The Malay archipelago : the land of the orang-utan ... - Wallace Online

;XVII.] CELEBES. 191had. been accustomed to see them on the low grounds, bothprobably attributable to the almost perpetual moisture thathere prevails. Abundance of a tasteless raspberry, with blueand yellow Composita?, have somewhat of a temperate aspectand minute ferns and Orchide*, with dwarf Begonias on therocks, make some approach to a sub-alpine vegetation. Theforest however is most luxuriant. Noble palms, Pandani, andtree-ferns are abundant in it, while the forest trees are completelyfestooned with Orcliidea?, Bromelise, Aracefe, Lycopodiums,and mosses. The ordinary stemless ferns abound ;somewith gigantic fronds ten or twelve feet long, others barely aninch high ; some with entire and massive leaves, others elegantlywaving their finely-cut foliage, and adding endless variety andinterest to the forest paths. The cocoa-nut palm still producesfruit abundantly, but is said to be deficient in oil. Orangesthrive better than below, jiroducing abundance of deliciousfruit ; but the shaddock or pumplemous (Citrus decumana)requires the full force of a tropical sun, for it will not thriveeven at Tondano a thousand feet lower. On the hilly slopesrice is cultivated largely, and ripens well, altliough tlietemperature rarely or never rises to 80^, so that one wouldthink it might be grown even in England in fine summers,especially if the young plants were raised under glass.Tiie mountains liave an unusual quantity of earth or vegetablemould spread over them. Even on the steepest slopesthere is everywhere a covering of clays and sands, and generallya good thickness of vegetable soil. It is this which perhapscontributes to the uniform luxuriance of the forest, and delaysthe appearance of that sub-alpine vegetation which dependsalmost as much on the abundance of rocky and exposed surfacesas on difierence of climate. At a much lower elevation on MountOphir in Malacca, Dacrydiums and Rhododendrons with abundanceof Nepenthes, ferns, and terrestrial orchids suddenly tookthe place of the lofty forest ; but this was plainly due to tlieoccurrence of an extensive slope of bare gi'anitic rock at anelevation of less than 3,000 feet. The quantity of vegetablesoil, and also of loose sands and clays, resting on steep slopes,hill-tops and the sides of ravines, is a curious and importantphenomenon. It may be due in part to constant slight earthquakeshocks, facilitating tlie disintegration of rock ; but wouldalso seem to indicate that the country has been long exposedto gentle atmospheric action, and tliat its elevation has beenexceedingly slow and continuous.During my stay at Rurukan my curiosity was satisfied byexperiencing a pretty sharp earthquake-shock. On the eveningof June 29th, at a quarter after eight, as I was sitting reading,the house began shaking with a very gentle, but rapidly increasingmotion. I sat still enjoying the novel sensation forsome seconds ; but in less than half a minute it became strongenough to shake me in my chair, and to make tlie house visibly