AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
67 
2879. J 
CROSS-WORD. 
My first is in mile but not in rod, 
My next is in grass but not in sod, 
My third is in engine but not in cars. 
My fourth is in fence but not in bars, 
My fifth is in lend but not in loan, 
My whole is a state that is very well known. 
' Geo. H. Fuller. 
PICTORIAL ANAGRAM PUZZLE. 
This puzzle is a proverb containing seven words, 
anagrammatized ; consequently the numerals under the 
pictures (from 1 to 7) indicate to which words of the pro¬ 
verb the letters, composing the picturb, belong. 1 be¬ 
longs to the first word, 5 to the fifth word, and so on— 
e, g., If I had a picture of a hat, under which were the 
3 . 1 . 4 \ 5fl 
numerals 5,1, and 3, you would know that the letter H 
must be placed under the 5th numeral (fifth word of 
proverb). A, under the first numeral, and T under the 
third. Take your paper, or slate, and write down the 
first seven figures, in a row—1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. When you 
find the right words illustrated by the pictures, put the 
letters under the numerals given, in a horizontal column. 
Then, having written them all thus, transpose the letters 
under each numeral, so as to make the word required for 
the proverb— e. g., If under the numeral 4 should happen 
to be the letters "T—R—E—E—B—T.” you would trans¬ 
pose them into the word “BETTER.” With these in¬ 
structions, I think you will have no difficulty in finding 
out the proverb embraced in our present pictorial puzzle. 
/ 
ANSWERS TO PUZZLES IN THE DECEMBER NUMBER. 
Cross-Wof.d.— Barleycorn. 
Numerical Enigmas.— 1. 
Oliver Wendell Holmes. 2. 
Pnssamaquoddy. 3. Webster’s 
Dictionary. 
Puzzle.— NOVICE (deduct 
VI and transpose the remain¬ 
der into CONE). 
Charade.— Door-step. 
Biblical Double Acrostic. 
Babylon—Nineveh. 
B—enjatnin—N 
A— — I 
B— aslia —N 
T- ok —E 
L- -V 
O— liv — E 
N— azaret —H 
The Doctor’s Correspondence. 
“PLEASE TELL US ABOUT SPONGE. WHAT IS IT?” 
says “ Charlie H. M.,” Clay Co., Mo. If Charlie had asked 
that question some years ago, I should have said that nat¬ 
uralists considered it to be a kind of vegetable, but of 
late years it has been more carefully studied, and is now 
classed with the animals. A curious kind of an animal 
you will no doubt think it—and it is really very curious, 
and not altogether easy to explain. Of course my young 
friend has in mind the common sponge, such as he uses 
to clean his slate with, and such as are used for bathing 
and other purposes, for there are several different kinds 
of sponges. Ships from the East Indies used to bring 
home most beautiful things called “Venus’ Flower Bas¬ 
kets,” one of these was figured in the American Agricul¬ 
turist for February, 1S72, p.53, and those of you that 
have the back volumes, should hunt up the engraving. It 
is a horn-shaped body, 6 inches or more long, and be¬ 
tween 1 and 2 inches across the widest end, all of most 
elegant open-work, like lace, and of a material that looks 
like spun glass. Later, when trade opened with Japan, 
there came from there what looked like glass threads 
twisted into a cord, larger round than a lead-pencil. 
These, the “Venus Flower Basket” and the “Glass 
Rope ” were at first great puzzles ; each had at one end a 
place where the glass was mixed with sand and bits of 
rock, as if it had been torn from some foot-hold, and it 
was believed to be from the sea, before their real nature 
was found out. At last it was learned that these were the 
frame-work, the hard part, or skeleton of a soft jelly-like 
animal, in fact, were the hard parts of a peculiar kind of 
sponge. The material of these is silica, which you no 
doubt know is just the same as quartz crystal and flint. 
THERE ARE DIFFERENT KINDS OF SPONGES. 
Some in which the frame-work is of this kind, others in 
Which it is lime-stone, like shell, and others still, in 
which the frame-work is of the peculiar elastic somewhat 
horn-like substance that we know in common sponge. 
Our sponge, then, is the frame-work, or hard part of an 
animal that lives in the sea—but of what animal ? Here 
is a difficult matter to describe, as you are used to seeing 
animals very regular in form, each having its proper 
parts by which to move, to feed, etc. We find these in 
the higher animals, but when we examine the 
LOWER FORMS OF ANIMAL LIFE, 
there is nothing of this kind. Here we find what may be 
called compound animals, i. e., what seems to be many 
distinct animals, all united in one mass. Take a tree, 
for example, we find each bud, and each twig growing, 
and helping to increase the Eize 
of the trunk year after year. In 
the lower animals, the parts bear 
something the same relation to 
the whole, that the buds and twigs 
do to the trunk of the tree. It 
would take many drawings, and 
be rather dry reading, if I were to 
try to tell you the naturalist’s 
view of the sponge, so you must 
be content with the general de¬ 
scription that this article we know 
as sponge, is the frame-work to 
support a jelly-like animal or 
mass of animals; that this, though 
it appears only like a jelly, has 
life, is able to feed, to grow, and 
to build up the frame-work. 
Sponge, you know, is full of holes 
upon its surface, and has open¬ 
ings or passages all through it. 
