USA > Indiana > St Joseph County > History of St. Joseph County, Indiana > Part 30
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Many reptiles found here are erroneonsly called lizards, but are salamanders and other like innocent creatures. Lizards are never found in this county. The so-called " water lizards " are newts, or Tritons. Among the tortoises or turtles are found the map turtle, the snapping and the soft-shelled turtle. Of the batrachian, or naked reptiles, there are a few, and, though loatlisome to sight and touch, are harmless. The toad, the bull-frog, the leopard-frog, the tree-toad, with some tailed batrachia, comprise the most of this order. The bull-frog is often as large as a man's head, or larger, and his deep bellowing can be heard for a mile or more.
Fishes .- Althongh fishes are the lowest class of vertebrates, their varied forms and colors, which often rival those of precious stones and burnished gold, the wonderful power and velocity of some, the wholesome food furnished by many, and the exciting sport of their capture, combine to render fishes subjects of great interest to the casnal observer, as well as to the amateur and professional natural- ist. The number of known species of fishes is about ten thousand. The waters of this country are quite prolific of the finny tribe. The commerce in fish has become quite extensive along some of the and lakes. The Sickle-backed family furnishes the game fish, and are never caught larger than four pounds in weight. The varions genera found here are the black bass, goggle-eye, the croppy, or big black sun- tish, and the two common sun-fish. There are but two species of the Pike family,-the pickerel, weighing from five to twenty-five pounds, and the gar pike. Of the Sucker family are the buffalo, red-horse, white-sucker, two species of black- suckers and mullet ranick. Fish of this family are found in all the streams of the county. They abound wherever there is water. Of the Cat-fish family the channel cat-fish, the inud cat-fish and two species of the small cat-fish inhabit the waters of this county, and are caught ranging in weight from one to thirty ponnds. The bull-head is yet abundant, and its flesh, as well as its general appearance, resembles that of the cat-fish.
Besides these varieties there are the chub, silver-sides and fresh- water herring, and large numbers of other species denominated minnows, which are found in the smallest spring branches, as well as the larger streams.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPHI COUNTY.
BOTANY.
This county is favorably sitnated for the production of a great variety of interesting plants. Out of abont 2,400 species of flower- ing plants in the United States, abont 1,600 can be found within the limits of this State, and about 1,000 within this county. In the following list we will enumerate only the most common and remarkable, growing spontaneously in this county; and we give the English names from Gray's Manual, fifth edition, being well aware that most localities have different names for many plants, and that even in the books some English names are given to two or more plants, as sycamore, button snakeroot, black snakeroot, goose-grass, hair-grass, loosestrife, etc.
Crowfoots .- Common virgin's bower, a vine, is occasionally found: the leather-flower, a cultivated vine bearing large, blue flowers, is of the same genus. The Pennsylvanian, Virginian and wood anem- ones occur here and there. Liver-leaf ("liver-wort") is common on forest hillsides. Rne anemone, and the early, the purplish and the tall meadow-rues are common in the woods. The true butter- eups of the East are not found here, but the most common flower corresponding to them is the creeping crowfoot. The small- flowered, the hooked, the bristly and the early crowfoots also occur. Isopyrum grows in moist, shady places. Marsh marigold is com- mon in early spring, growing in mud supplied with fresh water: in the East they are called "cowslips" and sometimes used for greens. Water plantain spearwort, growing in mud, and yellow water crow- foot, growing in water and with the submersed leaves finely divided, are seen occasionally. Wild columbine, so easily recognized by its resemblance to the cultivated species, abounds in the margins of the woods ; so also two species of wild larkspur. Yellow puccoon is very scarce. White baneberry is occasionally seen in the deep woods.
Custard-Apple Family .- The papaw is common. This is a fragile bush, with large leaves, bearing fruit about the size and appearance of short, thick, green cucumbers, which have a pulp like the banana. To "learn" to like thein one must merely taste of them at times far apart.
Moonseed .- Canadian moonseed is abundant in the woods. It is a smooth, twining vine like the morning-glory, with a beautiful, ronnd, yellow root, which has a tonie-bitter taste, and is sometimes called sarsaparilla. The true wild sarsaparilla belongs to the Gin- seng family.
