Oh, it was a most enchanting scene, and I thanked
God for having created such delightful spots for the use of man.
Now, while we were gazing around us in silent admiration, Jack uttered
an exclamation of surprise, and pointing to an object a little to one
side of us, said--
"That's a banyan tree."
"And what's a banyan tree?" inquired Peterkin, as we walked towards it.
"A very curious one, as you shall see presently," replied Jack. "It is
called the _aoa_ here, if I recollect rightly, and has a wonderful
peculiarity about it. What an enormous one it is, to be sure!"
_"It!"_ repeated Peterkin; "why, there are dozens of banyans here!
What do you mean by talking bad grammar? Is your philosophy deserting
you, Jack?"
"There is but one tree here of this kind," returned Jack, "as you will
perceive if you will examine it." And, sure enough, we did find that
what we had supposed was a forest of trees was in reality only one. Its
bark was of a light colour, and had a shining appearance, the leaves
being lance-shaped, small, and of a beautiful pea-green. But the
wonderful thing about it was, that the branches, which grew out from
the stem horizontally, sent down long shoots or fibres to the ground,
which, taking root, had themselves become trees, and were covered with
bark like the tree itself. Many of these fibres had descended from the
branches at various distances, and thus supported them on natural
pillars, some of which were so large and strong that it was not easy at
first to distinguish the offspring from the parent stem.
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