Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1876-05-19

! worms tAnnelidG). and wears a repulsive
Iorm, In keeping with its hateful DISPOSE
non. The family (HirudinidG) which in
ciudes the various species is large. and di-
vldeG into number of genera. They are
chlehy aquatic, inhabiting fresh waters,
YET lew species are marine, and some dwell
upon the land, swarming in the grass, or in
IKE foliage of trees and plants. They are
most abundant in Tropical countries, yet
are found IN the ponds and streams Of all
temperate regions. The body is ringed like
the earth-worm, the common leech having
| as many as a hundred annulatiOns. 1t
usually creeps or swims by means of a suck
| ing disk at each extremity, which enables
| 1t alternately to contract and elOngate the
body, and thus pr0pe itself forward with
considerable rspidity. Its ordinary food
consists OF minute aquatic or land animals,
some species being able to devOur entire
esrth-worms. In most cases the mouth Is
provided with teeth, by which the epider-
mis- OF higher animals may be pierced and
their blood be drained.
In the Medicinal Leech (Sqngiasuqq off,
oindhs) the mouth is furnished with three
erescentlc jaws, whose edges are serrated
with fine teeth The wound made by these
IS triangular, and through it the blood flows
IN plentiful stream. This species is in
ported chiefly from Hungary. Bohemia, and
Russia. The collecting Of the leeches is in
Itself an extensive industry. The method
sometimes practised in gathering them is
Tor the collectors simply to wade into the
water and secure the individuals that greed
| lly iasten upon their bare legs At other
times they use pieces of liver as bait and
again they employ a kind of net. The Me
dic!nal Leech has ten eyes, arranged in q
horseshoe-torm above the anterior sucker,
and Is Of an olive-green color. \ more
northern species rs MedicinaIs), also used
IN medicine, has the under surface spotted
with black. When the creature has once
gorged itself with blood. it remains in a
quiescent state for weeks or months, while
the sustenance 1t has absorbed is slowly di-
gested. Its stomach is large. and divided
into compartments, in which the store of
food Is retained for a long period without
| change.
The horse-leech (Ham0ps sGnglHsorla)
has only few blunt teeth, which, however
| are quite effective weapons. Ii feeds main
! ly upon earth-wOTms, on which Il seiZes az
they issue from the banks of the ponds or
| streams 1t inhabits. 1t Is much larger than
the medicinal species, and yet Is much less
Of a blood-sucker.
Leeches abound in the fresh waters of
the warm countries of both the New and
! Old World. In Angola, Mr.. Monteira states
that they were formerly an important arti-
Gle Of export, especially to the Brazils.
where they brought a high price. " have
often, he says, - bought large clay-pot
full OF fine leeches for few fathoms Of cot
ton cloth They are also very common in
Palestine, infesting the streams and water
courses, and occasioning great annoyance
to animals by entering their mouths and
nostrils as they drink. Mr. II. K. Dixon
gives, in his " Holy Land" the follow
ing anecdote illustrating their prevalence
At Beit-Degan, on 4 slight twist in the
road. We find the wheel and well. and hear
a delicious plash and rustic in the troughs.
To slip from my seat, TO dip Slbeah's nose
into the huid, Is the work of a second but
no sooner has she Tapped up mouthiul OF
water than one sees that the refuse falling
back from her lips into the tank Is dabbled
and red. Opening her mouth, | find a
gorged leech dangling from her gum. But
the reptile being swept of, and the mare :
nose dipped into the cooling stream, the
blood sill flows from beneath her teeth,
and, forcing them open, find two other
leeches lodged in the roof Of her mouth.
Poor little oeast how grateful and relieved
she seems how gay, how gentle, when
have torn these suckers from her flesh and
doused the water about her wounds
The warm and moist valleys Of India. OF
the islands of the Indian Ocean, and of
portions of South America, swarm with
Land-Leeches, which are very troublesome
to men and to animals. While travelling in
Malacca Mr. Wallace found the forests on
elevated lands peopled with them
We passed through extensive forests he
writes |, along paths often up to our knees
in mud, and were much annoyed by the
leeches for which this district l. iam0u $.
