THE OAR WEED 137 



PLATE XLV 

 THE OAR WEED (2) 



This is a very fine sea-weed indeed, for it often 

 grows to a height of ten or eleven feet. But 

 you are not likely to see it growing, for it lives 

 in rather deep water, where it is always covered 

 even at the lowest tides. It is often flung up 

 by the waves, however, and you must many times 

 have noticed its long, thick stem and flat plate- 

 like leaves lying upon the shore as the tide was 

 going down. 



The stem of the oar weed is often used for 

 making the handles of knives. When it is quite 

 fresh, it is so soft that the "tang" of a knife-blade 

 the part, that is, which is fastened into the 

 handle can be forced into it quite easily. But 

 if it is put aside for a few months to dry it 

 becomes as hard and solid as horn, and holds 

 the blade so firmly that it is almost impossible 

 to pull it out again. 



If you look at the "roots" of the oar weed 

 you will see that they are not like those of plants 

 which grow in the ground, but are really very 

 strong suckers. For sea-weeds do not send their 

 roots down into the rock, as land plants do into 

 the ground, but merely cling to the surface. 

 That is why they are so easily torn up by the 

 waves. 



