KIDDS OWN JOURNAL. 



251 



arms or paddles while giving suck. They are 

 harpooned, or caught in a strong net, at the 

 narrow entrance of a lake or stream, and are 

 killed by driving a wooden plug with a mallet up ] 

 their nostrils. Each yields from five to twenty- 

 five gallons of oil. The flesh is very good, being 

 something between beef and pork ; and this one 

 furnished us with several meals, and was an 

 agreeable change from our fish diet. — R. Wal- 

 lace. 



A Cure for Whitlow. — Let the suffering part 

 be moistened with water, and then touched with 

 nitrate of silver, till the spot begins to be dis- 

 colored. Then let it be simply covered with lint, 

 and bandaged. If the complaint be of recent date 

 probably on the following day all pains will cease ; 

 and, on the third, the cure is effected. If of 

 longer duration, the skin will be more thickened ; 

 and, after acting on it with the caustic, it must be 

 removed with the scissors or knife, in order to give 

 free exit to the collected matter underneath. If 

 swelling or redness are still present, the applica- 

 tion of the lunar caustic should be repeated till 

 the tumor disappears, and the spot becomes free 

 from pain. If whitlow happens on callous parts 

 of the hand, it will be better to remove thin layers 

 of the callous skin with the knife before the caustic 

 is used. Warm fomentations of linseed are like- 

 wise useful in such cases. — Rosa B. 



Necessity of Rest for the Eyes. — Endeavor 

 always, if it can be accomplished, to give the eyes I 

 rest for a while after eating ; especially if your 

 occupation obliges you to sit. The bad effects of 

 an opposite line of conduct may be daily seen in 

 the red faces, livid lips, and bloodshot eyes, of 

 those who either think intensely, or strain the 

 sight soon after meals. After all employments 

 that tend to inflame the passions — as pleading, 

 teaching, lecturing, debating, &c, rest to the 

 sight is absolutely essential to its preservation in 

 old age; for the blood being more heated than 

 usual, and flowing to the head in excess, unfits 

 the eyes for exertion ; and will, if persevered in, 

 produce the most painful" consequences.— A 

 Friend. 



[We imagine this is intended as "a hint" for us. 

 Thanks, many; kind " Friend !"] 



The Water Lily. — It is a marvel whence this 

 perfect flower derives its loveliness and perfume; 

 springing as it does from the black mud over 

 which the river sleeps, and where lurk the slimy 

 eel and speckled frog, and the mud turtle, whom 

 continual washing cannot cleanse. It is the very 

 same black mud out of which the yellow lily sucks 

 its obscene life and noisome odor ! Thus we see, 

 too, in the world, that some persons assimilate 

 only what is ugly and evil from the same moral 

 circumstances which supply good and beautiful 

 results — the fragrance of celestial flowers — to the 

 daily life of others. — Margaret Fuller. 



Tameness of the Robin. — In April, 1852, a pair 

 of robins entered my drawing-room, through the 

 open window. From their movements, we guessed 

 they were selecting some convenient site in which 

 to form a nest. They examined everything very 

 carefully, and reconnoitred every corner of the 



room. Two large vases on the mantelpiece were 

 specially surveyed ; but they were not liked. At 

 last, they selected the corner of the gilt cornice, 

 surmounting the window curtains. Here, in a short 

 time, they began to build; bringing in twigs, dried 

 leaves, and other articles necessary for the con- 

 struction of their nest. In three or four days, the 

 habitation was completed ; and, in due time, four 

 very pretty eggs were deposited therein, carefully 

 sat upon, and all hatched. Thirteen days after- 

 wards, the four young ones, being fully fledged, 

 with their parents, took their departure in my 

 presence. During the whole period above-men- 

 tioned, the birds came in and out as if the room 

 were their own, nothing daunted by the presence 

 of the owners or their friends. The hen bird 

 always came in at night, the male most commonly 

 remaining in the garden without. Candles and 

 music caused her no disturbance. Her mate 

 in his repeated visits would hop about the floor, 

 and readily accept crumbs thrown to him, on the 

 rug, by the mistress of the house. The hen bird 

 chiefly sat ; while the male brought in to her, 

 worms, and grubs, and other articles of food, 

 singing a little song announcing his arrival. He 

 would sometimes remain motionless upon the tea- 

 poy for a few minutes; then she won Id come down 

 from the nest, receive the wriggling worm or 

 writhing grub from his mouth, and dismiss him 

 in search of more. On the day when the young 

 ones were hatched, noted down as on the eighth 

 of May, both birds alighted on the head of the 

 mistress of the house, on her going to the window, 

 as if to communicate the joyous tidings of the 

 birth of their progeny. They afforded, as will be 

 readily imagined, much interest to all our house- 

 hold, as well as to our friends and neighbors ; some 

 of whom, having heard of our winged guests, 

 would ask leave to realise the tale by ocular 

 demonstration. The only disappointment felt was, 

 that, in taking their departure, neither the parents 

 nor the young ones made any acknowledgment for 

 the secure and hospitable home afforded them — 

 not without some inconvenience, for the window 

 had to be kept open through the day during their 

 occupation of the principal room of the house. — 

 G. Spexce, Lee, Kent. 



[We have not given insertion to the anecdote 

 kindly forwarded with the above, copied from the 

 Dumfries Courier. We never allow any anecdotes 

 of animals furnished to that paper, to appear in 

 ours. We require " facts." Fun is all very well 

 in its way, but a man may be too waggish. More 

 fabrications are already in circulation ; and they 

 will increase with the summer heat. Gooseberries 

 and cauliflowers are even now of gigantic size ; 

 and the annual colossal " cabbage " is fast grow- 

 ing !] 



Cocoa-Nut Matting. — This serviceable commo- 

 dity, which forms a striking feature in the manu- 

 factures of this country, is the production of the 

 cocoa palm, a tree which thrives luxuriantly in 

 the latitudes of the tropics. There are five dis- 

 tinct varieties of palms to be met with in the tor- 

 rid zone, viz., the cocoa palm, the fan ditto, the 

 date ditto, the sago ditto, and the beetle-nut palm. 

 The first produces the cocoa-nut of commerce, the 

 juice of which, in a premature stage of fruition, 

 is denominated cocoa-nut milk. Tuis latter 



