Savannah morning news., 1886-03-22
JoCULAR VEG ETATION.
Some Freaks of Inantmate Nature that
Excite Our Wonder and Amusement.

From Cuban Letter.
Is a sense of humOr one of the elements
which enters into the scheme Of creation?
When we come across some of the extrav-
agant productions OF nature in both the
animal and vegetable world in which our
finite mind can detect no useful purpose,
we cannot help feeling that these mani
festations are the result of a playful ex-
uberance OF fancy in the creative power.
perhaps exercised Tor the entertainment
or relaxation of man. Look at the huge
tail OF the peacock. What useful purpose
does it server Then turn to the prepos-
ferrous bill OF the t0ucan. What can be
the necessity for all that bill? Other birds
get on comfortably with almost no tail at
all. aud with bills that are scarcely worth
mentioning. Some quadrupeds have
horns that would be a load for a strong
man 10 carry, others are as devoid OF
these weapons as a toad is OF tail. Some
animals are altogether without means of
defense, while others are citadels OF Wea-
pOns offensive and defensive. Are all
these things arranged to entertain man,
or do they perform some necessary func-
tion IN the scheme Of nature which we are
not permitted to understand?
Every moderately-read man has an in
definite idea that he possesses a general
knowledge OF the external aspect Of the
fauna and fora of the world, and yet let
him Journey few hundred miles from his
regular habit, and he will he surprised at
some manifestation OF natures works of
which be had never received the slightest
hint before.
ON fret visiting Cuba l found myself
astOulshed at every turn and corner by
freaks OF vegetation that were so common
there that no one seemed to consider them
I NV If 4 faI I'm
tree with a trunk bigger at the top than
at the bottom, like an inverted oil flask
or a carrot with its point stuck in the
ground.
In another place, clambering over the
/ garden fence. we're slender deciduous
/ vines laden with clumps of fierce, tortu-
/ Gus thOrns thicker than the main stem OF
/ the plant. resembling clusters of small
I buffalo horns and as hard as steel. In the
same garden grew tree about as large
as one Of our northern apple trees, and
I bearing flower OF the size of a MuscoVy
duck, which it exactly resembled in form,
/ bill. wings, tail and all, though, in color,
nearly white, with portions. shading off
/ into a delicate pink. These monster fiOW-
ers either hung by their beaks to the
/ limbs of the tree or las scattered in pro-
fusion on the grass below, where they re-
| sem bled a flock OF water fowl swimming
in a pool. / noticed, too, in Cuba, a ten
1 dency on the part Of vegetation generally
/ to produce thOrns. Several OF the larger
/ trees bristled with these pOniards, six
4 inches long. all the way up their trunks,
/ and / could not help rejecting sadly that
/ the schoolhOy OF that land must have a
rather rough time Of it in the pursuit of
/ that iaVOrite juvenile pleasure of climb
/ ing trees. They recalled TO my mind a
certain Australian ligneous pOrcuplne
4 known as the puzzle monkey, which is
! encased in an armOr OF thOrns, growing
/ with their points downward In a way cal
oulated to utterly battle the most astute of
/ quadrumana. Certain beautiful red ber-
/ res or seeds, resembling the most bril-
! liant coral, / was sufficiently familiar
! with in their imported state in the North;
but It was an agreeable surprise TO find
/ them growing here in lavish abundance,
nestled in their slender pods, and TO be
/ had wholesale for the picking 1 was, too,
surprised AZ the generous proportions,
rich color and arabesqued she'll of the
/ peanuts.
plucKed oranges from the trees-which
was new sensatiOC-and they were very
nice, but did not lind them much supe-
rior to those ! had Otter bought IN first-
class grocery stores in New York. | ate
Of numerous pulpy fruits of the custard
apple order, which tasted OF varnish, and
disappointed me, but for which / could
easily understand a taste might be ac-
Quired by patience and perseverance,. The
alligator, or avocado. pear is eaten with
pepper and salt, and occupies position
OF It's own, solitary and alone in the gas
tronomlc world, somewhere between a
melon and turnip. Partakiug more OF
the character Of a salad than a fruit, il
looks like the later, tastes something like
grass, is eaten with a spoon, and is alto
gether an anamoly, aud one OF the queer.
est vegetable jokes on erection. Speaking
about the tendency Of tropical vegetation
10 produce thorns, 10 is curious TO note
how many Of their fruits are either so pro-
tected or with hard rinds or shells. The
fruits Of temperate climates, such as the
apple, pear, peach, plum, with all the ber-
ries, can be eaten whole. skin and all
while those Of the tropics. the orange,
pineapple. banana. prickly pear. and, in
fact, everyone, needs some more or less
severe surgical operation TO prepare il for
masticatOn. Why is this thus? as Arte.
mus Ward would say. / begin TO suspect
that we know very little about the mo-
tiyes and principles Of creation. after all.
Why should some plants be made to look
like insects, and some insects TO look like
plants? Why do they 70 masqueradIng
In each others clothes? Does 10 not look
as though IL were Intended for good
piece OF funY Most OF us have heard oft.
! II we have act seens theiwonderful leaf in