The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-11-09
THE EOElWElSS MYTH.

j Is Not - Rare Plant, Nor Does IL GROW
at Very Great Heights.
1t in commonly reported and is no
less commonly believed by the inexperi-
enced tourist that edelweiss is a plant
which only grows in the most dangerous
and Inaccessible situations. OF course
with it, az with any other Alpine plant,
this may now and then happen. But a.
q rule il is found on rough and rather
stony slopes Of grass, the ordinary pas
ture of sheep and goats. at heights rang
ing from about 5000 to 5000 feet
above the sea level. 1t is not often met
with below the former limit and seldom
Sbove the latter. Once it could be
plucked-probably it has now been ex-
terminated-by the side of a path few
hundred feet above Zermatt and within
half an hour of the hotels 1t was album
dant, and no doubt still is, all about
the little inn Mt the Tosa falls, and it
may be picked in handfuls within q
couple of hours easy walk from the
baths Of San Bernardino. That 1t Is a
great rarity is also an article OF faith,
but this is another myth. 1t ia doubt
less a plant local rather than universal
In the Alps, but there are few districts
where il does not occur, often abundant
~. What has caused il to DO 80 priced
is difficult TO understand. IL IL an ever
lasting, but that is almost equivalent to
saying that 1t has no great beauty. The
plant attains q height Of about four
inches. having one or two flowers on Q
stem. These are star shaped, few
pointed rays down covered, as II they
were cut ont Of pale gray velvet, sur
rounding two or three yellowish tufts.
The dry stem and narrow leaves are
similarly covered. Its scientific name IL
Guaphallum leontopodium, and tho &C.
mus TO which 10 belongs has three or
four representatives in the Alps, one OF
them, G. dioicum, being also abundant
ON dry moors in Britain. It is, in short,
4 flower quaint rather than beautiful.
The edelweiss is an extremely easy
nlant TO raise from seed and should Be
treated as an annual. The seed can be
obtained readily for few pence from
snv respectable nurseryman. IL Is. how
aver, q very difficult plant to transplant
with any success. Sometimes the edei-
weiss. when torn from its native noun
tain and act out in garden, will have
rufficient life in IL to flower and then
pine away aud die. This 10 the almost
inyariablo result Of these attempted
trsnsplantations t>-o
It may be added that edelweiss, when
grown on anything like the sea level
or. In fact, anywhere away from home,
entirely loses it, distinctive character
and becomes worthless a. . garden
plant. Perhaps these remarks will save
some tourista' sponge bags from being
Allied. which, II they do not become
heated and die on the journey, VIII
barely finger long enough to enable the
proud owner to point to them as evi-
depoe that he has actually been 10
switzerland. London Standard.
"I dunno on the prodigal son was 20 vsry
IA after NIL. f" said Mrs. CorntosseI.
"He wan't no good 10 his family nor
husband rejoincd-
". "Thst,s 4 fact. But whom he got home
A.. a,An,t, hsv no more Ter say. III he'd
hssn IKE most Of the men folks nowsaAys,
~ INN thing he'd Of done would o. pen
send fault with the way the fatted Gall
as cooked Washington star.