The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-05-06

visits to Europe that he could not give
a truthful description of it without en-
dangering his reputation for Veracity.
We saw here, also, rattan vines of
seemingly endless length, hanging from
lofty limbs or coiling on the ground
like colony of serpents. A speciality
has been made of orchids, as is evil
denced by a collection of between 1000
and 5000 varieties. Some Of these are
remarkable for their curious and var
legated leaves, others for the beauty
and delicacy of the flowers. We were
shown three kinds of pitcher plants;
one kind is fashioned like a rat trap.
the tiny spines pointing downward so
that the insect can enter but cannot
escape until the flower withers; another
browns his victims in a syrup-Iike wa
ter; while a third poisons the unIucky
prisoners Iured into the receSSeS of the
blossoms. Several plants growing on
tree trunks have porous bulbs which
seem to be designed for ant houses: at
any rate the ants are always found in
them. By an admirable reciprocity the
ants pay their house rent by protecting
the plants from other insects. (SOme
of the EUROPEAN nations have defended
their occupation of oriental countries
on the same theory. viz. that they give
protection in exchange for a domicile.
but there is no evidence that the ant
lives on the plant. while cOlonialism is
always a burden to the natives)
In the Botanical Garden. as elsewhere
in the island. are to be found all varie-
ties of the Palm--the royal palm, than
which furnishes the Malay q substi-
tute for chewing tobacco. the nina
palm, so helpful in building, the fan
palm, etc.
Nature has been prodigal in her gifts
to the people of the tropics, and besides
giving plant life I'm confusing abund-
ance, her generosity is shown in a num-
Der of trees each of which can be put
to many uses. Reference was made TO
bamboo in one of the articles on ia
pan, but the Japanese have not only the
bamboo, but the palm as well, and
from this one tree they could build
houses Though the bamboo is usually
used for frames and floors because it
is lighter the trunk of the palm might
be eTnployedO and secure food. drink and
light, and in addition "a ferTnented IL
quor and a narcotic.
The lakes and pools of the Buitenzorg
garden TEEN with lotus and water lilies
of many cOlorS. One variety. brought
from New Guinea, has blue flowers of
various shades and is as yet unknown
| in Europe and America. One water
lily has enormous fiat, circular leaves
with the edges turned uD like a pie
pan. Some of these leaves are four
feet in diameter, and an imaginative
writer has pictured them as frying pans
on which the natives bake hot cakes.
The papyruS, from which the an
cient Egyptians made their paper,
grows here though it is no longer
found in Egypt Here, too, are flower
ing trees and shrubs of many kinds,
one whose pods are so exactly like tall
low candles that il is called the can
die tree. But 1t would occupy more
space than have at my disposal to
give an adequate description of the
beauties of the garden, with it's mighty
banyan trees, its waving palms, it's
graceful bamboos, it's odorors sandal
wood and tangled vines, it's rose gar
den. its depth of shade and wealth Of
bloom, its upas tree mot deadly, how
ever, as tradition has it, but quite in
nocent of any criminal intent), it's
winding ways and really moss grown
paths. and it's secluded little cemetery.
where rest those members of the fam
| lilies of the governors who died in the
/ island. No wonder Buitenzorg is the
Mecca of the botanist and the one
spot never neglected by even the cas-
ual tourist in the island.
Java reminds one of Japan in the
! appearance of its rice fields, it's cuIti-
waited hills and it's terraced mountain
sides. Though the island is diminutive
in area, containing a little less than
10000 square miles, half of which is
! tillable, the land is SO wisely used that
/ il supports a population Of $4,000, 900.
With so many mountains and with a
rainfall amounting to ten feet per an
mum in some places, the island has, as
might be expected, an abundance Of
springs and running streams, and
these make possible a very perfect
system of irrigation which has con-
verted Java into a vast garden Sugar
is the chief export. followed by tea,
coffee and copra, although rice is the
product to which most attention IS
given. It is the chief article of food,
and so much is required to support the
dense population that its importance
as a crop is not indicated by its place
in the table of exports.
AS traveller is more impressed by
the unusual things than by things
with which he is familiar. one who
visits Java Immediately notices the
numerous fruits peculiar to the island.
They have, here, all of the fruits US
ually found in tropical countries, and
several that are not found elsewhere.
The pineapple grows in perfection and
can be bought in the market for about
cent apiece. The Java orange is not
equal In taste or variety TO those of
California or Florida, but the banana
Of which there are more than hum