Barberry Family .- May-apple, or mandrake, is abundant, and blue cohosh somewhat rare.
Water Lilies .- The pond, or white water lily, is abundant in large. open ponds in the river bottoms, and the yellow water, or frog lily, growing in shallow, stagnant water, is common. The vellow nelumbo, a similar plant, is sometimes found.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
Poppy Family .- The well-known blood-root is the only repre- sentative of this family growing wild in this county.
Fumitory Family .- The celebrated Dutchman's breeches is common, and squirrel-corn is sometimes found. Bleeding heart is of the same genus.
Mustards .- Marsh cress is common; lake cress, growing in water, is sometimes seen; and horse-radish flourishes beyond the bounds of cultivation. Pepper-root, an early-flowering plant, is common in the dense forest. Two varieties of spring cress are fre- quent. Two species of the delicate little rock cress and Arabis dentata are also frequent. Hedge mustard is the most common mustard-like weed that grows on cultivated and waste grounds. Tansy mustard is rare. Black mustard, the type of this family, flourishes on cultivated and waste grounds. . White mustard is very rare at the present day. Shepherd's purse is abundant early in the season,-a weed everywhere: its seed-pod is triangular, somewhat inflated, and in shape. resembles a shepherd's purse of the olden time. Wild peppergrass is common in late summer: seed-pods, wafer-form. Whitlow grass grows in sandy ground. To the Mustard family belong the radish, turnip and cabbage of our gardens.
Caper Family .- Polanisia, a fetid pod-bearing plant, is common on sandy ground, and is extending along the railroads where sand and gravel are deposited. Cleome pungens, or spider-flower, is escaping from cultivation.
Violets .- Common blue violet is abundant, the other kinds more rare, namely, hand-leaf, arrow-leaved, larkspur, bird-foot, downy yellow, etc. Heart's-ease belongs to this order.
Rock-Roses .- Frost-weed grows in sandy soil, and pin-weed on dry ground. Hudsonia, the smallest shrub in the country, grows on some of the sandy hills.
Sundews .- Round-leaved sundew is common in some places.
St. John's-worts .- Several species are found in this county.
Pinks .- Starry campion, sleepy catchfly, corn cockle, sandwort, long-leaved stitchwort and forked chickweed are found here and there. Common chickweed and three species of mouse-ear chick- weed and bouncing bet are more cominon. Carpet weed is common on the sand; it grows in the form of a bunchy lamp-mat.
Purslanes .- Akin to the beautiful portulaca is our universal purslane, often called "pursley." Spring beauty belongs to this family. It is one of the earliest spring flowers, and may be distin- guished by the plant's having but two leaves, long and narrow and somewhat fleshy. The flower is a light rose color, with deeper veins.
Mallows Family .- Common, or low mallows and velvet-leaf, or Indian mallows are very abundant. The latter is a tall, pestiferons weed about our fields, with seed-vessels resembling poppy-bolls. Sida and bladder ketmia, or flower of an hour, are common. To this order belong the hollyhock and okra, in cultivation.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
Linden .- Bass-wood, known as lin among Southern people, is the only member of this family growing liere.
Geranium Family .- Wild crane's-bill is common in early spring, having a solitary, rose-colored flower on the summit. Carolina crane's-bill is rather rare. Spotted and pale touch-me-nots are com- mnon in moist, shaded places, growing in dense patches. The bal- samine of cultivation is of the same genus. Yellow wood-sorrel is everywhere, and here and there the violet wood-sorrel prevails to some extent. This is erroneously called "sheep-sorrel." Sheep, or field-sorrel, grows on sandy or gravely ground, has lance-shaped and pointed leaves, obscure flowers, and seeds like pie-plant or yellow- dock, while wood-sorrel grows mostly in clay soil, has three leaflets like clover, showy flowers, and seeds in a pod. The two sorrels be- long to different orders, but have a similar taste.
Rueworts .- The northern prickly ash, a common shrub in our woods, but growing scarcer, and the still rarer hop-tree, are the only members of this family in this county. Garden rue is of the same order, or family.
