The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-05-11
and If its earthly habitat be flooded it

and IL it's earthly habitat be flooded it
browns.
1t burrows agocylindrieal canal deep
enough into the earth always to have
access to water or moist earth. If the
surface becomes dry it goes deeper, but
always keeps open its communication with
the open air. 1t enjoys life best after
soaking rain has softened and moistened
the surface, at which time it lives near
the outlet of its burrow, and at night
comes to the doorway to reach out after
choice morsels of food, for while the
earthworm feeds upon the humus of the
SOIL taking in much of the soil itself, 1t
much prefers more concentrated vegeta-
Bile matter in a state of dissolution. Ii
a bit of old manure be lying on the sur
face of theg round, within a few inches
the burrow of an earthworm, it will reach
a long way out from Its portal to get az
the toothsome morsel. Having no eyes.
it will not trust itself to come all the
way out. but keeps a firm grip on its
base; and when disturbed making a quick
back-action into it's subterrere quarters.
I feed my colony of domestic lumbri-
cidae upon the household parings buried
in the garden for their benefit These
they consume In a brief period, and keep
a sharp lookout from their airholes for
the next installment. They are practi
cally free from anxiety about the food
supply and they multiply galore, taking
no Thought of the morrow.
In the autumn they are admonished by
the shortening days and cool nights to
prepare for their winter sleep. The parent
worm descend deeply out of reach of frost,
while the baby worms go below also, curl
ing themselves up like a watch spring and
encasing themselves In lump of plastic
earth, previously ingested and quietly fall
asleep in full confidence of a resurrection
with the mounting sun of the following
year When in this condition IL the earthly
cyst be broken open the tiny spiral worm
may be awakened by the warmth of the
breath
Though the humble worm be little more
than a terminated alimentary canal it is
ever at work promoting the fool supply Of
his pampered relative, man. The crude
vegetable matter of the soil IS converted
by its agency into a soluble form that is
eagerly absorbed by the roots of the
plants. The rich, luscious. green growth
of our vegetable and flower gardens is
largely due to our voicelesS co-workers.
In my flower pots for winter indoor
plants I always introduce a couple of
earthworrns ard keep them awake and at
work ell winter.
Ruthlessly to step upon and destroy a
worm is to commit partial homicide, for
the worm is a survival of the same cell
differentiation on the road over which man
Though the worm be but an alimentary
canal yet 1t has organs; the rudiments
are there Of limbs and it's annular seq
ments are the analogues of the ribs of the
vertebrates Its blood is Redeemed with
iron. like our own, and IL derives oxygen
from the air by branchiate organs distrib-
uted underneath its investing dermatose
membrane.
The lowly earthworm has most inter-
esting life history; its cycle of life runs
in analogous grooves with that OF man.
It's infancy, its growth, its loves, its
alarms and instinct of self-preservation,
its pursuit of sustenance and the TRACE
dies which mark the close Of its brief ca
reer. whether from the spade OF the hus-
bandman. the hook of the angler, the bill
of the domestic fowl or that OF its numer-
Gus aerial enemies. all typify the life-his-
tory Of it's more highly developed brother.
man.
For 10! these many centuries man has
been directed 10 the ant for wisdom, and
10 the bee for emulation in industrial ac-
tivity; but from the worm may many a
lesson he drawn that Is lacking In the
living texts Of our conventional instruc-
tors.
with this introduction of the suburbanite
TO his neglected and despised subterranean
relative ] dismiss the earthworm, COM
mending II to the tender mercies OF all
under whose power II may hereafter come.
-e-9e