Well, this jelly-like substance sur¬ 
rounds the sponge and lines all 
these openings, and is able to 
keep up through the mass con¬ 
stant currents of sea-water. Fig. 
1, shows a piece of sponge with the currents of water. 
By keeping up this circulation, the mass is able to get 
from the water the materials, the food 
UPON WHICH IT LIVES AND GROWS. 
That is about all that I can tell you about it without go¬ 
ing into matters that you would not understand. You 
will infer from this,that the sponge, as it lives in the sea, 
is a very different affair from that with which you wipe 
your slate. And so it is. When taken from the rock at 
the bottom of the sea, it is a very unpleasant slimy mass ; 
the sponges as gathered, are taken ashore, and in some 
countries, are buried in the sand, but in others, they are 
thrown into rude pens where they will be washed by the 
tide as it rises and falls. The live, or jelly-like part soon 
dies, then it decays, and is washed out, leaving at length 
the frame-work, or what we know as the sponge, free; 
which, after it is thoroughly washed and beaten, is dried 
in the sun, and is ready to be packed for market. As the 
jelly-like part decays, it gives off horrible odors and 
makes this part of the sponge business very disagreeable. 
THE FINER SPONGES 
come from the Mediterranean, where they are taken by 
diving in 50 to 75 feet of water, between 4,000 and 5,000 
Fig. 2.—SPICULES FROM SPONGE. 
men being engaged in diving. The coarser kinds come 
from the West Indies and Florida; these grow in shal¬ 
lower water, and are brought up by means of long poles 
to which hooks are attached. There are many sponges 
besides the useful ones ; those who live near the coast, 
have seen the reddish bodies attached to oyster shells, 
which oystermen call the “ red-beard ; ” this is a kind of 
sponge, and others are found on the coast. Some sponges 
have their frame-work strengthened by what are called 
sjricules ; these consist of lime-stone, and present a great 
variety of shapes, as shown in figure 2. However beao- 
Fig. 1. — PORTION OF LIVING SPONGE. 
tiful the forms of the spicules may be under the micros¬ 
cope, they quite unfit the sponge for the uses to which we 
put it, hence these are not found in ordinary sponge. 
How Lives are Saved on tlae Coast* 
On a stormy winter’s night, when the gale is raging 
without, you feel a sense of comfort as you draw near the 
fire, and perhaps enjoy the warmth and brightness within 
all the more as you hear the storm fiercely beat against 
the windows. Those of you who live near the sea-coast, 
or near the shores of the great lakes, will notice that 
older people are very quiet on such a night; they appear 
to be thinking of something, and when the storm beats 
with renewed fury, you may hear a quiet “ God help the 
poor sailors.” They know what suffering and what loss 
of life such storms bring, and in the enjoyment of the 
comforts of home their thoughts go out to those who may 
never see their homes again. You who live far inland 
have but little idea of the dangers a terrific gale brings 
to incoming vessels; a strong ship can ride out a storm 
at sea, but when one comes up, as the vessel is nearing 
port, and the wind blows toward shore, there is always 
great danger. In view of the loss of life and property 
caused by wrecks on the coast every winter, the Govern¬ 
ment in 1847 established stations at the most dangerous 
points, where there were men and boats always in readi¬ 
ness to help vessels in distress. From this beginning 
has grown the Life-Saving Service, which is one of the 
most complete, as it is one of the most useful branches 
of government service. All along the coast are placed 
Stations, and in some parts so near, together that they 
can signal to one another; each has a crew of strong and 
brave men, and everything that can be useful for their 
work. Those who went to the Centennial Exhibition, 
and failed to make a visit to the little white building on 
the margin of the lake, and opposite Machinery Hall, 
missed a most interesting sight. This building was ex¬ 
actly like one of the LiTe-Saving Stations, and contained 
everything that is used in the service. There were boats 
of different kinds, surf-cars, cannon, mortars, all kinds 
of ropes, life-preserves, rockets for signals, and ever so 
many other matters for saving persons, besides blankets 
and beds, and other comforts for them after they reached 
the shore. I spent some time very pleasantly at this Sta¬ 
tion, the intelligent officer in charge seeming to be very 
glad to explain everything to those who showed an in¬ 
terest in the matter. In many cases the persons on the 
wreck can be saved by means of the life-boat. This is a 
light but very strong boat, built to “ live ” in any sea, 
provided it can be once got beyond the breakers. Fig. 
1, on next page, shows a life-boat going to the rescue 
of persons on a wrecked vessel. This is no child’s play! 
It requires strong arms, and also strong hearts, for not an 
oar must lag. It is no small task to launch the boat and 
get it beyond the rollers as they break in upon the shore. 
The Captain must be brave and decided, and the crew 
must be quick to obey every order, for the great danger 
is when the boat reaches the ship; if there is any mis¬ 
management then, the boat will be dashed against the 
vessel and the rescuers themselves be lost. There are, 
however, times when the sea is so high that no boat can 
live, and even could one get to sea, it would be impossible 
for the people to get into her from the wreck. Then the 
surf-car comes into play ; this is a covered boat with one 
opening, which has a hatch, or cover, that fits down wa¬ 
ter-tight. Passengers can be brought from the wreck in 
this with safety; but first there must be a line from the 
