9n2 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[November, 



1901. 



known to exist. No ordinary circumstances could 

 appaa-ently have accouut-ed for their size or number. 

 As to their beauty there can be no question. They 

 assume every sort of appearance from the grotesque to 

 the magnificent, and from the weird to the wonderful. 

 One will resemble a mountain with a village perched 

 on its side; another will make one think of an enormous 

 ann-chair, or couch, or perhaps a table ; in another we 

 shall see a majestic castle with frowning battlements, 

 turrets and tower complete ; or perhaps an animal of 

 the elephantine order will pass before us ; or, again, we 

 are greeted by the cliffs of Dover ! Some sail along 

 laden with snow, glistening in the sunshine ; others 

 are iridescent with all the colours of the rainbow. 



n. E. B. 



SOME PECULIAR ANIMAL PRODUCTS. 



By R. Lydekkee. 



Of animal wax other than spermaceti (the product of the 

 sperm-whale and certain other allied species) the great 

 producer is the familiar honey-bee, an insect which has 

 been kept in a state of semi-domestication from time 

 immemorial, and is now spread over the greater part 

 of the habitable globe, existing in certain countries in 

 a wild condition. Its original home is, however, quite 

 luiknown ; and it is doubtful if any of the wild bees 

 of this species are the descendants of primitively wild 

 ancestors. In Southern Europe, as well as in China 

 and Africa, varieties of the honey-bee are met with 

 characterised by the pi'esence of well-marked transverse 

 bands on the body. 



As is well known, the wax is secreted by the neutei's, 

 or workers, from between the segments of the abdomen. 

 When secreting — a process which occupies about twenty- 

 four hours — the workers cling to one another so as to 

 form long festoon-like masses ; the wax exuding as thin 

 plates from between the abdominal segments. These 

 plates are detached by the bees, and conveyed in frag- 

 ments to the mouth, where they are masticated, and 

 from which they finally issue in the form of a narrow 

 white ribbon. To describe the manner in which the 

 hexagonal-celled combs are built up from the wax thus 

 fonned, would be superfluous in the present article. 

 Neither is it necessai-y to describe the collecting and 

 melting clown of the combs to form commercial wax. 

 Nearly related .to the honey-bee ai'e certain smaller 

 species inhabiting the warmer parts of South America, 

 and referred to distinct genera, under the names of 

 Melijjoiia, Trigona, etc. These likewise build cells with 

 wax, but whether in sufficient quantities to be of any com- 

 mercial importance, we have not been able to ascertain. 



The Chinese obtain a large quantity of excellent wax 

 from an insect they term jjela, which is a member of 

 the order Rhynchota, and is technically known as 

 Cerophisf.es sinensis. This insect lives on trees, and 

 is artificially propagated ; its wax being employed for the 

 manufacture of the candles used in the Buddhist temples 

 of China and Japan, as well as for medical pm-poses. 

 An allied species of wax-insect (C'erophutes cerifeius) 

 is found in Ranchi and other districts of India, clinging 

 to the branches of certain kinds of trees, more especially 

 the arjuse, a species of Terminalia. As is the case 

 with the Chinese insect, it is the female alone which 

 produces the secretion ; this in the present case talking 

 the fonn of small masses of pure white wax. The 

 late Prof. V. Ball writes as follows concerning this 

 species : — " The Indian wax-insect has never, I believe. 



been propagated, nor has the wild product ever been 

 collected in quantity. It seems to be — although un- 

 doubtedly of value — a substance which w-ould scar&ely 

 repay an expenditure of European time and capital ; 

 but were the natives to take up its cultivation they 

 might very possibly make it a profitable undertaking." 



Of vei-y considerable commercial imjjortance is the 

 resinous substance known as lac, since it forms the 

 foundation of most varnishes, and is also employed in 

 the manufacture of sealing-wax, etc. It is the product 

 of the lac-insect {Carferia lacca), an inhabitant of India 

 and other oriental countries, and a near relation of 

 the cochineal-insect, as well as a distant cousin of the 

 plant-lice, or aphides. This insect gives rise to a 

 resinous exudation from the bark of the trees it fre- 

 quents, which, while still adhering to the twigs is termed 

 stick-lac. When j^ounded and freed from colouring 

 matter, this substance forms the seed-lac and shell-lac 

 of commerce ; while the liberated colouring matter con- 

 stitutes lac-dye. As neither the resinous matter nor 

 the dye are obtained from the body of the in?ect, they 

 are not, properly speaking, animal products. Never- 

 theless, as they are caused by the presence of the insect, 

 and are always spoken of in connection with the latter, 

 they should be considered with such products. 



Owing to sudden and large fluctuations in tlie price 

 of lac in the London market, the trade is a somewhat 

 risky one; the profits made in one year being not un- 

 frequently swallowed xvp by the 4osses of its successor. 

 Here it may be mentioned that the word lac, or lakh, 

 is the Hindustani term for 100,000, and is apjjlied to 

 the insect on account of its numbers, while it is also 

 in general use to denote the sum of 100,000 rupees. 



The following . accoimt of the collection and manu- 

 facture of lac in the Ranchi district, India, is given 

 by the writer just cited.* After mentioning that the 

 lac-insect frecjuents the twigs of various jungle trees, 

 and more especially three particular species. Prof. Ball 

 proceeds as follows: — "To some extent the lac is found 

 occurring, so to speak, spontaneously, and is collected 

 by the forest tribes, and brought by them to the fairs 

 and bazaars for sale. Where, however, there is a regular 

 trade in stick-lac, propagation of the insect is systema- 

 tically carried on by those who wish for a certain and 

 abundant crop. This projjagation is effected by tying 

 small twigs, on which are crowded the eggs or lan'K 

 of the insect, to the branches of the trees. These larvfe 

 are technically called ' seed.' The larvfe shortly after 

 sowing spread themselves over the branches, and, taking 

 up positions, secrete round themselves a hard crust of 

 lac, which gi-adually spreads till it nearly completes 

 the circle round the twig. At the proper season the 

 twigs are broken off, and we must suppose them to 

 have passed through several hands, or to have been 

 purchased directly from the collectors by the agents 

 of the manufacturer. On arrival at the factoi-y, they 

 are first placed between two powerful rollers which, 

 by a simple arrangement, admit of any degree of 

 approximation. The lac is then crushed off, and 

 separated from the woody portions by screening ; it 

 is next placed in large tubs half-full of water and 

 washed by coolies, who, standing in the tvibs, and hold- 

 ing a bar with their hands, stamp and pivot about on 

 their heels and toes until, after a succession of changes, 



the resulting liquor comes off clear The lac, 



having been dried, is placed in long cylindrical bags 

 of cotton cloth of medium texture, which are about 



* " Jungle Life ill Indi.T." p. .^08 (1880). 



