1872 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
4-27 
B©YS & (MEM’ ©flLWMTOo 
©in* CSnessius’ School. 
In September last I gave an engraving of a curious 
thing, and asked, “ What is it ? ” A copy of the Agricul¬ 
turist for next year was offered to the one who would give 
the 11 best account of it.” I have received within a few 
of a hundred answers—more than I expected, as it is not 
a very well-known thing. 
Of these answers thirty-one give the correct name, and 
several have sent well-written accounts of the thing, 
which is the egg of the Skate or Sting-Ray, called by the 
WHAT IS IT? NO. 2. 
fishermen Stingcree. Indeed, two or three of the best 
were so near alike that I find it difficult to choose be¬ 
tween them, but the one that is upon the whole the 
best, is printed below, and the writer of that 
takes the prize. Some; of the answers were very 
wide of the mark, a great many were quite sure that the 
“What is it” was the egg of a shark, and they were 
very near the truth, but the shark’s egg is not black, and 
the horns or projections at the corners arc different. Sev¬ 
eral say that it is a piece of sea-weed; and others, that 
it is the dried and cracked open pod of a Martynia, to 
which it bears a slight resemblance. Two or three send 
the name of the Nautilus or Portuguese Man-of-war, 
which is far away from right; another calls it a “ Sea- 
Bean ; ” another, that it is the egg of a King Crab; 
another, that it is a species of mussel, and still another 
calls it “ The Ink Flying-fish,” and so on. 
As this has proved a useful exorcise to many, I will give 
you another thing to work at. The “ What is it ?” en¬ 
graved on this page is a piece of something that I picked 
up on the sea-shore many years ago. It is shown of the 
natural size, except in length, which is often two feet or 
more. It is of about the color of horn. Now, the con¬ 
ditions will be the same as before—the Agriculturist for 
1873 for the correct name and best description, only we 
restrict the competition to young people of 18 and under. 
What I S£su>w about Slcates. 
BY SALLIE C. GERARD, POUGHKEEPSIE, N. T. 
Think of my surprise when, on opening the paper this 
month, I was confronted by the familiar form of an old 
acquaintance 1 I say old acquaintance, indeed I may say 
a tried one, for I certainly tried hard enough to find out 
what it was, the first time I found it at the sea-shore. 
Everybody has his or her “ hobby,” and mine happens to 
be Natural History, so it is no wonder that on finding, at 
the sea-side, my first specimen of the object your artist has 
so well illustrated, I did not rest until I had discovered 
what it was and learned all about it. You ask your young 
readers to give some account of this “What is it? ”—this 
great big spider-like looking thing. And this brings me 
to my subject, so I will say “ IFAutvI knoui about Skates." 
One of the orders into which naturalists have divided 
the fishes is called by them “ Plagiostomi" (I copied this 
name out of a book!), and includes such families as the 
Sharks (those terrible cannibals 1), the Skates , the Rays, 
etc. Both the families of Sharks and Skates contain 
some species that give birth to living young, and others 
that follow the general rule among fishes of “ laying eggs.” 
But the eggs of these are larger and fewer than those of 
the commoner kinds of fish, and they have this peculiar¬ 
ity : each egg is imw'id in a leathery, oblong, four-angled 
case. Each corner or angle of these egg-cases is drawn 
out into a long, tapering, tubular appendage. As far as I 
can find out, the egg-cases of the shark differ from those 
of the skate in these particulars: those of the former are 
horny, transparent, and yellowish, and the tips of the 
appendages are curled like tendrils—a. wise provision of 
the Creator for the preservation of the inclosed fish, for 
these tendrils become entangled among seaweeds, and 
the cases are thus safely moored and prevented from 
being harmed by the rough waves of winter (the season 
in which the eggs are deposited). The egg-cases of the 
skate are of a dark-brown color, about two inches long, 
and one inch wide; the appendages are straight, and not 
curled, as in those of the sharks. What you figure, then, 
is the egg-case of a skate. These empty egg-cases may be 
frequently found on the sea-shore where they have been 
cast up by the tide, and are commonly known as “ Skates' 
Bat'rotvs," “ Pixy Purses," “ Mermaids' Purses ,” “ Fairy 
Purses," and also “ Sailors' Purses"—a joke on poor 
Jack, as they are most always empty! And now as to 
these singular spiny appendages. What are they for? 
Of what possible use can they be ? These are questions 
that I many a time pondered over and long endeavored 
to find out. It is well known that they serve to admit 
and eject water for purposes of respiration to the inclosed 
young fish, but as water could just as well be admitted 
through little holes in each corner of the egg-case it seems 
to me that these formidable horns must serve some other 
purpose. The number of eggs deposited by each individual 
of the shark tribe is much fewer than in other fishes; 
may it not be that these tubes serve as a protection 
against the many voracious monsters of the ocean, in 
order that the race bo not exterminated ? But here, while 
I am speculating on this subject, the young imprisoned 
fish has matured and wants to get out! Let us see how 
he accomplishes it. While the egg-case was still in the 
body of the parent fish, it was open at one end like a 
bag, and into this the egg descended, the mouth of the 
bag closed, and then the egg was “laid.” Now that the 
egg has floated about a proper length of time, the slit 
again opens, through the efforts of the prisoner, and the 
fish emerges and swims off. For a short time the yolk is 
attached to him for his nourishment, but when this is ab¬ 
sorbed into his body, he is ready to take his chances with 
his fellows of the finny tribe in the “ struggle for exist¬ 
ence,” and I will now leave him to his fate. 
Arc You ISeasly for ^Aii&Ser? 
