Part 23 (1/2)
Caspar rather hastily took hold of one of the plants; and, plucking off the spike, held it to his nose, to see whether the flowers had any perfuay as hastily as he had seized it, and with an exclamation of terror turned towards his brother, into whose ar! Fortunately he had taken but a very slight ”sniff” of that dangerous perfuht have been laid up for days As it was he felt giddy for hours after
Now this singular plant the botanist Karl recognised at a glance It was a species of aconite, or wolf's-bane, and _very_ similar to the kindred species, _Aconitum napellus_, or ”monk's hood,” of Europe, whose roots furnish the most potent of poisons
The whole plant--leaves, flowers, and stem--is of a poisonous nature, but the roots, which resemble small turnips, contain the essence of the poison There are many species of the plant found in different parts of the world, and nearly a dozen kinds in the Himalaya Mountains themselves; but the one pointed out by Ossaroo was the _Aconitum ferox_ of botanists, the species from which the celebrated ”bikh” poison of the Hindoos is obtained
Ossaroo then proposed to poison the fish by throwing a sufficient quantity of the roots and stems of the plant into the lake
This proposal, however, was rejected by Karl, who very properly observed, that although by that ht obtain a plentiful supply of fish, they would destroy more than they could use at the time, and perhaps leave none for the future Karl had already begun to talk about a ”future” to be spent on the shores of this lovely lake The belief that theyshape in the ive expression to such sad is
Karl tried to be cheerful, as he saw that Caspar was gay
”Come,” said he, ”let us not mind the fish to-day I own that fish is usually the first course, but go along with ot I aetting tired of broiledwith it Here I dare say we shall find both; for whether it be due to the birds, or its peculiar climate--or a little to both most likely--our valley has a flora such as you can only arden Come then! let us see e can find for the pot”
So saying Karl led the way, followed by Caspar, Ossaroo, and the faithful Fritz
”Look up there!” said the botanist, pointing to a tall pine that grew near ”See those large cones Inside thee as pistachio-nuts, and very good to eat By roasting them, we can make an excellent substitute for bread”
”Ha, indeed!” exclaie cones!
They are as big as artichokes What sort of pine is it, brother?”
”It is one of the kind known as the 'edible pines,' because their seeds are fit for food It is the species called by botanists _Pinus Gerardiana_, or the 'neosa' pine There are pines whose seeds are eatable in other parts of the world, as well as in the Himalaya Mountains,--for instance, the _Pinus cehik' of japan, the 'Lambert' pine of California, and several species in New Mexico, known a the people as 'pinon' trees So you perceive that besides their valuable ti of their pitch, turpentine, and resin--the family of the pines also furnishes food to the huet some bread fro, Karl continued on in the direction of the lake
”There again!” said he, pointing to a gigantic herbaceous plant, ”rhubarb, you see!”
It was, in fact, the true rhubarb, which groild aed leaves, contrasting with its tall pyra and beautiful of herbaceous plants Its large acid stems--which are hollow and full of pure water--are eaten by the natives of the Himalayas, both raw and boiled, and its leaves when dried are srew near, which Ossaroo said produced ood authority, since he had already dried so them ever since their arrival in the valley In fact, Ossaroo was quite out of betel-nut, and suffered so lad to get any thing to smoke; and the ”chula,”
or wild rhubarb-leaves, answered his purpose well Ossaroo's pipe was an original one certainty; and he could construct one in a few minutes
His plan was to thrust a piece of stick into the ground, passing it underneath the surface--horizontally for a few inches, and then out again--so as to form a double orifice to the hole At one end of this channel he would insert a small joint of reed for his mouth-piece, while the other was filled with the rhubarb tobacco, which was then set on fire It was literally turning the earth into a tobacco-pipe!
Thisthe half-civilised inhabitants of India as well as Africa, and Ossaroo preferred a pipe of this kind to any other
Karl continued onward, pointing out to his coetables which the valley contained There ild leeks a soup There were fruits too,--several species of currants, and cherries, and strawberries, and raspberries,--kinds that had long been introduced to European gardens, and that to Karl and Caspar looked like old acquaintances
”And there!” continued Karl, ”see the very water produces food for us
Look at the lotus, (_Nelue pink and white flowers are the flowers of the famed lotus Its stalks may be eaten, or, if you will, their hollow tubes will serve us as cups to drink, out of There, too, is the horned water root (_Trapa bicornis_), also excellent eating Oh! we should be thankful We are well provided with food”
Yet the heart of Karl was sore while thus endeavouring to talk cheerfully
CHAPTER FORTY FIVE
NEW SURVEY OF THE CLIFF
Yes, the hearts of all three were far froh they returned to the hut laden with fruits, and roots, and nuts, and vegetables; out of which they intended to concoct a better dinner than they had been lately accustomed to