Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1878-02-13
Letters to the Children--.No. 2.

v
this is way down under the ocean. Those
beds of coral with branches and leaves of
all shapes, and of all the colors of the rain
bow; those delicate sea weeds in among the
corals; the shells on the bottom; and the
fishes of all sorts, and colors, and shapes,
darling about here and there, or lying still
and looking up at us with their bright eyes,
all make up more beautiful scene than
any of us ever saw before. But We cannot
stop to look at them any longer, for yonder is
the land again. No, not land you say, but as |
said in my last letter, parcel of tall poles
with fans on their tops q didn't call them
jars !" that was the printers mistake). But
as we sail up towards them, you see they
are on the land. not on the water, and in
stead of poles they are trees. | want to tell
you about them to-day. They are Palmyra
palm trees.
One of the books which the heather of
Ceylon call their Bible tells this story
After the god, Brahma, had created the
world with all its men, and animals, and
trees, and plants, there were so many men
that they ate up all the food they could
find and began to starve. So they went to
another god called silva, the Destroyer, and
begged him not to let them die. He was
very angry with Brahma, and called him to
come before him. ! do not know why silva
should have been angry, for they say he likes
to see men suffer and die. But perhaps it was
because he wanted to have the pleasure of
making them suffer- and did not want any
one else to do it. Brahma came remblng
before him, and silva asked him why he had
not made more food for men. The poor
fellow was very much frightened, but he
managed to sob out the answer, that he could
not make any more. silva went away and
thought about it for while, and then he re-
membered that there was a certain kind of
tree in heaven called the tree of life, which
afforded abundance of food for the millions
of gods who lived there. Then he called
Brahma again, and sent him to take one of
those trees and transplant it to the earth.
He obeyed, and from that one tree he made
a great many to grow all over Ceylon and
India, so that men and women and children
soon had all the food they needed. That
tree of life is, they say, this Palmyra
palm tree. Now, children, we all know that
this is not true story at all, for we know
there is but one God, and he is a good
God who created all things. But the
poor heather children in Ceylon believe
great many such foolish stories, and
| think there are great many gods who love
to make men suffer- but no good gods who
love us. But think there is good reason
why this tree should be called "the tree Of
life" suppose that not one-half the peo
pie of Ceylon could live without it. 1t is a
strange kind of a tree, as all palm trees are
Perhaps some day I will tell you about
another palm tree, and want you to see il
you can find out what the Bible says about
palm trees. wonder how many of the boys
and girls in Vermont know what class o.
men grow or flourish like the palm tree
And wonder how many of their father
and mothers know what that means. Nov
see how this Palmyra palm grows Here il
little clump of leaves coming up out of thu
ground. Dig around it little, and see wha
we can find Why, it is great round buncl
of soft wood, with little roots like twin'
coming out of it. There is one Just VI
above the ground. 1t has hard shell, o
bark with softer wood inside of it, But i
looks just like a stump, with leaves on it
Now that is just the way palm trees grow
Not like little apple tree, or a maple tree
little stick at first growing larger an'
larger every year-but like stump, grow
ing up higher and higher, but never grow
ing any larger. Look at the trees that W
thought were flag poles; they are as larg
up at the top as they are at the ground
And look at them again they are as straigh
as the straightest flag staff you ever saw.
Oh, how the wind did blow once when W
were out there on the ocean, not very ia
from Ceylon 1t lifted up great piles of tn
ocean water into the air, and threw then
against our good ship so hard that they mad
a noise as loud as a cannon when they struc
us. The ships rudder was fastened by grea
bar of tough. iron, four and a half inches i
diameter. But one of those big waves hi
easily as if it had been only little sticl
They have such tornadoes here in Ceylo
sometimes, but these Palmyra palm tree
are not broken down, or bent at all by then
They grow right up straight in the air, an
never bend in the least. They never hav
any branches-palm trees never do. If 20
find anything in the Bible about pail
branches, remember it means palm leave
They tell us you cannot make PalmyI
palm tree grow crooked. | have never trie
0 it, but have read that if you should take
great fat stone and lay it right Oh the top {
one of these trees, it, instead of doing as
little apple tree would, turning off and craw
ing out from under it, the palm tree woul
grow right straight upward, lifting up Il
o stone with it. Now look up at the leave
What splendid fans they would make f.
such big men as that one whom little Davi
hit with stone Just like our palm-le
fans, only the edges are notched and the
are some six or eight feet in diameter Al
/" look at the pretty fruit up among the leave
There are great clusters of it, like gre
/. punches of grapes. But each one is lit
larger than the biggest apple you ever saw
round and glossy, black, streaked with gol
=, Inside are two very hard Seeds and the pu
around them looks like mashed carrots, b
tastes like very sweet sugar favored wi
some sort of perfumery. You have to G
used to it before you like it, and then "
will call it very delicious. The nut insi,
v is hard fellow to crack. Big brother To
Al couldn't crack it with an axe. If he shou
try it, it would fly off and be sure to hit hi
, on the shins.
Every part of this tree is very usef'
Come into my study children, and | W
show you great many things that can
w made of it. Here is a piece of the wo'
4. /.