Sept. 1, 1865. ; 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



235 



ANATOMATizixa Leaves. — Is cbloi'ide of lime the 

 best thing- for bleaching- leaves; and what is the best 

 way of doing seed-vessels of plants, such as colum- 

 bine, larkspur, &c., or fronds of ferns, which I hear 

 will not anatomize, but look pretty bleached? Should 

 the leaves be lel't all the time iu the same water, 

 and when some of 'the green stUl adheres to the 

 fibres, can anvthing else be done to remove it? — 

 H. G.S.^ 



Cat-bkiai!,.-— Can you or any of yoiir readers give 

 me the scientific name of the " Cat-briar," of North' 

 America? I cannot describe the plant, as it is so 

 long since I have seen it, but it grows (I believe) 

 principally in swampy soil. I have found it plentiful 

 in the dense brakes and copses inhabited by the 

 American woodcock. This query is remarkably 

 vague, I admit, but the plant is well known in many 

 parts of the United States, by the appellation I have 

 quoted. — H. G., Bangalore. 



_ Lajbtjknum.— I shall be much obliged by your 

 giving me some information as to the following par- 

 ticulars of ih.Q Labunwm : — 1. "VYhenee did Pliny get 

 the name ? 2. If from a Celtic root, what ? 3. Wlien 

 was it introduced into England ? To save trouble, 

 I may mention that I know about the 16th century 

 is given generally as the date of its introduction ; 

 and also that it came to us from Hungary, though 

 an Alpine plant, but I seek more certain, precise, and 

 detailed particulars. — P. /. 



PossiL Elephakt. — I should be glad to know if 

 MepJias primigenius has 15 or 17 ribs on one side, as 

 Page and Hugh Miller appear to difi'er. — /. Arrow, 



The mammotli found in Siberia, of this species. 

 in 1799, has 17 ribs on the right side.— i?. T. 



Does the SriDER Eat its Web ? — Pired with 

 emulation, I carefully watched a common garden 

 spider {Epeira diadema), which I found as enter- 

 taining as v.'onderful. 1 commenced by destroying 

 the web of a fine fat spider, and the owner appeared 

 excessively astonished as her web collapsed around 

 her. At length she took refuge in an inverted 

 flower-pot, where I found her two hours after. I 

 am inclined to think that during this period she was 

 preparing- materials for a new web. I found in every 

 case where a web is destroyed, that the spider goes 

 away to some quiet spot, and, dravfing his legs close 

 round him, remains quiet for two or three hours. 

 During this period of repose, the spider is stupid 

 and dull, — ^just gives an impatient shuffle when 

 touched, but does not run off as spiders generally 

 do when disturbed. I watched again, then left, and 

 when I returned in half an hour 1 found the spider 

 as active as a spider could be, in building a new web, 

 the old one, which at my last visit was still hanging-, 

 had now vanished. Had the spider eaten it ? — 

 " that's the rub." By a lucky chance another spider 

 came along the piece of wood, from the end of which 

 my spider had fastened one of her foundation hues. 

 '■'They met," and in an instant the claws of each 

 were shot out with a dexterity that a pugilist might 

 envy ; the blows were given in exactly the same 

 manner as a cat strikes at her antagonist. The 

 trespassing spider was soon convinced that it would 

 be the height of folly to stay where he was, so, 

 fastening a line from where he stood, he let himself 

 down on to a convolvulus leaf. JMy friend rushed to 

 the spot where spider No. 2 had fastened his_ line, 

 and seizing on it, the other end of which, be it re- 

 membered, was in communication with spider No. 

 2's body, began to wind him off; that is to say 'she 



drew the line iu towards herself, in the same manner 

 that a sailor hauls in a rope, but with a rapidity that 

 was truly wonderful, the front legs were moved so 

 quickly that my eyes could scarcely follow them. 

 Spider No. 2 having a decided objection to his 

 vitals being wound away in this sort of manner, 

 put an end to ray friend's little pastime, by cutting 

 the line. Spider No. 1 had now collected web that 

 amounted to about the size of a large pea ; when she 

 found the supply cut off, she began stowing it away 

 in her own. Dody, forcing it in with her two front 

 claws, and in a few moments not a vestige was left. 

 — //. Fakes. 



Wasp Pights. — A short time ago, while sketching 

 some of the splendid inland cliffs of Matheran, one 

 of the hill stations near Bombay, my attention was 

 attracted by a rustling in the dead leaves close by, 

 and, on observing the place, I found a fierce battle 

 going on between a M'asp of the large red and black 

 kind, and a half-grown grass-hopper, whose wings 

 were mere rudiments, and whose whole body was soft, 

 green, pale, and succulent looking. The wasp seemed 

 repeatedly to sting it, seizing it by the under side 

 and endeavouring to wound it between the soft 

 plates about the thorax. This went on for several 

 minutes, the grass-hopper at times escaping beneath 

 the leaves, but whenever caught sight of by the 

 wasp the latter charged furiously again, and botli for 

 a time disappeared together. Seeing at length that 

 the struggle was abouttoterminate, by the escape of 

 the grass-hopper, and not quite liking the proximity 

 of his enemy, I endeavoured to secure them both, but 

 they were so much injured in the effort as to be of 

 little value as specimens. Query: As the grass- 

 hopper did not seem any the worse, was the wasp 

 unable to sting it through its armour ; and was his 

 power of penetration, though so large an insect 

 (over an inch in length), less tha,n that of the little 

 ticks which infest the large scaly lizard, called by 

 the natives here Gorepur, and by the saliib log 

 Iguana ? — A. B. W., Toona. 



Saffron, an Oriental Condiment. — There is 

 in India a very wide-spread error in the use of the 

 word Saffron, and on referring the other day to a 

 popular Biblical dictionary, I am afraid the error is 

 not peculiar to India. Every one ought to know 

 that Saffron is a collection of the dried stigmas of a 

 certain kind of crocus. Crocus satiims, cultivated 

 formerly, if not now, near Saffron Walden. That, 

 however, which in India has usurped the name ol 

 Saffron, chiefly, I suppose, from its dyeing a similar 

 colour, is Turmeric, a plant of a wholly different 

 character, belonging to I lie natural order Zingihcra- 

 cea^, or the ginger tribe. Turmeric is used in almost 

 every curry ; and gives to that universal Indian dish 

 its colour and some of its aromatic flavour. I do, 

 not know if your useful little publication may find 

 its way to India, for the correction of this common 

 mistake, but at all events I hope future editors of 

 Biblical^ dictionaries will cease to say of Saffron 

 that "Native dishes in India ai'e oftened coloured 

 and flavoured with it," for during a residence iu 

 India of nearly a quarter of a century, I never knew 

 this to be the case, although it is true of Turmeric. 

 ~}F. II. 



[N.B. — Our correspondent may have resided in 

 one part of India, and Saffron been employed as a 

 condiment in another. We are confidently informed 

 by medical men of long residence in India, that 

 " Saffron " is employed in culinary operations m 

 some districts, but not so commonly as Turmeric. 

 Who shall decide when doctors disagree ? — Ed.] 



