274 



NA TURE 



{July 20, 1 < 



and then I was obliged to acknowledge myself van- 

 quished and make good a retreat, stung by mosquitoes, 

 bitten by ants, with torn clothes, and arms and legs 

 bleeding from the thorns and prickles with which the 

 climbing palm [Calamus), the climbing Hibiscus, the 

 Euphorbia, and a multitude of other jungle plants repulse 

 every attack made on their impenetrable labyrinth. But 

 the attempt had not been made altogether in vain, for it 

 enabled me to gain a very fair idea of the jungle as a 

 whole, more especially of the magnificence of its trees 

 and creepers, besides introducing me to many separate 

 varieties of animal and vegetable life, which were of the 

 highest interest ; here I saw the magnificent Gloriosa 

 superba, the poisonous climbing lily of Ceylon, with its 

 red and amber flowers : the prickly Hibiscus radiatus, 

 with large cup-shaped brim-tone-coloured flowers, deepen- 

 ing to violet in the hollow ; while round them fluttered 

 gigantic black butterflies with blood-red spots on their 

 tail-shaped wings, and chafers and dragon-flies flew past 

 with a metallic gleam. But my delight reached its 

 height when on this, my first attempt to penetrate a 

 jungle in Ceylon, I came across the two most character- 

 istic of its inhabitants from among the higher class of 

 animals — parrots and apes. A flock of green parrots 

 flew screeching from a lofty tree, as fhey became aware 

 of the gun in my hand, and at the same moment a herd 

 of great black apes sprang with a growling cry into the 

 thicket. I did not succeed in getting a shot at either 

 one or the other ; they appeared to be too familiar with 

 the look of a gun. I was consoled, however, by securing 

 with my first shot a colossal lizard or iguana six feet long, 

 of a kind held in much awe by the superstitious natives 

 {Hydrosaurus salvator). The huge crocodile-like beast 

 was sunning himself on the edge of a water-tank, and 

 the shot hit him so precisely on the head as to kill him 

 at once ; had it struck any less vital part he would 

 probably have dived into the water and disappeared; 

 when seized, the iguana has the power of hitting so sharp 

 a blow with its scaly tail as to cause a severe wound and 

 even sometimes a broken limb." 



We regret that want of space forbids us to quote entire 

 Prof. Haeckel's account of a Buddhist temple built on the 

 wooded heights above Kaduwella, and the scene of con- 

 stant pilgrimages. It was constructed originally out of a 

 natural grotto, the back part of the temple being com- 

 posed of the bare rock, from which also is hewn the 

 colossal figure of Buddha, which is invariable in all 

 Buddhist temples. Almost as invariable is the adjoining 

 Dagoba, a bell-shaped dome without any opening, con- 

 taining a relic of Gotama. The size of the dagobas varies 

 from that of a large church bell to the circumference of 

 the dome of St. Peter's at Rome. Near the Dagoba is 

 generally to be seen a large Bo-Ga, or sacred fig-tree 

 (Fie us religio 



"These 'Buddha-trees' with their venerable stems, 

 fantastic roots, and colossal crown of foliage form a pro- 

 minent feature in the picturesque surroundings of the 

 temples ; their leaves, which are heart-shaped, with long 

 stalks, quiver like our aspens." 



The description given by Prof. Haeckel of the Royal 

 Botanic Garden at Peradenia will be read with interest 

 by all who value the efforts, whether of governments or 

 of individuals, to encourage scientific knowledge by placing 

 the means of gaining it within the reach of all. This 

 admirable institution was founded sixty years ago on the 

 site of an ancient royal residence, and placed under the 

 direction of Dr. Gardner. His successor, Dr. Thwaites, 

 the learned compiler of the first "Flora Ceylanica," 

 laboured for thirty years to render the garden worthy of 

 its extraordinary advantages of position and climate. On 

 his retirement a few years ago, Dr. Henry Trimen was 

 appointed director, and from him Prof. Haeckel received 

 a pressing invitation, which all that he had heard and 

 read of Peradenia urged him to accept. 



