KIDD’S OWN JOURNAL. 

57 

his neighbor at defiance! Mr. Corbutt procured a 
summons from the County Court, to bring the 
question to a decision; and at the sitting at 
Abingdon, on the 14th inst., before J. B. Parry, 
Esq., Q.C., the plaintiff having proved by the 
evidence of his daughter that the bees had been 
followed and “rung,” and not lost sight of from 
_ the time of their leaving his garden to their 
settling in the garden of Mr. Spiers,—the judge 
decided in favor of the plaintiff.” As I always 
rejoice to see any remarks of ‘‘ Our Editor”? pub- 
licly confirmed, need I say how glad I shall be to 
see this in print ?—Vioiet, Worcester. 
Visit to a Field of Pitcher-Plants.—The Ne- 
penthes grows in Madagascar, in the interior of 
the country, at the distance of three leagues from 
Tamatave, and one anda half from Isathan, in a 
valley half-a-league in length, and a quarter in 
breadth, situated between a small arm of the 
river Hivouline and several lakes, the waters of 
which discharge themselves into the river Tama- 
tave. Itis surrounded with hills, covered with 
primeval forests ; and the soil is a blackish sand, 
much like poor heath mould. I discovered this 
valley about six in the morning, and found it 

covered with Nepenthes of the greatest beauty 
and vigorous growth. The largest were nineteen 
inches in height, in bloom, and furnished with a 
great quantity of pitchers ; almost every leaf bore 
one. I remarked that they were all open and 
half-full ; but, about three in the afternoon, I saw 
the covers descend gradually, and by five all the 
pitchers were closed. I tried to open some of 
them, but could not do so without breaking them. 
Desirous to see more of these wonderful plants, I 
resolved to visit them again early the next morn- 
ing, and returned to Isathan for the night, which 
I passed in the house where, in 1804 and 1805, 
died the two unfortunate botanists sent out by the 
French Government—Chapellier and Michaux. 
Returning the next morning at half-past five, I 
saw all the pitchers closed and resting on the 
ground, on account of the quantity of water they 
contained. It was still in vain to try to open 
without tearing them, and those which I did open 
in this manner were quite full. Towards eight 
o'clock the covers began sensibly to rise, and at 
nine all the pitchers were open. I measured the 
quantity of water contained in several, and 
found it about two-thirds of an ordinary glassful. 
This fluid, clear as distilled water, was cool, and 
of an agreeable taste, and was my only drink 
during this day of observation. By three in the 
afternoon, evaporation had exhausted two-thirds 
of the water in the pitchers, which gradually rose 
as they became lighter. The covers began to 
close, and at five were shut, as I had observed the 
previous evening. The people of Madagascar 
hold the Nepenthes in great reverence, and call it 
“copoque.”’ ‘They assured me that it exists in 
no other part of the island, which I can readily 
believe, for [have traversed Madagascar in all 
directions without meeting it elsewhere.—M. 
Breon, in La Belgique Horticole. 

The Effect of Fear.—Is it true that the ima- 
gination may be so wrought on, as to make a 
person believe he is gradually dying when he is 
actually in good health? I have heard some 
| land, Italy, and Greece. 
curious stories to this effect ; but I have no doubt 
you can set me right as to facts—Saran E. 
[What you have heard is quite true. We 
could multiply instances, but it would be irrele- 
vant. Boachet, a French author of the sixteenth 
century, states that the physicians at Montpelier, 
which was then a great school of medicine, had 
every year two criminals—the one living, the 
other dead—delivered to them for dissection. He 
relates that on one occasion they tried what effect 
the mere expectation of death would produce 
upon a subject in perfect health ; and in order to 
this experiment, they told the gentleman (for such 
was his rank) who was placed at their discretion, 
that, as the easiest mode of taking away his life, 
they would employ the means which Seneca had 
chosen for himself, and would, therefore, open his 
veins in warm water. Accordingly they covered 
his face, pinched his feet without lancing them, 
and set them in a foot-bath; they then spoke to 
each other as if they saw the blood were flowing 
freely, and life departing with it. The man re- 
mained motionless ; and when, after a while, they 
uncovered his face, they found him dead. In 
England, many such effects have been produced. 
There is no doubt that fear, working on the ima- 
gination, will lead to the most fatal results.] 

The Ground-Fish of Bootan—Mr. J. T. Pear- 
son has communicated to the Asiatic Society of 
Bengal, on the authority of Mr. Russell, of Rang- 
pore, the following account of the Bora Chung, 
a ground-fish of Bootan:—The Bora Chung is a 
thick cylindrical fish, with a body somewhat like 
a pike, but thicker, with a snub-nose ; it is two 
feet long, and weighs about three pounds. The 
color is olive-green, with orange stripes; the head 
speckled with crimson spots. It is eaten by the na- 
tives of Bootan, and said to be delicious. Itis found 
on the borders of the canal Nuddee, which falls into 
the river Dhallah, a branch of which runs into the 
Teestah, at Paharpore. It isnot immediately on 
the brink of the water, however, that the fish is 
caught ; but in perfectly dry places, in the middle 
of a grass jungle, sometimes as far as two miles 
from the river. The natives search this jungle 
till they find a hole, about four or five inches in 
diameter ; and into it they insert a stick to guide 
their digging a well, which they do till they come 
to the water; a little cow-dung is then thrown 
into the water, when the fish rises to the surface. 
Mr. Russell has known them to be from six to 
nineteen feet deep in the earth. Their other 
habits are not less curious. They are invariably 
found in pairs, two in each hole, never more nor 
less. He has seen them go along the ground 
with a serpentine motion, very fast, though the 
natives say they never voluntarily rise above the 
surface. In some places they are very common, 
and live a long time when taken out of the water, 
by being sprinkled over occasionally. One, which 
Mr. Russell thinks is the female, is always 
smaller, and not so bright in color as the other. 
Mr. Pearson saw two of the fish alive-—W. 
The Kingfisher.—This bird is a native of 
Kurope, Asia, and Africa. It inhabits the tem- 
perate parts of Russia and Siberia ; in Denmark 
itis rare. It is found in Germany, France, Hol- 
On the other two con- 
