THE LADIES' FLORAL CABINET. 
367 
tain stream or torrent washes down to the valley the 
seeds which may accidentally fall into it, or which it may 
happen to sweep from its banks when it suddenly over¬ 
flows them. Our great Western rivers, winding through 
mountain passes, and plains equal in extent to many 
empires, convoys to the distance of several thousands of 
miles seeds that may have vegetated at their sources. 
Thus the seeds of the Pines, that are found in the ex¬ 
treme northern portion of the United States, are carried 
by the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico, and from there 
they are swept along by the currents of the ocean to the 
western shores of Europe. The fruits of Mimosa scan- 
dens, Doliclios pruriens and Anacardium occidentals, or 
Cashew Nut, have been thus known to be driven across 
the Atlantic, to a distance of more than 2,000 miles; and 
though the fruits now adduced as examples are not 
such as could vegetate on the coast on which they were 
thrown, owing to soil and climate, it is to be believed 
that fruits may have been often thus transported to 
climates or countries favorable to their vegetation. 
One of Nature’s singular methods of seed distribution 
may be noticed in the Martynea probiscidca, commonly 
called Devil’s Pod. This plant has large showy flowers, 
and its fruit consists of an oval, fleshy pod, terminating 
in a long rastram, or beak. The pods, when mature, are 
woody, and when ready to discharge their seeds, the 
beak splits into two very rigid incurved horns abruptly 
bent at the ends into a very sharp grappling hook. 
This device is frequently utilized by the plant to effect 
its distribution, and the mule is made to act as the agent 
to accomplish it. When the animal steps on one of the 
pods, a matter of frequent occurrence, the pod opens, 
and the two rigid hooks clasp around his fetlock, and 
there remain until noticed by some person, for it is im¬ 
possible for the mule to remove the pod by any effort of 
his own. In this way the Devil’s Pod is often trans¬ 
ported to groat distances, as the pod is so formed that 
the seeds are only' thrown out as the pod shrinks and 
contracts, which is done so slowly that but a few seeds 
are thrown out each day. 
The so-called Jumping-Seeds, is another of the many 
wonderful means that Nature adopts for the perpetuation 
and distribution of the species. An interesting account 
of these, we copy from the Journal of Chemistry : 
“ We are indebted to an esteemed correspondent for 
•calling our attention to vol. x of the American Natural¬ 
ist, in which, page 216, is found a very interesting ar- 
ticleon ‘Jumping-Seeds.’ We learn from it that in 1876 
Mr. C. V. Kiley presented to the Academy of Science at 
St. Louis, a seed of this kind, to which allusion was 
made in the last number of the Journal, and explained 
the cause of its singular behavior. Its movements are 
due to a worm imprisoned in the seed, which re¬ 
sembles the common white apple worm, but is much 
smaller. 
“ The egg is deposited upon the outer covering of the 
pod which holds the seed, and the larvae eats through 
the shell into the seed, and plugs up the hole with a 
pellet of silk, so that the future moth, which will have 
no jaws to eat with, may escape from its prison. The 
developed worm holds to the lining of the seed, by its 
four prolegs, which have very strong hooks, and by 
drawing back its body and swaying it to each side 
knocks against the walls of the seed, giving it powerful 
jars and movements. Its head serves the same office 
as the bill of the woodpecker, tapping the sides of its 
cell, propelling it forward, or overturning it. The Lcp- 
idopterous larvae alone have this curious habit. 
“The plant producing the seed is a low shrub or weed, 
and is called Yerba de Jlecha, or Arrow-weed. It grows 
in Mexico, near San Diego, is very poisonous, and the 
seeds are found in pods, holding three or four together. 
Each of the seeds at maturity, in July or August, has 
the little worm inside, and the imprisonment continues 
for six or eight months, when the moth tears away the 
silk plug and escapes. Of course the curious jumps and 
other movements of the seed, so mysterious to the be¬ 
holder, cease when the worm changes to the moth. 
The seed is lively for a period of about six months. It 
is well to have the explanation of movements which 
seem so inexplicable, as the possessors of the curiosi ty 
are unwilling to destroy it, by cutting it open, to learn 
regarding its inside mysteries. This is certainly one of 
the most curious freaks in Nature, and well worthy of 
thought.” 
The wonderful arrangements by which plants are dis¬ 
tributed, are by no means confined to those we have 
mentioned. Each and every plant has a method of its 
own for its perpetuation and preservation. Plantsare all 
nomadic; when they have consumed the food prepared 
for them in a given place, they move on to another; some 
live but a year or two in a place, others remain for cen¬ 
turies without any necessity for a change. Annual and 
many perennial plants are constantly on the move; as a 
rule, the more prolific the plant, the shorter is the dura- 
of its individual existence, and the more frequent and 
rapid is vhe change of its abode. On the contrary, 
where we find trees remarkable for their longevity, we 
find them but few in number. Why the changes in the 
plants’ home, that are constantly going on, are necessi¬ 
ties, is an interesting field of study—one that we shall 
take up at an early day. 
CULTURE OF WATER-LILIES. 
There is no flower more universally admired than the 
common White Water-Lily (Nymphcea Odorata) so 
abundant in many of our ponds, coves and sluggish 
streams. The exceeding whiteness of its petals, the 
golden tips of its pistols, and, above all, its exquisite 
perfume, combine to make it worthy of being, as it is, a 
a general favorite. 
For many years attempts to cultivate it in houses 
and on lawns were made, but all in vain. It would not, 
for all the care it received, repay for its attention with 
its flowers. And why ? Simply because it was killed 
with kindness. It was petted and coaxed too much. The 
ways of Nature were overlooked, and the florist endeav¬ 
ored to supplant them with his ways. We sometimes 
think that in floriculture we can improve upon Nature ; 
but can we ? True, we have transformed the natural- 