WhenTnis question is asked in the farmers’ pages, it 
has reference to barns, cellars, hay, root crops, and all 
that sort of thing, but when we ask it of boys and girls, 
we have specially in mind skates and sleds. Were the 
skates last spring left anywhere that it was most con¬ 
venient to drop them, so that you will now have to 
hunt them, one at a time? or were they carefully tied to¬ 
gether, the irons first mimed over with oil, to prevent 
rusting, and hung in a dry place where the leathers would 
not mold ? The sled too, or cutter, as some call it, has 
it been left out where the sun has so shrunken it that its 
joints arc shaky, and the irons so covered with rust that 
you can not tell whether they arc iron or not? If you 
neglected these things last spring, you will find it so 
much trouble to repair damages, that next, time you will 
take more care. It is now November, and to some 
boys and girls skating and sledding have already come, 
and to others it will soon be the season for these health¬ 
ful winter amusements, so we ask if you are all ready for 
them. If not, get ready, for ice and snow may be at hand 
at any time. If the skates arc rusty, oil them and let 
them stand for a few days ; then rub the rusty spots with 
oil and emery. If you can not get fine emery, scouring- 
brick or coal ashes will do, but it will take more rubbing. 
Then, if the leather straps have become still', as they will 
for want of use, wash them with castile-soap and water, 
and while they arc still damp, rub them over with neats- 
foot oil, such as is used on harness. So with the sled. 
See that the rope is strong, and if any joint is loose drive 
in a wedge, and if need bo, get some one to give it a coat 
of paint, if you can not do it yourself. Then do not for¬ 
get to put the things that have gone out of use where you 
can put your hand on them at any time. The tops, balls, 
bats, croquet set, and all that will be wanted in a few 
months, and it is much easier to find them and care for 
them now than it will be at the time they are wanted. 
Aunt Sue’si ]PaB;gifile=ES®x. 
ANAGRAMS. 
1. O 1 chip ship Lola. 
2. Heap on men. 
3. Verse in cubes. 
4. Nanni Scott. 
5. Nat Zoa’s origin. 
6. Di in sail East. 
7. Connie gaze. 
S. Is a true bond. 
9. I bless ice-can. 
10. Account nine. 
1. 
2 . 
3. 
4. 
COMPOUND ARITHMOIIEMS. 
1000160SO. 
1000900101(1010900. 
1000S01604003010. 
200000500400150. 
5001000110010900. 
HOUIt-GLASS 
0. 10050010100. 
7. 30015025077. 
8. 4040150. 
9. 1010500. 
10. 101808. 
B. F. Bidwell. 
PUZZLE. 
1. A city in France. 
2. A dwarf. 
3. A fish. 
4. A beverage. 
5. A loud noise. 
6. To endeavor. 
7. To scorn. 
The center letters, horizontal, form a very disagreeable 
attribute. Phiz. 
SQUARE WORD OF SIX LETTERS. 
1. A kitchen utensil. 
2. Belonging to the ear. 
3. Plenty of ice-creams and strawberries. 
4. A kind of shad. 
5. Final. 
6. Standing out. H. H. Clark. 
NUMERICAL ENIGMAS. 
1. I am composed of 14 letters. 
My 8, 10, 7, 14, is a hoop. 
My 12, C, 1, is a vessel. 
My 3, 9, 4, is to distort. 
My 11, 5 13, 2, forms part of the human body. 
My whole is a well-known newspaper. 
Iota. 
2. I am composed of 8 letters. 
My 5, G, 7, 2, we should never be. 
My 3, G, 4, is a pest to tfeamsters. 
My 4, 8, 1. is a sheep in its second year. 
My whole is a girl’s name. N. G. D. 
PUZZLE. 
The fortress of love, the index of friendship, 
The dear shrine of childhood, combined 
Form the name of a visitor dear to our household. 
Ever new, pleasant, witty, and kind. L. A. Des B. 
TRANSPOSED PROVERB. 
Ni bet cabeseu fo het efelin acre bet ecim veig shev- 
melets pu ot airvous tassipem. 
CROSS-WORD. 
My first is in orchard but not in grove. 
My next is in fireplace, not in stove. 
My third is in printing but not in type. 
My fourth is in woodcock but not in snipe. 
My fifth is in turnip but not in beet. 
My sixth is in nectar but not in sweet. 
My seventh is in needle but not in pin. 
My eighth is in brass but not in tin. 
My ninth is in mint but not in money. 
My tenth is in hive but not in honey. 
My whole is the name of a thriving city. 
If you can’t find it out, it will be a pity. 
Harry II. Doan. 
u 
433. Illustrated Rebus.—A locality important to New 
York commerce. 
AUNT SUE’S NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
O. A. Gage.— You were rather late with your square 
words, but your industry was fully appreciated. 
C. J. T.—Our gratuitous contributors keep us so well 
supplied with puzzles, that we have no occasion to pur¬ 
chase any. 
Albert F. W.—“ Swallows fly low before rain” in pur¬ 
suit of the insects upon which they feed ; and the insects 
fly low, then, to escape the moisture of the upper regions 
of the atmosphere; so that the “idea” is reasonable 
rather than “ superstitious.” 
Nellie D.—Certainly, my child, send as many puzzles 
as it affords you amusement to make; I will examine 
them all with pleasure (that’s what I’m for). 
Ben.—S ee how many of your friends know whether, 
when a carriage is in motion, the tops of the wheels turn 
towards the horses or from them ; they will be very much 
surprised to find that they can not, at once, answer you 
positively. 
Thanks for letters, puzzles, etc., to Chas. W. S., II. W. 
M„ R. M. R., Charlie E. G., Lizzie B., J. M. I., C. P. G., 
A. Lone, Harry H. C., C. M., Beau K., and Ella S. M. 
