160 NATURAL HISTORY MISCELLANY. 
the British public to respond with the same generosity which they 
have manifested in other instances. The animals fared better 
than the plants — not only have none of them been eaten by the 
population of Paris, as the latter fondly suppose, but, although 
several shells burst among them, they have escaped uninjured. 
Of course, when food was so scarce for human beings, the mon- — 
keys and their companions were put upon short allowance. This 
fact, coupled with the extreme rigor of the season, increased the 
rate of mortality among them, and one elephant died, but was not 
eaten. The two elephants and the camel, that were eaten, belonged 
to the Jardin d’Acclimation, and had been removed in the early 
stage of the siege from their ordinary home in the Bois Boulogne, 
for safety, to the Jardin des Plantes, where, however, it would ap- 
pear, it was not to be found. The birds screamed and the animals 
cowered, as the shells came rushing overhead and bursting near 
them, as they do when some terrific storm frightens them ; latterly, 
they seemed to become used to it ; fortunately, the part of the gar- 
den which they inhabit is somewhat removed from the museums, at 
which the fire seemed more especially directed. The gates of this 
favorite resort were kept closed, because the price of firewood is 
so high, and the scarcity of it such, that the people are unable to 
_ resist the temptation of coming into the gardens in search of fuel, 
and, for the present, it is found wise to shut them out; indeed, 50- 
much greater is the necessity for fuel than for food at present, that 
the provision trains have been stopped by order of the Gover- 
ment to allow the coal trains to pass. — Special Correspondent of 
“ The Times,” quoted in the ** Gardeners’ Chronicle.” 
ASCENT OF THE SAP IN Pines. — Some years ago, my gardener 
pointed out to me that some Austrian and Scotch Pines, which 
had been completely girdled by mice, still continued to grow, as if 
no such injury had been received. In order to test this matter, I 
took an Austrian Pine about five feet high, and girdled it for® 
space of two inches, at about three feet from the ground. P 
was five years ago, and the upper portion is still alive. The w i 
attracts much attention from visitors to my grounds. When g- 
dled, the branch was about one and one-half inches in diameter- 
The whole portion of stem between the tier of branches above 
and that below — a space of about fifteen inches — has since rè- 
mained of that size, and is dry and hard as a ‘pine knot.” The 
