Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-03-16
in that part of the world he accumulated,

in that part of the world he accumulated,
from widely different sources, n mass of
testimony as to its existence and habits.
SIS it quite uncomfortable, my dear
Briery, that somewhere i'll the range of
Nature there is vegetable organization as |
far above the cabbage, let us say incom-
plexity and potentiality as the ape is
above the polyp? Nature is continuous
In all her scheme we find no chasms, no
gaps. There may be missing links i'll
our books and classiiicntions and cabinets,
but there nre none in the organic world.
Is not all of lower Nature struggling up
ward to arrive Mt the point of solf-con.
sciousncsss and volition? In the unceas
ing process of evolution, differentiation,
improvement i'll special function, why
may not plant arrive at this point and
feel, will, &c. in short, possess and cxcr-
Csc the characteristics of the true ami
nal ?"
Bricry's voice trombled with cnthus-
iasin rs he read this page.
! have no doubt, continued PrOfos-
SO. Cuakvorsuch, CHAT if it shall be your
great good fortune to encounter n speci
mon Of the Migratory Tree described by
Buteaux, you will find that it possesses II
well defined system of real nerves and
ganglia. constituting in fact, the seat of
vegetable intelligence. / conjure yen to
be very thorough in your dissectlons.
ACCORDING 10 tho indications furnish
ell me by the jesuit, this extraordinary
tree should belong to the order of cue
'accn. 1t should Be developed only i'll
conditions of extreme heat and dryness.
Its roots should be hardly more than ru
dimentary afiorling II precarous attach
ment to the earth. This attachment it
should be able to sever Mt will, soaring
up into the air and away to another place
selected by itself, as bird shifts its hab-
itation. / infer that these migrations are
accomplished by means of the property
of secreting hydrogen gas, with which 1t
initiates Mt pleasure n bladder-like organ
of highly elastic tissue, thus lifting itself
out of the ground and of to new
abode.
"Buteaux added that the Migratory
Tree was invariably worshippcd by the
natives as n supernatural being, and that
the mystery thrown by them around its
cult was the greatest obstacle in the path
of the investigator.
:
Professor Quakversuch' letter. SIS not
that quest worthy the risk or sacrifice
of life itself? To add to the recorded facts
istence of a tree that wanders, n tree that
wills, a tree, perhaps, that thinks-this
is glory to be won ut any cost The Ia
mentod Decandollc of Geneva"
"Confound the lamented Decandolle of
4 " .,1. Al e.. n
hot, and felt that we had come OH n
fools GRAND.
II was near sunset ON tho second day
of our journey, when Kilooa, who was
riding several rods in advance Of us, ut
tered quick cry, leapcd from his saddle,
and stopped to the ground.
Bricry was mt his side in an instant. !
followed with less agility my joints were
very stiff, and | had no scientific enthus-
asm to lubricatc them. Briery was on
his hands and knees eagerly examining
what seemed to be a recent disturbance
Of the soil The savage was PROSTATE,
rubbing his forehead in the dust, ms if i'll
religious ecstacy, and warbling the
same falsetto notes that we had heard ut
the holy woman's hut.
"What beast trail have you struck 2
| demanded.
"The trail Of no beast" answered
Briery, almost angrily. Do You see this
broad abrasion Of the surface, where n
heavy weight has rested ? DO you see
these little troughs in the fresh earth,
radiating from the centre like the points
OF star? They are the scars left by sicn-
4 1,oll
Do You sec kilooa's hystclical perform
nnces / tell you We are on the track OF
the Sacred Tree. Ii has been here and
not ago.
Acting under Briery's excited instruc-
tions we continued the hunt on foot.
Kilooa started towards the east, and
toward the west, and Briery took the
| southward course.
To cover the ground thoroughly, we
agreed to advance i'll gradua ly widening
, zigzargs, communicating with each other
at intervals by pistol shots. There could
have been no more foolish arrangement.
In IL quarter of an hour | had lost my
head and my bearing i'll thicket. Fol
another quarter OF an hour | discharged
my revolver repeatedly, without getting y
single response from east or south.
spent the remainder of daylight IN q
laundering effort to make my way back
to the place where the horses were and
then the sun went down, leaving me i'll
sudden darkness, and alone in wilder.
ness of the extent and character of which
] had not the faiutest idea.
! will spare you the history of my
suii'erings during the whole of that night
and next day, and the next night, and
another day. When it was dark l wan
dered about in blind despair, longing fol
daylight not daring to sleep or even tc
stop, and in continual terror OF the I'M
known dangers that surrounded me. Ii
daytime l longed for night, for the SUI
scorched its way through the thickes
roof that the luxriant foliage afforded
and drove me nearly mad. The provi
sions i'll my haversack were exhausted
My canteen was on my saddle | SHOULD
have died with thirst had it not been fol
the belltop cactus, which ] found twice
Bnt i'll that horrible experience neithel
the torture of hunger and thirst, nor the
torture of heat, equalled the misery o.
the thought that my life was to be sacri
feed to the delusion OF crazy bontanist
who had dreamed of the impossible.
The impossible?
On the second afternoon still stagger
} ing aimlessly on through the jungle,
lost my last strength and fell to TIN
ground. Despair and Indifference ha'
long since given way to an eager desir
for the end. closed my eyes with in
describable relief the hot sun seeme
pleasant on my face as consciousness de
parted,
Did beautiful and gentle woman com
TO me while lay unconscious, and tax
my head in her lap, and put her arm
around me? Did she press her face t.
. mine in Mhisner bid me hnYe cOnrnpo