Peradenia is now connected with Kandy, the original 

 capital of Ceylon, by a railway, the first in the island. 

 Prof. Haeckel notes by the way* that railway travelling 

 affords the greatest delight to the natives, many of whom 

 make the journey up and down daily for the mere pleasure 

 of the ride ! It is the only indulgence on which they are 

 willing to spend their money, and fortunately the line is a 

 cheap one. The journey is of between four and five 

 hours' duration, and the first half of it lies through low 

 lands covered with swampy jungle, alternating with rice 

 fields and swamp meadows. After that, the line begins 

 to ascend, and a constant succession of beautiful moan- 

 tain landscapes unfold themselves to the view. One of 

 the most magnificent of these is afforded to the traveller 

 at the point called the " Sensation Rock." " Here the 

 line, after passing through several tunnels, runs under 

 projecting cliffs at the edge of a precipice with a sheer 

 descent of 1200 to 1400 feet. Roaring waterfalls from 

 the rocky heights on the left are spanned by railway 

 bridges, and, dashing downwards, are dissolved into spray 

 before they reach the foot of the precipice ; the sunshine 

 striking them forms them into glittering rainbows. The 

 green valley lying far below our feet is covered partly with 

 jungle, partly with cultivated land scattered over with 

 huts, gardens, and rice-fields, arranged in terraces. 

 Towering above all other trees, rise the giant stems of 

 the majestic Talipat palm, queen of all the palms of 

 Ceylon (Corypka umbraculifera). Its perfectly straight 

 white stem resembles a slender marble pillar, and often 

 exceeds 100 feet in height. Each of the fan-shaped 

 leaves which form its stately crown covers a half-circle 

 sixteen feet in diameter ; they, like every other part of 

 the tree, are turned to manifold uses, being especially 

 employed for thatching ; they formerly provided the 

 Singhalese with a substitute for paper, and are still 

 used in that capacity. The old Puskola manuscripts of 

 the Buddhist monasteries are all written with an iron 

 style upon this " ola " paper, narrow strips of talipat 

 leaves boiled and dried in the sun. The stately talipat 

 palm blooms but once, usually between the fiftieth and 

 eightieth year of its life ; the pyramidal clusters ot 

 flowers crowning the summit of the palm, reach the 

 length of thirty to forty feet, and are formed of millions 

 of small yellow-white blossoms ; when the seed-vessels 

 ripen, the tree dies. By a fortunate chance it happened 

 that an unusual number of talipat palms were in flower 

 during my stay ; I counted more than sixty between 

 Rambukhana and Kadugannawa, and more than a hun- 

 dred during the whole railway journey. Excursions were 

 made from Colombo to witness the rare and beautiful 

 sight." 



The following extract gives Prof. Haeckel's first im- 

 pression of the Botanic Garden of Peradenia : — 



" The entrance to the Garden is through a noble avenue 

 of india-rubber trees (Ficus e las tied). The milky sap of 

 this tree thickens into caoutchouc. Young plants of it are 

 cultivated in heated rooms of our cold north, for the sake 

 of the decorative beauty of their oval sap-green leaves : 

 but while with us india-rubber plants of six or eight feet 

 high, are esteemed a wonder, here in their native land 

 they take rank with the noblest of forest trees, and would 

 rival our oaks in size and strength. A huge crown of 

 many thousand leaves proceeding from horizontal branches 

 40 to 50 feet long, covers the superficial area of a stately 

 palace, and from the base of its powerful stem rises a net- 

 work of roots, often between 100 feet and 200 feet in 

 diameter, more than the height of the tree itself. This 

 marvellous mass of roots rises on all sides and twists 

 round the tree in such a manner, that the natives have 

 given it the name of the " snake-tree." ' 



" Scarcely had I recovered from my astonishment at this 



1 ' ' Like snakes in wild festoon 



In famous wrestlings intet laced 

 A forest Laocoon." 



(Hood's Poem of "Tbe Elm Tree.") 