Cashew Family .- In America this would seem to be rather the sumac family. The smooth sumac is common everywhere, fragrant sumac abundant in sandy ground, and poison ivy is common along fences-some places abundant. The latter is a coarse, woody vine with innumerable rootlets, and has three leaflets to each leaf, with these leaflets sometimes partly divided. When the plant is young it can be distinguished from box-elder by the latter having a white " bloom " on the stem, and at all times it can be distinguished from Virginia creeper (American ivy, an innocent plant) by the latter having five leaflets to each leaf, and the whole leaf in shape like that of buckeye. Poison, dwarf and stag-liorn sumacs are common in some places.
Vine Family, that is, the Grape-vine family .- Virginia creeper, just described, is as abundant as any weed. The winter, or frost- grape and the northern fox-grape are common, but the summer grape, a delicious fruit, is very scarce, if indeed it can be found at all in this county. It used to be abundant, but the vines have been destroyed by reckless grape gatherers.
Buckthorn Family .- The noted red-root, or New Jersey tea, a shrub in the margin of prairies, and to some extent in all other sit- uations, is the only representative of this family here, and it is be- coming rarer by the encroachments of cultivation and pasturage. The leaves make very good tea.
Staff-tree Family .- The climbing bittersweet and waahoo are all there are of this family in our limits. The foriner is a smooth, woody vine, common in the woods, climbing by simply twining, and bearing orange-colored berries in clusters, often called wax- work, and used in ornamentation. This vine is often called simply bittersweet, but the true medical bittersweet is a very different plant, scarcely a vine at all, and not growing wild in this county. The waahoo, or burning-bush, is a real bush of about the size and
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
proportions of a plum-tree; its twigs have four white lines, and its crimson fruit in autumn after the leaves have fallen is very showy. The flowers are dark purple. Strawberry-bush is rare.
Soapberry Order includes the Maple, Bladdernut and Soapberry (proper) families. Of the maples the most common are the sugar, the red and the white. The latter are the soft maples. Box-elder is sometimes called ash-leaved maple, and belongs to this family. The American bladdernut is a tree-like shrub about 10 feet high, producing large three-lobed, inflated seed pods. Two species of buck-eye are common in the river bottoms.
Milkworts .- Seneca snakeroot and four other species of milkwort are found in this region.
Pulse Family .- This large family is characterized by having seeds in pods like beans and peas, which are members of the family. The first in the list, according to the books, are the clovers-red and white. Two other species of this genus occur, indeed, but are too rare to enumerate here. Then the white sweet clover, more recently escaped from cultivation; then two species of prairie clover, almost extinct. Goat's rue, false indigo (Amorpha) and lead plant abound on dry, sandy loam in river bottoms. The common locust was introduced here, but this is too far north for it to be hardy enough to withstand our winds and the borer. A honey-locast occurs here and there. One milk vetch is frequent. Six species of tick trefoil abound and nine others occur. These are those plants in the woods bearing " pods" of triangular, flat burs. Five species of bush clover are found here. Three vetches (tares) and four marslı vetchlings, ground nut, kidney bean, false indigo (Baptisia) and wild senna are found here and there. Hog peanut, called wild pea or bean by some, abounds everywhere in the woods. Red-bnd is an ugly little tree except in the spring before the leaves appear, when the whole top is of a beautiful purplish-red from the blos- soms. Partridge pea is abundant "in spots," grows like a weed in low places, 20 inches to two feet high, has leaves like a locust, and bears a very large, yellow flower. The sensitive plant may be found within the bounds of this county, but if so, it is very scarce. The Kentucky coffee-tree is rare. It is famous for its beautiful com- pound leaves and glossy beans.
