The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1875-04-16

splits open and shows its pretty red ker-
mel. Take that out and strip off the out
side, and you have spicy mace Of you
don't know what that is, go and ask the
cook to show you some). Under the
mace is another shell, and within that
the nutmeg, as You see it in mammals
spice-box.
Some years ago the Dutch owned an
island filled with nutmeg trees, and, fear
ing they would become cheap, they tried
to contine them to the island. But, in
spite of all their precautions, they would
spread in other countries {; and who do
you think did the mischief ! None other
than the large pigeons Of the island,
which ate the fruit. The outside and the
mace digested but the inner shell, with
It's nutmeg or seed, did not sit so well on
the birds stomachs, and SO they threw
them up, and the scattered seeds took
root and grew.
Nutmegs are not the only nut planted
in this droll way. Our squirrels plant
thousands of nuts every year. Not that
they actually set out to plant nuts for us;
but they hide them for their W Use,
and many thus hidden are forgotten or
not needed, and grow. Birds also plant
many nuts and seeds. One bird, the
nut-hatch, gets his name from his per
formance with nuts. He is especially
fond of hazel nuts and how would you
suppose he would managed crack them!
His bill is not strong enough to shell
them as your canary shells his seeds:
and he can't gnaw them with teeth, like
the squirrel 50 he fixes II into a hole
or crack in the bark of Il tree, and then.
hammers away with his bill till he cracks
it. The name nut-hatch means to "chOp
a nut" And, besides eating many fresh,
he burries some for future use.
Then there is what we call a vegetable
ivory, the kernel of g nut of a Peruvian
palm tree, soft at first and readily cut
into any shape, but growing hard and
firm as ivory and an African oil-palm
nut, which is wholly made into oil Called
palm oiD for soap and candles. The
Africans use this oil when fresh instead
of butter. There is another African nut,
which is used in tanning and making
ink.
Perhaps the most valuable nut i'll the
world is the c%ocoanut. Did You ever
see one with its hrsk on? You would
never recognize it if you have not; for it
looks as muchlik an old brown wrinkled
squash as anything, and is more than
twice as large as the nut as Won usually
see it.
Well as it is packed up, however,
there's one curious little fellow living
where cocOanut trees grow who lives on
it and will scarcely eat anything else. 1t
is Il crab, and, though he is little COM
pared with man, he is a monster of q
crab, two feet high, and called the Rob
Der Crab. A strange looking object he
is, promenading on the tips of his toes
and brandishing his Notwithstanding
claws in the air. When he wants a
cocOanut. some writer's say that he
can climb the trees TO get them. But
crabs are not much given to climbing
and perhaps it will hardly do to believe
that. However, he gets one someway,
and with his strong claws he tears off the
strong husks, till he reaches the nut,
when he digs Il claw into II of the
soft spots or eyes at one end of the nut,
and by twisting it around III the hole
manages to dig out the meat. Some
writer's who have seerf them also say that
Il Robber Crab will stick Il claw into one
of these holes and pound the nut down
on Il stone till it breaks open. Others
say that, after tearing off the husks, he
climbs the tree with it, and let's it drop
to the ground and break, when he m
down and eats it. Possibly he uses all
these means, and, at any rate, he man
ages to get enough out OF their hard
shells to live on.
Let me tell you some of the uses of
this nut, not to mention the tree, which
provides food and drink, house and
clothes, and, indeed, every necessity Of
life to the people who live under them.
The nut is used, first, to eat. Millions
upon millions are sent way every year
to all the world, to be eaten. They are
pressed to get out the oil, which is val
11ahle and the l~nayinnS are fed To nnul-