The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1881-09-03
Milkweed Playthinss.

Almost everybody. 1t some time Or
other, has made the acquaintance Of the
mikweed, or silkweed, As have heard
it called. @ e ,' ''.1
IA reason for each Of these names !,
very apparent. If you break tie asn.
a sticky substance like milk run, fIom
It. which will stain your clotheA WV
the plant is also called silkweed / slajl
explain to you presently.
:, Iknew this weed very well i New
England when l was q little Ill In
July. it hangs out . cluster 81 NH
purple bells, and later, after tie ~.
SONS have gone, very lsrge seedps&
are formed, which grow to 10 bsi6ssl
inches long, and are pointed 4 tieal
opposite the stem. Ii these pods vsy
left on the plant until the seedy Nm
fully ripened, they would spla On
themselves and gradually Ae ND
would tly out carrying with I'm
enough of these ailksn thread q IL
as spider 8 web, tn Noat them a TIE
wind for miles away, perhaps yeu
q! must have seen them many 8 fne.
The silk radiates in every direction
from the central seed, making ! taasy,
fllmy sphere, with ! small, dsik eeatGr.
The seeds cluster about tie opening d
the pod, until the wind picks them eut
and carries them abroad. but Il yoa
piok some Of the pods whom green. asd
put them In = vase where they are not
=! disturbed, the pod viii open pat wv.
like a. oyster.shell, and The line silksa
threads, folded and packed 20 closelyil
the center, will hy apart and get out il
some way, 80 that after while The psd
Will be covered with q cloud 81 white.
Tins is very beautiful; and, IL Il Stands
N y corner out Of the way of Sudden
breeses, it will be likely 70 remain y
all winter. You now see why it SCALED
silkweed.
My sister and yearly collected ssy.
eral of these silkweeds for our plsy-
house by the stone wall. where we kept
our bits Of broken china, and trans.
formed the pods into domestic animals.
Often, . pod would be we'll shaped for
. chicken, requiring only feathers to Be
stuck into the pointed tail. md IL
stem to be broken of short at The othsr
end and sharpened to represent tho
bill. Two sticks put in served for lsgA
70 that it would rest on these and a.
he point Of the tail. When NJ played
hat Thanksgiving Day had come, and
wanted chickens for dinner. we. had only
% pull out the tail-feathers Of . pair Of
. fowls" and, of course, take OF their
egs; and, when they were ready for
he table, instead Of carving, VIC split
pen the pods, as you do those Of tho
'es or bean, and behold! there was the
most tempting-lookiag ''white'' and
dark" meat within. The white meat
vas tibrous. like silk, and lay in the
enter; over it were fiat brown seeds.
verlapping one another like the shin
les on q house-roof, and making our
dark meat" 'iael-r s.|' -
We not only transformed these pods
ITO poultry, but also into quadrupeds
al sorts. Put in four legs. q pair Of
ofns and = tail. and you have your
Nv. and one. too, which really gives
llk! Leave off the horns, take . bit
your own hair to use for q tail, and
~ have q horse.
But these are only q few hints, and |
u let you experiment for yourself this
ason. and find out what you can do
'yond this in making animals and
her figures. Nicholas.