172 
THE LADIES' FLORAL CABINET. 
before it puts forth its flower-buds is thirty years, and it 
does not attain its full growth under a hundred years. 
At the age of twenty-five it is in its greatest beauty. At 
this period its fan-shaped leaves are from twenty f® 
thirty feet long, and from twelve to fifteen in width. 
At the age of thirty-five it puts forth its blossoms, which 
are produced on strong zig-zag stalks, from wliich hang 
clusters of its immense finit. From the time of flower¬ 
ing rmtil the fruit ripens a period of ten years elapses; 
the full size of the fruit, however, is attained in about 
four years, at which time it is full of a soft, semi-trans¬ 
parent, jelly-like substance, of wliich the natives are 
very fond. A full-sized tree will yield more than one 
Inmdred of these nuts, which, when stripped of their 
husks, weigh forty pounds each. Botanists describe this 
tree, when in fruit, as a most wonderful production. 
Just imagine a tree 100 feet high, a foot in diameter, 
without limbs or branches, crowned with its graceful 
leaves, forming a head sixty feet in diameter, at tlie 
base of the leaves hanging more than two tons of fruit; 
then marvel at the wisdom and beauty of the ariange- 
ment by which these trees can withstand the hmTicanes 
so common on those tropical islands. A tree with so 
small a diameter, swaying backwards and forwards in 
all directions, carrying a load upon its head of more 
than two tons, must, indeed, be a marvel of strength, to 
say nothing of its ggandeur and its graceful outlines, 
that makes its beauty so conspicuous. 
We cannot judge the beauty of the tree, from its ex¬ 
ternal appearance, any more than we can that of indi¬ 
vidual character; it is the within, not the without, that 
constitutes real beauty. It is what has been given us. 
and oui- faitliful discharge of the trusts, that constitutes 
the ideal in human chaiacter. The true beauty of tins 
noble palm is not to be found in its towering stem m 
its enormous leaves that are so beautiful and perfect m 
form as to make tliem appear delicate and graceful, 
neither in its fruit, but in the root hidden under ground. 
It is there we see the wise provision made for its suste¬ 
nance and protection, that draws our thoughts from the 
ti-ee to its Creator, and mingles with our love for the 
ti-ee a spirit of true thankfulness to the Giver. 
The arrangements for the roots of this tree ai'e of a 
peculiar and most interesting character. The base of 
the stem is rounded, and fits into a natural bowl or 
socket about two and a half feet in diameter, and eigh¬ 
teen inches in depth ; this bowl is pierced ivith hundreds 
of small oval holes about the size of a thimble, with liol- 
low tubes corresponding on the outside, through which 
the roots penetrate the ground on all sides, never, how¬ 
ever, becoming attached to the bowl, their partial elas¬ 
ticity affording an almost imperceptible but very neces¬ 
sary play to the parent stem when straggling against 
the force of violent gales. This bowl is of the same 
substance as the shell of the nut, only much thicker; 
and is of a natm-e .almost imperishable, having been 
found perfect and entire in every respect sixty years 
after the tree has been cut down. The wisdom of the 
arrangement, the manner in which the bowl increases 
in size to correspond with increase of the stem, how the 
holes and tubes .are provided for the roots as required, 
is one of those problems in nature, clothed in the gor¬ 
geous yet delicate robes of mysteiy, the solution of 
which is not within the radius of the human intellect. 
THE RAREST AMERICAN WILD PLANT. 
Shortia Galacipoua. 
The “Venus Fly Trap” {Dioncea musipula) is a plant 
that is foimd wild only in a few spots in the United 
States; but for its peculiar structure has been propa¬ 
gated so much that it is ceasing to be a novelty. Thei-e 
is another species of plant that is more rare than this, 
and a brief account of its history and a description of 
the plant itself may not come amiss. 
In the year 1839, in examining the dried specunens of 
a noted Fnglish botanist. Dr. Asa Gray came across a 
plant that had been collected in the mountains of North 
Carolina over a himdied years ago. ' It was imlike any 
other ^erican plant that he had seen, and the species 
was given the generic name of Shortia, in honor of Dr. 
C. "W. Short an accomplished botanist, as well as physi¬ 
cian, of Louisville, Ky. 
Dr. Gray and other botanists made an extended tour 
through North Cai-olina in the year 1841, mainly for the 
purpose of re-discovering the new plant, but without suc¬ 
cess. At frequent intervals since that date other botan¬ 
ists have followed the trail of the original discoverers 
^t in all cases failed to find Shortia. It was believed 
by many that the species must have become extinct. 
In 1877 Mr. G. M. Haynes had the good fortune and 
honor of re-discovering the long sought plant. He 
found it in MacDowell County, N. C.; and in 1879 Dr 
Gray with others made a pilgrimage to the home of the 
rarest of Anverican wild plants. The locality where it 
was growing was a space of about ten by thirty feet and 
contained not over one hundred plants. It is certainly 
quite remarkable that this plant should be so limited in 
its range of growth, and also as wondertul that it should 
be re-discovered so long after it was fii-st found by a 
wandering botanist. 
How qruckly a case like this calls to mind the strag¬ 
gle for existence tliis plant has had! and one is inclined 
to turn in thought to the unfitness which this plant must 
ave for the battle of life. Had it not been re-discovered 
rt might have become extinct before many years. It 
would seem as if Shortia was, in the evening twilight of 
rte obscm-e existence, but rescued from death by the 
saving hand of man. 
S S P’amily. so that it is closel 
^ed to tte hekths onone side and the primroses on th 
stock from ^ a low herb with a creeping roc 
?he "f evergreen leaves in shining tuffa 
haveis given it because its leave 
? ® resemblance to those of aspecies of galaa 
the leaves^*°'*^i, Aower-stalks arise from amonj 
the leaves, each bearing a single flower which 
pure white and about an inch aloss The nTtekar 
scolloped and somewhat fiinoed at ^ • 
j at tlie marerm. an< 
Ultle pUnt, V 
~[Byron D. Halstead. 
