The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1878-01-24
THE MAN-EATING TREE.

car, was originally published in the
Graele aud Walther's Magazine OF Carts
ruhe, together with notes upon it by Dr.
Omelius Fredlowski, to whom the letter
by Carl Leche, the discovcrer, from
which the following is extracted, was
addressed
"The Mkodos are a very primitive
race, going entirely naked, having only
faint vestige OF tribal relations, and no
religion beyond that of the awful
reverence which they pay to the sacred
tree. They dwell entirely in caves fol,
lowed out Of the limestone rocks in their
hills, and are one Of the rmallest OF races,
the men seldom exceeding fifty six
inches in height. At the bottom Of a
valley q had no barometer, but should
think il not over 400 feet above the level
of the sea, and ncar its eastern ex
tremity) we came to a deep, tarn-likc
lake, about n mile in diameter, the
sluggish waters Of which overIlowed
into a tortuous reedy canal that went
unwillingly into the recesscs Of Il blac!
forest, jungle below, palm above,
A path diyerging from its southern side
struck boldly for the heart Of the forbid.
ding and seemingly impenetrablc forest,
Henrick led the way along the path.
followed closely, and behind mcacuTiou'
rabbIe Of Mkodos men, women and
children. Suddenly all the natives began
to cry "1cpc. Tepe % and lIenrick.
stopping short, said, "Look !" The
sluggish, canal.like stream here wound
slowly by, and in a bare spot in ils bend
was the most singular Of trees. ! have
called it the Crinoda, because when il.
leaves are in action it bears n striking
resemblance to that %wcll.knOwn fossil.
the crinoid Iilystone, OF st. CuthberJ'.
beads, II is now at rest, however.
will try to describe it to you. If you
can imagine a pineapple eight feet high.
and thick in proportion, resting upon it,
base, and denuded OF leaves, you will
have Il good idea Of the trunk Of the
tree which, however, was not the color o.
the anana, but a dark, dingy brown, and
apparently hard as iron. From the apex
Of this truncated cone Cat least two feet
in diamcter) eight leaves hung sheer to
the ground, like doors swung back on
their hinges. These leaves, which
were joined at the top Of the tree at
regular intervals, were about eleven or
twelve feet long, and shaped very much
like the American agavc, or century
plant. They were two feet through in
their thickest part, and three feet wide.
tapering to a sharp point that looked
like u cows horn, very convex ON the
outer (but nov undcr) surface, and on
the inner (now upper surface slightly
COncave. This c0ncave face was thiGkIy
get with very strong thorny hooks, like
those upon the head of the tcazIe.
These leaves, hanging thus limp and
~liicless, dead green in color, had in ap.
pearance the massive strength of oak
fiber. The apex Of the cone was Il
white, concaye figure, like It
smaller plate set within a larger one.
This was not a flower, but Il receptacle,
and there exuded into Il clear, ~treacly
liquid, honey sweet, and possessed of
violent intoxicating and soporifc prop.
critics. From underneath the rim, 50 TO
speak, Of the undermost plate, a series
OF long, hairy, green tcndrils stretched
in every direction toward The horizon.
These were seven or eight feet long
each, and tapercd from four inches to
Il halt inch in diameter, yet they
stretched out 8tinly as iron rods. Above
these (Grom between the upper aud
under cup, six white, almost transpar.
,ent, paIpi reared themselves toward the
sky, twirling and twisting with y mar.
velous incessanL motion, yet co l%s,antIy
reaching upward. Thin as reeds aud
frail as quilts apparently, they were yet
five on six feet tall, and were 70 con.
stantIy and vigorously in motion, with
such a subtitle, sinuous, silent t@hrobbing
against the air, that they made me shud.
der in spite of myself with their slg.
gestion Of serpents hayed, yet dancing
on their tails. The description | am
you now is part made up from =
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 pro,
pitiatory hymns to the great deyil-trce.
With still wilder shrieks and chant.
they surrounded one of the women,
and urged her with the points OF
their j~avelins, until slowly and with
dcspairing face, she climbed up the
stalk of the tree, and stood on the sum.
NIT Of the cone, the palpi twirling all
about her. "Tisk1 Tisk p drink
drink J cried the men, and stopping,
she drank of the viscid fluid in the cup,
rising instantly again with wild frenzy
in her face, and c0nvulsive cholera in her
limbs. But she did not jump down ~
she seemed to intend to do. Oh, no! The
atrocious cannibal that had been 80
inert aud dead came to sudden, savage
lie. The slender, delicate palpi, with the
fury of starved serpents, quivering for a
moment over her head, then, as if by in.
with demoniac intelligence. las.
tend upon her in sudden coils round and
round her neck and arms, then, while her
awful screams, and yet more awful laugh.
ter, rose wilder, to be instantly struggled
down again into a gurgling moan, the
tendrils, one after another, like great
green serpents, with brutal energy and
internal rapidity, rose, retracted them
and wrapped her about in fold
after fold, ever tightening, with the cruel
swiltness and savage tenacity of anocou.
das fastening upon their prey. IL was
the barbarity of the LAGOON without its
beauty--this strange, horrible murder.
And now the great leaves rose slowly and
stiilly like the arms of Il derrick, erected
themselves in the air, approaching one
another, and closed about the dead and
hampered victim with the silent force of
an hydraulic press, and the ruthless pur-
pose Of u thumbscrew. A moment more,
and while | could see the basis Of the
,.x,ut ln,sn.u ,.a nina, ,,,w. ,..l.I- - 4