WILD FLOWERS 



JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT. INDIAN TURNIP ^f 



Arisaema triphyllum. Arum Family. 



HERE is a floral jack-in-the-box that has been a 

 delight to every child east of the Mississippi 

 Valley since Columbus popularized American tours. 

 And its bright red berries and large, solid bulb tickled 

 the palates of our dear old Indians many years previous 

 to this great and most eventful proposition. There 

 is nothing solemn about this curiously constructed 

 flower — indeed, it is very amusing, if not ridiculous* 

 Jack is not a preacher. Far from it — he is a peeper > 

 popping up here and there in shady nooks where he 

 erects his artistic summer house, and is ever on the 

 lookout to surprise us in our woodland rambles during 

 May. The violently acrid bulb is exceeding fiery to 

 the taste, and has been used as a remedy for asthma, 

 whooping-cough and rheumatism. 



The Indian Turnip is a perennial herb, and grows 

 from about one to three feet in height. Each plant 

 bears one or two large, spreading, three-parted leaves, 

 which overtop the flower hood. The strongly ribbed, 

 broad, oval leaflets taper at the tip, and are set on long, 

 round, smooth stems, that are sheathed toward the 



