Sidebilder
PDF
ePub

66

lowing in her wake, gleaning their scanty pittance of food from the rough and whirling surges. Habited in mourning, and making their appearance generally in greater numbers previous to, or during a storm, they have long been fearfully regarded by the ignorant and superstitious, not only as the foreboding messengers of tempests and dangers to the hapless mariner, but as wicked agents, connected, somehow or other, in creating them. "Nobody," as sailors say, can tell anything of whence they come." This mysterious uncertainty of their origin, and the circumstance above recited, have, doubtless, given rise to the opinion, so prevalent among this class of men, that they are, in some way or other, connected with the prince of the power of the air. In every country where they are known, their names have borne some affinity to this belief. They have been called witches, stormy petrels, the Devil's birds, and Mother Carey's chickens; and their unexpected and numerous appearance has frequently thrown a momentary damp over the mind of the hardiest seaman. It is the business of the naturalist, and the glory of philosophy, to examine into the reality of these things; to dissipate the clouds of error and superstition wherever they darken and bewilder the human understanding; and to illustrate nature with the radiance of truth.

As well might the mariners curse the midnight lighthouse, that, star-like, guides them on their watery way; or the buoy that warns them of the sunken rocks below, as this harmless wanderer, whose manner informs them of the approach of the storm, and thereby enables them to prepare for it. The petrels are nocturnal birds. When, therefore, they are seen flying about and feeding by day, the fact appears to indicate that they have been driven from their usual quarters by. a storm; and hence, perhaps, arose the association of the bird with the tempest. When they cannot, then, find an island or a rock to shield them from the blast, they fly towards the first ship they can descry, crowd into her wake, and even close under the stern: heedless, it would appear, of the rushing surge, so that they can keep the vessel between them and the unbroken sweep of the wind. It is not surprising in such cases that their low, wailing note of weet, weet, should add something supernatural to the roar of the waves and whistling of the

wind, and infuse an ominous dread into minds prone to superstition.-Wilson.

THE CEYLON LEECH.

THERE is an animal in Ceylon, less dreaded than the snakes, though much more troublesome, and the cause of the loss of more life, than all the rest. I allude to the leech.

This animal varies much in its dimensions. The largest are seldom more than half an inch long, in a state of rest; the smallest are minute indeed. It is broadest behind, and tapers toward the fore-part: above, it is roundish ; below, flat. Its colour varies from brown to light brown; it is more generally the latter, and rarely dark brown. It is marked with three yellow lines, extending from one extremity to the other; one dorsal and central; the others lateral. The substance of this animal is nearly half transparent; and in consequence, its internal structure may be seen pretty distinctly.

The leech is a very active animal. It moves with great rapidity; and is said at times to spring. Its powers of contraction and expansion are very great. When fully extended, it is like a fine cord; and its point is so sharp, that it readily makes its way through very small openings. It is supposed to have a quick sense of smelling; for no sooner does a person stop where leeches abound, than they appear to crowd eagerly to the spot from all quarters.

It is

The animal is peculiar to those parts of Ceylon which are subject to frequent showers, and is, therefore, unknown in those districts which have a long dry season. most abundant among the mountains; not on the highest ranges, where the temperature appears to be too low for it; but on those which do not exceed two or three thousand feet above the level of the sea. It delights in shady damp places, and is to be seen on most leaves and stones, more frequently than in water. In dry weather, it retires into the close damp jungles, and only in rainy weather quits its cover, and infests the pathways and open parts of the country.

Those who have had no experience of these animals, of

their immense numbers in their favourite haunts, of their activity, keen appetite, and love of blood, can have no idea of the kind and extent of annoyance they are to travellers in the interior of the island, of which they may be truly said to be the plague. In rainy weather it is almost shocking to see the legs of men on a long march, thickly beset with them gorged with blood, and the blood trickling down in streams. It might be supposed that there would be little difficulty in keeping them off: but this is a very mistaken notion; for they crowd to the attack, and fasten on quicker than they can be removed. I do not exaggerate, when I say, that I have at times seen at least fifty of them on a person at a time.

Their bites, too, are much more troublesome than could be imagined, being very apt to fester, and become sores; and in persons of a bad habit of body, to degenerate into very great ulcers, which, in too many instances, have occasioned the loss of limb, and even of life.

