Natural-History Bit from West Australia.
Some time ago you asked for descriptions of wild flowers and fruits: I live in West Australia, so far north that we have flowers in our yard every month in the year. This past winter, during July especially, we had very cold weather for this part of Australia, yet our sarsaparilla grew well. It is of a lovely deep purple, and its flowers sometimes wholly cover a stiff stem eighteen inches long. In summer we have a flower called kangaroo's claw. It grows slowly, and has only one flower. Its slender stem looks like red plush. The flower resembles a man's hand held out to shake with you. The "fingers" are green, and, odd to say, there is always a pale green spot at the tips, that look like finger-nails.
We have a queer tree. It has pale green leaves, with prickly under leaves, and a cream flower that smells like Daphne. But the oddest thing about it is the fruit, which looks like luscious pears, but which is nothing but wood. Not a few people here send the fruit to their friends living in England, who use it to fool people with. The latter, if they do not know the fruit, can easily be induced to sit down with knife and plate to eat it. There is also here a Zamia palm. It looks like a huge pineapple, with a top like a close fern. The sprouts shoot up through the centre like two smaller pineapples. When the palm is opened one can scrape off from the inside very delicate wool, which country folks often use for beds in place of feathers. Cattle sometimes get hold of the wool and eat it, and it is most injurious to them. If the mails permitted, I would like to send you some of this wool.
Alicia Shaw.
Preston.