccessfully to maintain himself at Berlin by giv- 

 ing lessons in botany and Sunday excursions in search of plants. 



