Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1878-05-11
A VEGETABLE DEVIL.


~ AAN
gsscar, was originally published in the
last Graafe and Walther's Magazine of
Carlsruhe, together with six notes upon
it, by DR.. Omelius Fredlowski, to whom
the letter by Carl Leche, the discoverer,
from which the following is extracted,
was addressed "The Mkados are a very
primitive race, going entirely naked,
having only faint vestiges of tribal rela>
ticns, and no religion beyond that of the
awful reverence which they pay TO the
sacred tree. They dwell entirely in
caves followed out of the limestone
rocks in their hills, and are one of the
smallest of races, the men seldom ex.
ceeding fifty six inches in height. At
the bottom Of a valley Il had no barom-
eteI, but should not think it more than
400 feet above the sea, and near its east.
ern extremity, we came to a deep, tarn.
like lake, about a mile in diameter, the
sluggish waters of which o~verhowed
into a %tortuOus reedy canal that went
unwillingly into the recess OF a black
forest, jungle below, palm above. A
path diverging from its southern side
struck boldly for the heart of the for
bidding and seemingly impenetrable
forest, Henrick led the way along the
path, | followed closely, and behind me
q curious rabble of Mkados men, women
and children. Suddenly all the natives
began to cry "Tepe! Tepe!" and Hen
rick stopping short, said, Look" The
sluggish, cansl-like stream here wound
slowly by, and in a bare spot in its bend
was the most singular of trees. | have
called it the crinoda, because when its
leaves are in action it bears a striking
resemblance to that well known fossil, the
crinoid lilystone of st. Cuthbert's beads.
II is now at rest, however. | will try to
describe it to you. fyou can imagine
pineapple eight feet high, and thick in
proportion, resting upon its base, and
denuded of leaves, you will have a good
idea of the trunk of the tree, which,
however, was not the color of the
banana, but a dark, dingy brown. ana
apparently hard as iron. From
the apex Of this ~truncated cone lat least
two teet in diameter) eight leaves hung
sheer to the ground, like doors swung
back on their hinges. These caves which
were joined at the top of the tree at reg
ular intervals, were about eleven or
twelve feet long, and shaped very much
Ike the American agave, or century
plant, They were two feet through in
their thickest part, and three feet wide,
tapering to a sharp point that looked
like a cows horn, very convex on the
outer (but now UNDER surface, and on
the inner now upper surface slightly
concave. This conCaye face was thickly
set with very strong, tborny hooks, like
those upon the head of the teazle. These
leaves, hanging thus limp and l~ifeless,
dead green in color, had in appearances
the massive strength of the oak fiber. The
apex OF the cone was a round, white con.
cave figure, like a smaller plate set within
a larger one. This was not a flower, but
a receptacle, and there exuded into it
a clear treacle liquid, honey.sweet,
and possessed of violent Intoxicating
and soporiic properties. From under.
meath the rim, so to speak, of the under
most plate, a series OF long, hairy, green
tendrils stretched in every direction
toward the horizon. These were seven
or eight feet long each, and tapered from
four inches to a half in diameter. vet
they stretched out stitiy as iron rods.
Above these (from between the under
and upper cup six white, almost trans.
parent, paIpi reared themselves toward
the sky, twirling and twisting with a
marvellous lncessant motion, vet con-
stantly reaching upward. Thin as reeds
and trail as quilts apparently, they were
yet five or six feet tall, and were 10 con.
stantly and vigorously in motion, with
such a sinuous, silent throbbing, throb.
biDg against the air that they made me
shudder in spite Of myself with their
suggestion OF serpents fayed, yet dancing
on their tails. The description | am
giving you now is partly made up from
a subsequent careful inspection of the
plant.
My observations on this occasion were
suddenly interrupted by the natives, who
had been shrieking around the tree in
their shrill voices, and chanting what
Henrick told me were plopitiatory hymns
to the great devil tree, With still wilder
shrieks and chants they surrounded one
OF the women, and urged her with the
points of their iavelins until slowly and
with deSpairing face she climbed up the
stalk of the tree, and stood on the summit
OF the cone, the palpi twirling all about
her, "Tisk! tisk " drink! drink,
cried the men, and STOPPING, she drank
OF the viscid fluid in the cup, rising in.
stantly again with wild frenzy in her
face, and convulsivc cholera in her
limbs. But she did not jump down as
she seemed to intend to do. Oh, no
The atr0ciOus cannibal that had been so
inert and dead came to sudden, savage
life. The slender, delicate palpi, with
the fury Of starved serpents, quiz
cred for a moment over her
head then, as if by instinct. with de,
moniac intelligence, fastened upon her in
sudden coils round and round her neck
and arms; then, while her awful screams
and yet more awful laughter rose wilder
to be instantly strangled down again into
a gurgling moan, the tendrils, one after
another, like great green serpents, with
brutal energy and Internal rapidity, rose,
retrscted themselves, and wrapped her
ABOUT in fold after fold, ever tightening,
with the cruel swiitness and savage te.
nacity OF auacOndas fastening upon Their
prey, 1t wa the barbarity OF the Lao,
coon without its beauty, this strange,
horrible murder. And now the great
leaves rose slowly and stifly like the
arms of a derrick, erected themselves in
the air, approaching one another and
closed about the dead and bampered
victim with the silent force ofau hydraul.
ic press and the ruthless purpose of q
thumb.scerw. A moment more and
while | could see the bases of the great
leaves pressing more tightly toward each
other, from their interstices there hickled
down the stalks streams of blood and
o0z!ng viscera Ofthe victim. At the sight
OF this thesavage hordes around us, yelling
madiy, bounced forward, crowded to the
tree, cIasped it, and with cups, leaves
hands and tongues, got each one enough
OF the liquor to send him mad and
frantic. Then ensued a grotesaue and
indescribably hideous orgy, from which
even while its convulsive madness wa,
running rapidly into delirium and in
sensibility, Henrick dragged me hurriedly
away into the recesses of the forest
hiding me from the dangerous brutei
and the bfutes from me. May | neveI
see such a sight again.