SPINES AND IRICKLES. 



539 



when growth has been completed, in order that the new 

 material may be perfectly ripened by free exposure to 

 air and sunshine for a few weeks. The supply of 

 water must be reduced on the completion of growth, 

 and in winter only sufficient will be required to keep 

 the soil from becoming powdery. 



Propagation is readily effected by planting cuttings of 

 the stems in sandy soil, and placing them in a warm 

 position, where they may be kept dry (excepting an oc- 

 casional slight syringing) until rooted, when they may 

 be potted in a more substantial compost. Thoroughly 

 ripened seeds germinate freely when sown in a sandy 

 mixture and placed in a position which affords moderate 

 warmth. Keep the soil moist until the seedlings appear, 

 and then, until progress seems certain, maintain a slight- 

 ly drier state. 



The fruit of the phyllocactuses is peculiar and well 

 worth seeing. Fig. 2 shows a fruit upon an old branch 

 of Phyllocactzis aiigiihgi'r . — G. H. 



Some Hints. — My first recollection of a cactus was of 

 a night-blowing serious which my mother had. It was 

 much older than I was, so they said, and for twelve 

 weary summers and thirteen blustering winters 1 stubbed 

 my toes against it and pricked my lingers on it, before I 

 ever saw it blow. We tugged it out in the spring and in 

 again in the fall, and father and I declared every time 

 that we would never do it again. It didn't seem to grow 

 any, and yet it got heavier every time we moved it ; but 

 mother knew that it grew, and stuck to it, because it was 

 bigger than when she got it. Father used to say that 

 there was no blow in it, anyhow, and wanted to cut it 

 up for kindling wood. But mother knew that it would 

 blow, and she wasn't going to have it destroyed just be- 

 cause a man didn't have any love for flowers. But I 

 think she would have given it up before I was born if 

 father hadn't wished the thing was in Guinea ! There is 

 nothing like adversity to discipline one's character, and 

 so she stuck to it. The old women said that it would 

 blow at midnight when it got to be twenty-five years 

 old. Finally a little tumor began to bud out of one side 

 of the dry stalk, and mother said that her serious was 

 going to blow ! She watched it day after day, and be- 

 came more certain the more she looked at it. But father 

 hung to it that there was no blow in it, and said that the 

 bunch was nothing more than a vegetable boil. But he 

 finally had to give in, and then he became interested. 

 All the neighbors were notified, and it was agreed that 

 as soon as the flower began to open we should ring the 

 dinner bell, and every one would get up to see. One 

 morning father discovered that the thing looked like 

 cracking open, and he became so excited that he stayed 

 home from election to water the plant and repaint the 

 tub. That night we all sat up till midnight, but the bud 

 didn't open; and the next night we did the same thing. 

 But father's hope was up, and he wasn't going to let any 

 blossom get ahead of him, although mother said that it 

 was a shame for any sane man to make more fuss about 

 a posy than he did about his family. So we stuck it out 

 for five mortal nights. The sixth night the thing opened. 



but either our clock stopped, or the plant was non- 

 plussed by so much water and paint, for it opened at ten 

 o'clock ' The bell was rung, and in less than ten minutes 

 the neighbors began to tumble into our yard in all sorts 

 of hideous garments. Father fairly danced with excite- 

 ment, and said that he didn't care if all his potatoes 

 were trampled down, for he wanted everyone to see. 

 Mother said that he made a fool of himself. 



The next morning we were up at daylight to see it 

 again, but it hung down like a dead rat. Father was 

 disgusted, and said he wouldn't have a flower which 

 didn't last longer than that. Mother said he ought to 

 know by this time that the choicest things were always 

 short-lived (she had always been in poor health herself 



The "Sunset Plant." (See page 541.) 

 and that he had no appreciation of beauty anyway. 

 It all made a great impression on me. and I remember 

 that I recorded it in my spelling book as follows : 

 " We played ' ring 'round the rosy ' 

 When mother's cactus posy 



Slowed ! 

 All the neighbors wanted seed. 

 And e.xpectations, like a weed, 

 Growed ! " 



And even now, when I see a mournful cactus plant, 

 I always think what a lot of sitting down will have to 

 be done before it will blow ! — R. T. Choke. 



