We remark that the
experienced persons who remove these precious sticks, layer by layer,
perform their office gingerly. There is not much danger or
unpleasantness in unpacking Dendrobes, compared with other genera, but
ship-rats spring out occasionally and give an ugly bite; scorpions and
centipedes have been known to harbour in the close roots of _D.
Falconerii_; stinging ants are by no means improbable, nor huge spiders;
while cockroaches of giant size, which should be killed, may be looked
for with certainty. But men learn a habit of caution by experience of
cargoes much more perilous. In those masses of _Arundina bambusaefolia_
beneath the table yonder doubtless there are centipedes lurking, perhaps
even scorpions, which have escaped the first inspection. Happily, these
pests are dull, half-stupefied with the cold, when discovered, and no
man here has been stung, circumspect as they are; but ants arrive as
alert and as vicious as in their native realm. Distinctly they are no
joke. To handle a consignment of _Epidendrum bicornutum_ demands some
nerve. A very ugly species loves its hollow bulbs, which, when
disturbed, shoots out with lightning swiftness and nips the arm or hand
so quickly that it can seldom be avoided. But the most awkward cases to
deal with are those which contain _Schomburghkia tibicinis_. This superb
orchid is so difficult to bloom that very few will attempt it; I have
seen its flower but twice.
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