The Devil's Claw— III 



naving completelii shed its gourd-like covering, and with 



its jaws set for a passing animal, it will be seen that the pod 



itself is covered with prickly spines. When the fish-hook points of 



the prongs bite into the leg of an animal, the whole contrivance becomes 



balanced from that point, and at each jolt and jounce the heavier body 



of the pod pounds down upon the leg, its spines causing great 



pain. There is an opening between the two prongs at the 



upper end of the pod itself from which the seeds 



come out at every bounce. ^Vhen these ai-e 



scattered over a mile or two of new 



environment, the pod falls apart. 



