26 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE FARM 
Fic. 9. The hazel nut (Corylus americanus); nuts in the hull, 
and a kernel in the half-shell (after Mayo). 
food. A few stray members of other families produce 
edible nuts. Those of the linden are very well flavored, 
although minute. Those of the wild lotus of the swamps are 
very palatable and were regularly gathered by the Indians 
for food. They resemble small acorns in size and shape. 
Then there are nuts of large size and promising appearance 
that are wholly inedible. Such are the horse-chestnut and 
the buckeye, which contain a bitter and narcotic principle. 
Certain nuts of large size and fine quality, like the king 
hickory, have not found much popular favor, because their 
shells are thick and close-fitting. They are hard to crack and 
the kernels are freed with much difficulty. Such selection as 
has been practiced with Persian walnuts and pecans is in the 
direction of thin, loose-fitting shells. 
Nuts are unusually well protected dur- 
ing development by hard shells and thick 
hulls of acrid flavor; yet they have not 
escaped enemies. Wormy nuts are fre- 
quent. The most important of the 
“worms’’ living inside the hulls and feed- 
ing on the kernels are the larve of the 
; _ nut-weevils. These are snout-beetles 
Fig. 10. Leaf outline wi z 
andnutlets of thelinden. that live exclusively upon nuts and are 
