1882.] J. Cockburn — Note on torsion in spear Grass. 49 



of the male generative organ. The four outer hemispheres taken in 

 conjunction with the central one represent a pair of testes in any direction 

 it is possible to view the sculpture. The ridged keels represent the median 

 raphe of the scrotum. This last surmise has received unexpected confirma- 

 tion in a specimen of a Punchanan ling from Kalinjar in the collec- 

 tion of the Indian Museum. In this specimen the artist has hit upon 

 the expedient of serrating the ridge in imitation of the plications of 

 the scrotum when contracted by cold. 



Dr. Inman in his work * Ancient Faiths and Modern' has collected much 

 curious and forgotten lore regarding the prevalence of a Phallic element 

 in past and existing religions. A note bearing on the subject I here quote : 

 " The godhead among the Mesopotamians was a quartette equivalent to 

 the Hebrew Arba signifying four." 



According to Dr. Inman the crux ansata is a symbol of the union of 

 the sexes, and the Fleur de lys represents the male triad. I have just come 

 across a picture of a Pope by Guercino engraved by Bartolozzi where the 

 Pontiff is represented holding in his hand a book on which rest three 

 spheres in a triangular arrangement. The picture bears no name and tlie 

 date of work is not given. 



Mr. CocKBtJEN read the following note on torsion in the awns of Spear 

 Grass, which he had contributed to the " Asian." 



" Enclosed are some spikes of a small species of spear grass, in which I 

 observed a remarkable property of spontaneous movement. The subject 

 is one of some economic importance, as this grass threatens to over- 

 run the entire district, and is very difficult to eradicate. On the 

 IGth March 1881, while camped at Ackbye (ten miles north east of Banda, 

 N. W. P.), I had occasion to wash my hands, the water used saturating 

 the ground. Looking down, I happened to observe some minute objects 

 in motion, which I took for some form of animal life. I accordingly 

 knelt down and examined them closely. 



" I found that the objects were these grass seeds. As soon as the earth 

 in the vicinity was moistened, they began to unravel themselves with a 

 peculiar spiral motion, the effect of which was to bury the entire seed in 

 the soil till only the extreme (filiform) tip remained visible. By this 

 process, they became perfectly straight, and as they invariably went down 

 point first perpendicularly, they not inappropriately resembled arrows when 

 pulled out again. 



" I ti-ied a series of experiments within a radius of 200 yards of my 

 tent, and found that the ground was simply alive with these seeds, and that 

 they began their burrowing movements whenever the soil was moistened. 



