STRANGE PLANTS AND THEIR WAYS. 45 



supposed connection with malignant powers. The people 

 think that if one of these evil beings were to be buried in 

 the earth, like the bodies of other men, celestial vengeance 

 would descend upon all those who committed the sacrilege. 

 So, to avert divine wrath, they select the trunk of some 

 baobab-tree already partially hollowed out by insects or 

 fungi, increase the cavity to a sufficient size, and in it sus- 

 pend the body of the Guerrot, closing the entrance with a 

 plank. The body here becomes perfectly dry, and is changed 

 into a mummy without further preparation. 



6. In ancient Egypt the body was regarded as sacred, 

 and an endeavor was made to preserve it for all time. To 

 this end the bodies of the great were embalmed, and de- 

 posited in tombs hewn out of the solid rock. In central 

 Africa the body is preserved through detestation instead of 

 reverence, the baobab-tree taking the place of the rocky 

 sepulchre. Mgid ^ 



THE SACRED TREE OF INDIA. 



1. The majestic banyan-tree is lord of the forests of 

 India, and is one of the marvels of the vegetable world. 

 Its seeds are carried by the winds or dropped by the birds 

 in crevices in the rocks, or even in buildings or on trees, 

 and, when there is sufficient moisture, they germinate and 

 send rootlets downward to the earth, where they secure a 

 permanent foothold. If the long root reaches down from 

 the top of a tree, it speedily enlarges, and in a short time de- 

 stroys the original stalk which gave it life and nourishment. 



2. The banyan rarely attains a great height, from sixty 

 to a hundred feet being the maximum. During its first hun- 

 dred years it behaves very much like other trees, develop- 

 ing a sturdy trunk, and an immense, dome-like head spread- 

 ing far out on all sides. Its leaves are smooth and glossy, 



