79 8 
Supplement to the "Tropical Agriculturist." [May r, 1890. 
mud or other useless matter ■will \ be also removed 
now, and the pure seeds without husks left. The 
seeds now termed " dhall " command a ready sale in 
the market,'), [and it is found that dhall subjected 
to the process I have indicated for removing the 
husk, namely of soaking, is of excellent_quality ; the 
process inducing incipient germination which imparts 
a peculiarly agreeable flavour to the seed- With more 
suitable and convenient machinery for crushing and 
winnowing larger quantities, sufficient for export, may 
be produced without difficulty. 
S. Chelliah. 
ANIMAL PARASITES. 
(Continued.) 
The order Tccnia&a derives its name from the 
Greek word for a ribbon, owing to the eloDgated 
flattened structure of the worms which resemble ribbon 
or tape in appearance. The commonest of the three 
tape-worms which occur in man is the Tomia Solium : 
the adult stage is passed in man, while the ojstic stage 
is passed in the pig. In man the worm is found 
many feet or even yards in length, consisting of a 
number of flattened joints which incline to taper to- 
wards the anterior extremity and end in a point, 
where we find the head with its four suckers and a 
collection of flinty hooklets for attachment to the 
alimentary canal. As mentioned previously it is the 
head that is the real animal from which the joints 
are produced by budding, and the great object 
in the treatment of cases of tapeworm in man is to 
remove the head, for while the head remains in the 
body, the animal will continue to grow by putting 
out 'flattened joints. The eggs which are produced 
by the joints which contain the reproductive 
organs, cannot be developed in the body of man, but 
have to enter that of some warm-blooded avi al before 
they can be "hatched." In cases of tape-worm 
in man, the flattened joints which are loosely at- 
tached to one another, are passed out at intervals, and 
the eggs are thus liberated to be blown about or 
to float in water till they are taken up by the pig. 
No sooner the egg enters the stomach of the pig the 
little embryo is produced, which bores into the 
muscles of the animal or into some solid organ. 
Once the embryo reaches the place where it intends 
to remain, it puts forth from its hinder extremity 
the bladder or cyst filled with fluid which gives it 
at this stage the name of « cystic- worm." While the 
embryo is boring its way through the tissues of the 
body of the pig great pain is evinced by the latter 
animal, but when the embryo comes to a state of rest 
no more discomfort is apparently felt. The presence 
of these cystic-worms in the flesh of the pig causes 
what is commonly known as "measly pork"-the 
disease in the pig being known as " measles." The 
cystic stage of Tcenia solium which occurs in the pig 
>h known as " cysticercus cellulose." To find whether a 
ie suffering from " measles," it should be examined 
under the tongue and eyelids. If it is measly, small 
white cysts will be found there. Even after the 
animal is killed and made into pork the cysts can 
be discovered if the meat is bad. Such meat 
should be burned. If a piece of pork containing a 
cyet be eaten by man, unless the meat be very 
well cooked, it will be the cause of tape-worm 
(Tcenia solium); for the cyst will fix itself in the ali- 
mentary canal of the man, throw off its cyst, and 
become at once the "head" of the full-grown 
tape-worm. Now it will go on producing buds from 
its posterior extremity, till it assumes the ribbon or 
tape-like form which characterizes the full-grown tape- 
1REITABILITY OF PLANTS. 
The irritability of plants may be conveniently 
studied under the two heads of (1) Nutation, or move- 
ments of organs due to growth, and (2) Irritability of 
mature organs. Under the first heading we may notice 
that the different surfaces of plants are usually un- 
equal in growth, that is that one surface grows faster 
or slower than the other. This inequality of growth 
may be due to internal or external causes. The internal 
causes, aided essentially by external causes, such as light 
and gravitation, produce for instance the phenomena 
known as hyponasty and epinasty. Parts of plants 
are said to be hyponastic when they grow more rapidly 
of the under than the upper surface, and epinastio 
when the opposite condition obtains. The plumule or 
rudimentary stem of dicotyledons is at first epinastc, 
i, e., it grows more on the upper surface and consequent- 
ly tends to bend downwards, and then afterwards 
hyponastic, i. e., it grows more on the under surface, 
and hence tends to bend upwards and grow erect. 
Again foliage and most floral leaves when in bud are 
hyponastic, but subsequently unfold by epinasty. The 
movements in plants caused by epinasty and hyponasty, 
or of the more rapid growth of the right or left of a 
growing organ are included in the term simple nutation. 
If the movements of a growing organ are in every 
direction, i. e., if the organ revolves in a spiral man- 
ner in consequence of the more rapid growth of each 
of its sides in succession, it is said to exhibit revolving 
nutation. Twining or climbing plants (e. y. the bean) 
show revolving nutation very plainly. Twining plants as 
a rule twice to the left, though a few do so to the right. 
The bean and convolvulus, for instance, twine to the 
left : while the honeysuckle twines to the right. 
But unequal growth may, as before stated, be due 
to external causes or influences, which are termed 
paratonic or kinetic, and examples of these are the 
movements in tendrils and the periodic movements 
of foliage and floral leaves. Now tendrils exhibit 
revolving nutation also, but while in twining stems 
it is immaterial which side comes in contact 
with a support, in the case of tendrils, only one side, 
namely the under side, is capable of becoming concave 
when brought into contact with a solid support. When 