These little creatures iufest the leaves and
herbage BY the side of tAepaths, and, when
a passenger comes along, they stretch them
selves out at full length, and, If they touch
snv part Of his dress or body, quit their
leaf, and adhere to it. They then creep on
to his feet, legs, or other part OF his body
and suck their fill the first puncture being
rarely felt during the excitement oI walk
ing. On bathing in the evening We gene
rally found halt-a-dOzsn or dozen on each
of Us, most frequently on our legs, but
sometimes on our bodies and | had one
who sucked his fill from the side Of my
neck, but who luckily missed the jugular-
vein. There are many species OF these Tor
est leeches. All are small. but some are
beautifully marked with stripes Of light vel
low. They probably attach themselves Il
deer and other animals, which frequent The
lar habit Of stretching themselves out at the
ound of a footstep or of rustling foliage.
Sir James E. Tennant describes a Land
Leech of Ceylon (HtmadIpSG Csyi9nc4)
which Is about an inch in length. and a
fine as common Knitting-kneedle, but
when gorged swells 10 the size Of q quill
and the length Of nearly two inches. Ii d
: 80 small that it can creep through thl
meshes OF the finest stocking In order t,
secure protection from the pest, planters
: wear what are called ieech-gGuerS, made c.
thick cloth. Horses suffer greatly from thu
torment of these leecEes, and " stamp tn
. ground in fury to shake them from thei
, ietlocks, to which they hang IN bloody tas
. sells" The natives who are employed a
! | palanquin-bearers have their bare legs sool
l adorned with clusters of them, lik'
punches of grapes" The rapacious crea
lures occasionally drain so much Of the life
blood from both men and beasts as TO caus
their death.
Prof Van Beneden relates in his work o.
d" Animal Parasites and Messmates, that
during the campaigns in Egypt and Alge
g ria. the French soldiers often suffered irOr
= q leech (HGm0pis rOrGr) that abOunded II
fresh waters. and attacked the mouth an
the nostris In Algeria 1t Is not uncom
mon for soldiers to swallow leeches Will
l. drinking spring-water. Wine Is Jan eihca
I cious as well a. agreeable treatment IN sue
! 4 instances, 1t proving speedily fatal to tn
J ugly intruders Among the species c
e leeches mentioned by the author last quote
4 is the CVlicobdella lumbricOides, which
e found in moist earth in Brazil. and Is blind
Another. described under the name of P0'
tobdelid lGris, grows to the length OF iOt
e and half. Fortunately this tormidab
Il beast is not a yOraciOus blOOdsucker. Wei
u it so, it would prove as dangerous an enem
as the anaconda. The quantity Of bloc
which the medicinal leech Is capable.
drawing averages about drachm and
half; but there is a species peculiar to Sei
egal so gluttonOus that it will take IN
I quantity about equal to ITS own weight.
+ There is an entire series OF these creature
, that remain attached through lie TO oth'
! animals, and NAV, therefore, be consldert
= true parasites. They are found chiefly upo
II fish. especially upon the bass, halibut, bal
bel, dab, and different species OF gadlda
;, Among several American Leeches describe
: bv A. Veriel are two that lniest n
;, (Fundultts piSculenfuS) inhabiting the Coz
. necucut River. \ large and hantson
,; species of POntobdeilG is found on the ra.
different species have been discovered a
10 tached to turtles, trit0ns and frogs. an
10 also to invertebrate animals. \ small Sen
. gal species lives upon the respiratory app
= ratus of mollusc One species, belongln
m to Chill, has been taken from the pulmoon
~ sac of the Auriculd. and another fro
IL the bronchia of a crab. One species
ID MalaooJdella dwells in the brOnehia Of Il
s Venus eroleta, and another of the san
/, genus lives under the foot of the VI
" truncata. In the fresh waters OF Eurol
=. the Pisoic0ld ge0metrd & small handson
y Leech-infests the carp, tench, and 9th
of CyprinidG, sometimes occurring IN SUI
% Numbers that &" they form around the gi
- y a kind of living moss, which at last ki
of the fish"
lc Among the curious species spoken OF
rs Prof. Van Beneden, " the most lnterestIl
:: in every point of view are the Branch
= Enns which inhabit the electrical tsh