The sun., 1900-12-30
WAYS or THE EARTHWORM.
Interesting Facts About tho small Roy's Ta-
vorite Fish Bait.
From ne st. Louis Globe-Dcmocrat

From The 81. Louis GlOb6- Democrat
Earth-worms have n reason ;or being ever
SO much more important than to serve - bait
for fishermen. For all their lowly estate
few creatures have done more for mankind
Earth-worns are not merely IL" original
ploughmen-they have brought about the
condition Of the earth's surface that makes
other ploughing possible and profitable.
Field crops. Tor the most part, grow and
feed upon vegetable mold the layer of warm
hght. bracki-h earth resting upon the sub
soil. Save by grace OF the earth-worm veg
ctable mold would exist only ia those places
where dead4leavc- and dcCayiug growth-
generally resolved themselves into their
original elements. The earth-worm, which
may be described aS an embodied appetite.
eats everything animal matter green leaves
and dead onss, twis-, leaf stalks, small stones
aud earth. lne r"~dllllm OF all he casts up
on the ~uriac" al the rate. throughout PASTURES
and garden ground. of some ten tons a yrar
continue the process n hundred year. or even
nifty and uany inches OF fine friable pio-
duCtiNc soil result.
:. Ecyond al that, their burrows lc, down
the burrows run six iect doeD. lu winter
the worms hibernate IN roundi>h chambers
AT the bottom. The Chambc-s are lined with
very small stones or hard. rounded seed
a dozen worms sleep together knuttcd into
a, spnirming bnil. II Is oniy in th" winter
times they go IN pGirS. Though they do not
IN captivity appear very sensible of either
cold or heat. in hot. dry weather they go
almost as far down az they do in winter.
EveesS they have yet n certain perception
of light. r"tr"ating before II to their burrows
Vibration also aiIcyt- th"m--hencc, >ly the
country folk, Tia" WOndc OCk'S habit of drum
ming 10 call them out or the ground Their
sense Of smell L. acute, and by the hClp of 10
they sind their food, either buried or lying
upon the surino. A. soon a. il j. found
the worms drag y Ia mo burrow They bun =
row hN pressure ot their smooth ringcd hodi,S
and hN literally eating out the earth ahead
The digestive, apiaratur includes n crop and
giZZard. liz" hose of bird, After the manner
of birds, the gIH2aris are kept supplied with
small stones 10 serve a m.llstOncS ia grinding
down the food
Tho burrows are plastc.el al round with
the finely chcwcd earth and keen shape often
long after they are unt'nauted From the
dead leaves which make so large part of
their food the worms secrcte humljs acids,
which attack and help To dissolve the rocks
buried in the soil Thu, ,nC sait ithNurm.
not merely TRANSFORMS 'hc soil Chemically
and mechanically hut add to tho buk Of it
since soil of every kind comes from the d--
'ntcgrntion ~ rocks Further. many Leaves
dragged down into tie hurrow> are only
partly eaten aud. dcrayinr, furnish gases
which permoatc the soil aud react upon it.
mineral clement
Earthworm~ are the hest alias of those
gentlemen, the antiuuaries \ coin, al
arrow head. u spear point an inscribed .lnh.
n tc~srated pavement, they bury. surely.
safely, To await the uav of resurrection Gh"
burying j. done IN two way--by castings
spread above the thing 10 he buried and by
undermining the soil beneath Earth honey
Combcd with burrows sinks In times Of heavy
rain or frost Thus. in course Of thousand
surface. yet remain exactly a. Il fell Irdeed.
the wise men declare the cart worms in the
mass, keep the whole face of the planet IN a
state Of gradual evolution