Wisconsin tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1847-1854, 1850-05-03
CURI0SITlES OF NATURAL HISTORY.

- SHaAiAoAA Odtt AAeC- II wow 10 TIE height
Ct six feet, and its foliage and flowers are as
remarkable for beauty and fragrance as its fruit
Il for size and contradictory qualities. Its
Blossoms are of delicious crimson. anpear-
IQg IN large punches and exhaling rich per-
fame. The fruit resembles enormous cannon
rails, whence the name Of the tree, which has
also been attributed to the noise the balls make
80 falling. An eminent French naturalist saws
beneath pure and dazzling sky, gracefunes
II ever united to the maenifcence of nature !.
there the hidden streams only reveal themselves
10 gentle murmurs, OF by the sivery light that
Ihey cast upon the rocks, or the soft sound
sun which they trickle through the grass, or
lle Increased verdure with which tn Y endow
the plants. Eut when the silence of nature is
Broken by those violent hurricanes, which too
ctien IN the torrid zone, blast the hopes of the
producers. the fruits of the cannon ball tree
llay be heard like the off repeated echoes, or
the rolling sound of volleys eff artillery"
From the shell. domestic utensils are made,
and The inside contains everal kinds of acids
sugar and gum, and affords materials for an
excellent drink in sickness. But singular as
it may seem, the bulb when completely ripe.
=" exceeds whatever is filthy, abominable, or
disgusting In nature; yet the scent is remark
ably vinious, and so enduring that on examin-
lag some portions of the fruit which had been
preserved for two or three years in rum, the
ddor was SO strong that II was impossible to
remain in the room where it was exposed
Insects revel in this disgusting pulp. Beet
les and carvings feed upon it, while the forri-
cas- find shelter in the hollow plant.
The SPALAx.-The spalax or blind rat is
found IN Persia. 1t was formerly supposed
to DE The same with the mole, and to be blind
as no eyes are to be seen; hut these organs,
Of the thickness of half line, have been dis
covered on removing the skin, and are found
70 be perfectly organized.
The sPalax depends upon its ears for warn
ing, and for that purpose holds its head high,
IT'S sense of hearing being very acute and its
auditory canal very large. These animals live
in communities beneath the surface the earth
boring upwards for roots and making one hole
fd5 deeper than the others. This is for place
Of refuge in case of an attack. Agriculturists
settler much from their ravages as they prefer
ot.uvatei lands for their underground abodes.
They can run sideways or backwards with
great swiftEess. Their bite is very severe.
TIE RAFFLEsI ARNoLni.-1h his plant bears
the largest flower known to the world. The
fist Europeans thar saw it or that made it
known TO the civilized world, were Sir STAN
teri Raffies aud DR.. Arnold, whence its name.
Il has neither stem nor foliage, and its roots
ale so small that they are embedded in the
slender stem Of species of vine, and are as
II were Incorporated into that stem yet bearing
a flower Of enormous magnitude. This flow
eI.grows Parasitlcally on the stem of the vine,
fran whatever the seeds chance to alight, and
its disappearance is that Of a tubercIe OF small
swelling in the bark. ] lis bud grows to the
size Of large cabbage, and when blown the
d.wer is forty-two inches in diameter, weigh
irg fifteen pounds, and has a hollow in the
centre capable of holding almost two gallons
TIE petals are an inch ard a half thick near
the base" The color is red, incining to or
an1e, wrnkled or embossed on the surface and
marked with deeper blotches of the same col
or as the ground. and white spots. The plant
j. iiecious. The stamens form a sort Of bead
ed circle around central abor,ive PistiI, which
is Itself large feshy excrescence fiat at the
toy and beset with elongated projections which
d.. Arnold declares resemble cows horns
Tells superb flower soon decays, and is endow-
Cd with a most disagraeable odor. which like
th.t of the stapelias attracts flies in great a
hfadanee." 1t is found in Summarize.
:Dickens n a speech which he lately made
before the news vendors" in London. re-
marked that it was not more than go years
SIEGE The very first idea Of newspaper was
conceived in that island, TO stimulate the peo-
IS to resist the Spanish Armuda. 1t was not
JvtO hundred years since The the first notion Of
4 regular newspaper. in anything like the pres
er2 form, was reduced 10 practice. One hun
di-d and fifty years ago there did not appear
to'have been single daily paper in England,
AMI ten years later only ore. When he COM
pared such state ofthings with that now ex-
listing, he felt if the humble men connected
with the vending of news, ought to be in ad-
vance Of those times IN the same proportion
ate degree as the newspapers they dealt in,
and that they ought to take their stand upon
the footing Of their useful trade, and be as
nlch recognized and respected in shat trade
as the paper maker or the printer.
A WORD ABOUT GARDENING-No one can
be truly said to live, who has not garden
None but those who have enjoyed it, can sp-
Preciate the satisfacton-the luxury-of sit
ung down to a table spread with the fruits
Of ones own'culture. A bunch of radishes-
a few heads of lettuce-taken from the garden
on a summers morning; or mess of green
peas or sweet corn, is quite a different affair
r,nrl-lt u, he