The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-02-08
Dr. Shoop's Restorative on Trial


 properties. Small doses of the alkaloid or this plant will intoxicate. and the state
 of nervous excftation Is accompanied by
 singular capacity of prophecy. hke that
 which is said to have followed the sul-
 phurops sxhalations of the Delphic tenn the eaeti. and from the same is obtaii- ed the Mexican drink of rnescai. From Its strange psychic properties. the early Jesuits save it the nane of devils root, '(raiz diabolAca)
 Possibly one of the dueerest families of plants in the world arc tbe dormideras, or sleeping plants. The best known and | most prominent member Of tnls group, displaying the phenomena of sleep, is the sensitive plant. taking its name from it's 1 curious action when touched My first experience with this wonderful plant was | in the Sula Valley of Honduras. A recent overflow Of the Uiiua River had buried the stems some distance under the sand. ana the queer appearance Of the red vine caused me to stop and attempt to pull 1t out and examine 1t more closely. In q
 moment the entire vine presented a spec
 tacle so remarkable that 1 involuntarily
 sprang back, as though I had seized q living reptile. The leaves which spread
 out like stiff whiskers, slowly and with
 writhing effort. folded themselves, as
 If offended at my rude handling. My guide, at my gFotesque attitude. exciainl-
 cd. La Planta sensitiva." and pointing to vast bed of matted vines. covering
 half acre which were now nodding and elepping their fern-iike leaves together It Is frequently cultivated in gardens for it's peculiar disposition--the leaves bend
 ing. folding and writhing from the touch of the hand When 1t assumes the dig nity of tree. 1t retains the same char ! acter; if the trunk is given smart blow
 with a stick. not only the leaves will | shrink away. but all of the lesser twigs will incline visibly toward the parent stem. The plant closes Its leaves. under 1 clear and serene sky, about a half-hour before sunset. unfolding them. in the | morning. when the sun has just risen. l The acacia and tamarind have similar habits. as their delicate leaves, revellins in the briihaney of sunlight. are af- | fected by the smallest decline In the in- o'clock" "forget-nle-not" and other leg
 luminous plants belong to the same fam l fly.
 The most wonderful plant. however, in
 the wn9!e ho"er wor,a' oe.onsS to the orchid family, and Is caile0 Esplrtu Santo, or nower of the Holy GnoSt. II Is a rare plant and Is onIy found, m lso.alet clusters. in some Of the uanp iowIanus | Of the tropics. where It often springs out of the decaylng mould Of q Qeau tee. 1t
 produces strlkingiy beautiful blossom, of alabaster wnlteness. In the heart or tnis mower. requiring no mag ma ton to trace the likeness, IS the perfect image | of a white dove, The delicate dropping white wings, elevated head and cr!nIson- tipped biII are as fully detined against its Snowby bosom IS though tauiIIessiy fashioned by an artist As mas been saIu, | It is the very incarnation of Immunity anu spiritual beauty:-hence the Spanish name Flor de Spirttu Santo, or flower of the Holy Ghost Even the OrinocO savage, with his crude ideas of things spiritual looks upon the flower with awe and rev erence, deeming he earth, which nour-
 lshes 1t, and the locality 1t perfumes as too sacred for human intrusion,
 Another equally curious tropical plant growth is the Resurrection Plant. IL is sup posed to be the Rose of Jericho. from the
 river Jordan and the Resurrection Plant of Holy Writ. In its dormant and dry state 1t iS a shrunken and shapeless mass of apparently dead leaflets, which can
 be deprived of all earth and water for
 many years-even indefinitely. but, when dropped into a vessel of warm water
 its numerous grassy arms begin to move
 about slowly and will soon be trans formed from dead brown mass to a
 beautiful metallic green plant. The au-
 thor possesses a specimen. which was
 mlslaid in garret for fifteen years. but within an hour after being placed in tepid water. 1t presented q great loose-ex- banded rosette of green. fern-like leaves. There are many species of tropical plants. which nature seems to have de- signed. to secure their sustenance by insect prey. and to have provided them with snares and traps, with which to SdPtuie the unSuSpecIlng nectar hunters. Hence the name carniVora. The little drosera is an inconspIcuous example, with khs plgmy leaves armed with hairy ten tacles, which are surely fatal to any in- sect that may light thereon. The hunt CTS pitcher is another example and to see the struggles of insects, in the firm clutches of this octopus. is often a horror m miniature. There are other carnivor- ous plants in Venezuela and in all equa- torlai countries. that really have blood sucking propensities and will slowly and surely devour small pieces of beef. thrown
 Into their little tentaeies. This fact has
 given rise to some very extravaaant fic-
 uons as to huge carniverous plants
 grasping in their fatal embrace some of
 the large animals, and even man himself.
 The experiments. which have been made
 with pitcher plants, have aroused much
 interest. as they have developed nro-
 cesses closely akin to digestion.
 In the struggle for existence in organic life. we often see plants like animals. armed with peculiar methods or both at