The instant a leech fastens on, an acute pain is generally felt, like that produced by the bite of the medicinal leech. A few hours after the bite, the surrounding skin becomes slightly inflamed, and itching of a very tormenting kind commonly occurs, producing such a desire to scratch, that few persons have resolution to resist, though well aware of its aggravating effect. This itching may continue several days, till the wound has either healed or ulcerated.

The only way to defend the skin from them entirely is to wear a particular kind of dress. Half boots and tight pantaloons, or short boots and long loose trousers tucked into the boots, or trousers and stockings of a piece, will answer pretty well. It was natural to suppose that the same end might be attained by the use of applications to the skin, disagreeable to the leech. Trial has been made of a great variety. Those which seemed to have the best effect were oil, particularly castor oil, the infusion of tobacco, lime-juice, and the infusion of any astringent bark, of which there are several kinds in the woods in the interior. One or other of these has often been employed with advantage; but, unfortunately, none of them are effectual when their aid is most required; as on long marches, in rainy weather, through a country abounding

in streams, without bridges, and covered with jungle, penetrated merely by pathways: under such circumstances, even oily applications are soon rubbed and washed off, and the limbs left defenceless. The treatment of leechbites, that is most successful in preventing bad consequences, is simple and easily practised. The limbs, immediately on arriving at the end of a journey, should be bathed in hot water; and the bathing should be repeated twice a-day till the wounds are healed.—Davy's Account of Ceylon.

THE REIN-DEER.

THE history of the rein-deer is particularly identified with the history of Lapland and the Laplanders; and we should be almost disposed to query, whether in such a history the quadrupeds would not be the most prominent and interesting objects. This species of the deer tribe is found in most mountainous countries of high northern latitudes; abounding, in great numbers, in the arctic regions, where it is found in a wild state; but in Lapland, where the animal is so completely identified with all the wants and wishes of the people, as to the present life, there are few of this class remaining. The rein-deer attains to as large a size as the stag, in those countries where it is found in a wild state; but in Lapland it is scarcely so large as the fallow deer. The horns of the males are four feet and upwards in length; but upon the females, the only species in which the females have horns, they are not so large. This is a kind provision of the God of nature and of providence, to clothe the whole herd of rein-deer with horns, which, in these cold and snow-clad regions, are so useful, in procuring their food, by clearing away the snow, and for many other valuable purposes.

The rein-deer, like the elk, wants that ease and elegance of form so distinctive of the tribe; the neck is short; the head carried in a line with the back; the legs are short and strong, and the hoofs are very broad and expansive; presenting thus a broader surface, to prevent the animal from sinking in the snows. The hair is extremely close and woolly; forming an effectual covering

clothed in it, might sleep the rigour of

from the cold. Indeed, it is said, that so warm is the skin of the rein-deer, that any one who is and has a blanket of the same material, upon the snow with perfect safety, under all an arctic winter's night.

Rein-deer, as most of the deer kind do, swim with a great deal of ease; being so buoyant, that half their bodies appear above the water; their broad feet enabling them to strike with so great a force, that they swim against the strongest currents, and across the broadest rivers, so fast, that a well-manned boat can scarcely keep pace with them. When attacked, they strike downwards with their horns; but do not gore. Their kick is violent, and they successfully repel the savage wolf; but it is said, that their greatest enemy is the glutton, that drops upon them from a tree, under which they are grazing or reposing, unconscious of danger. During the summer months, the rein-deer suffer most from the attacks of insects; to avoid which, they migrate regularly to the sea-shore, or to the mountains. These seasons are attended to by the Laplanders, who go and return with them in their periodical removals from place to place. Those who are considered rich persons, in Lapland, have as many as two thousand head of rein-deer; and the poor seldom have less than a hundred each. They are gregarious, and very attached and subservient to each other and to him who has the management of them. There is, generally, an old male deer in every herd, which all the rest follow with remarkable docility.

For almost all purposes of draught, the rein-deer are invaluable to the Laplander. They possess great strength for their size, and are remarkably sure-footed, even where the feet of other animals would be most exposed to slide; whilst their quickness of scent serves to direct their course, with remarkable precision, along the most dangerous and difficult roads, and in the darkest seasons. The strength, fleetness, and sagacity of these deer are remarkably exhibited in drawing the sledges of the Laplanders over the extended, snow-clad, trackless regions they inhabit. The lives of the Laplanders are committed, with wonderful confidence and carelessness, to these faithful animals, during a journey of hundreds of miles; and that trust is never violated, and it is very seldom

« ForrigeFortsett »