Rose Family .- Most of our edible fruits come from this family of trees and herbs, as the apple, peach, plum, cherry, strawberry, etc. The wild pluin (yellow or red) is becoming very scarce; the wild red cherry is always rare; the wild black cherry is abundant; choke-cherry is a shrub occasionally found; dwarf cherry is com- mon on sandy ridges; nine-bark and goat's-beard are species of spiræa frequently found ; common meadow sweet and Canadian burnet, rare; agrimony is a coarse herb occasionally seen, having leaves resembling those of the strawberry, and bearing a kind of drooping bur, -a plant about two feet high. One species of avens is very common, and four other species are found. Common cinqne- foil, or five-finger, resembles the strawberry very closely, and
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
abounds in dry soil; Norwegian cinquefoil has similar leaves, but the plant is coarse and grows three feet high,-not common; silvery and several other species of cinquefoil are also found. One species of wild strawberry abounds in retired situations; it was common over the original prairie. The high blackberry and the raspberry prevail here as elsewhere, but their sylvan territory is narrowed to close limits by the encroachments of man; the low blackberry, or dewberry, and the running swamp blackberry also occur; the dwarf raspberry grows only a foot or two high. Of the roses proper, the dwarf wild rose is the most common, but its territory has also become very limited; the "early wild " rose may be found. Three species of red haw (hawthorn) occur; the black, or pear, thorn is the most common, then the scarlet-frnited thorn, and lastly the cockspur thorn. The crab apple and choke berry are well known. Several varieties of June berry are common.
Saxifrages .- Two or three species of gooseberry are common; three species of currant grow here; and swamp saxifrage and two species of alum-root are sometimes met with. Mitre-wort, or bishop's cap, is common, flowering in early spring; this is an inter- esting little plant.
Orpine Family. - Ditch stone-crop is common during wet seasons; can occasionally be found in the ditches during dry sea- sons; mossy stone-crop has escaped from cultivation to gravelly roadsides, etc .; one other species of stone-crop occurs.
Witch Hazel is abundant, flowering in late autumn.
Water-Milfoil .- Two species.
Evening Primroses .- Common evening primrose, enchanter's nightshade and two species of willow-herb are common. Seed- box, water-purslean and sun-drops are found here and there.
Melastoma Family .- Deer-grass, or meadow-beauty is a modest little purple-flowered plant growing in sandy swamps.
Loosestrife Family .- One species of Ammannia, one of Lyth- rum, one of swamp loosestrife (Nesaea) and clammy Cuphea are not infrequent.
Cactus Family .-- One species common on sandy ridges.
Gourd Family .- Wild balsam apple is a common vine, well known, and in heavily wooded river bottoms one-seeded cucumber occurs.
Parsley Family .- This family is characterized by having their seed-bearing tops like those of parsnips. Most of the poisonous plants growing in this country belong to this family. Two species of black snakeroot prevail in this county; water pennywort, poly- tænia, cowbane, meadow parsnip, spotted cowbane (two species), rattlesnake master, water parsnip (two species), chervil and poison hemlock occur here and there, while smoother and hairy sweet cicely are abundant; even garden parsnip is becoming a common weed in open, protected places. Of the whole family the most poisonous are the spotted cowbane and poison hemlock. Cow pars- nip is the largest plant of this order, and grows in shaded bottom lands.
350
HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
Ginseng Family .- Ginseng, on account of its popular medical qualities, has been pretty well thinned out; dwarf ginseng, or ground-nut, is a modest little plant flowering in April. The true wild sarsaparilla (a plant of the appearance of a large ginseng) is sometimes found, and spikenard is common in the forest ravines.
Dogwoods .- The most common dogwood is the white-berried, or panicled cornel, next the rough-leaved, the alternate-leaved, the flowering, the silky, red-osier, dwarf and round-leaved. Pepperidge, a middle-sized tree, occurs here and there.
Honeysuckles .- Common elder and yellow honeysuckle are com- mon. Ilorse gentian, or fever-wort, is a forest weed bearing five to ten yellow berries in a circle around the stem at every place where the two opposite leaves are attached. The true black haw is scarce, but sheep-berry, which is generally called black haw, is common. Two species of arrow-wood and the cranberry tree occur here and there.
Madder Family .- The small bedstraw, two species of the rough and the northern bed-straw are abundant, and the sweet-scented is common, while occasionally may be found cleavers, or goose-grass. Wild liquorice occurs rarely. These herbs are all of a flax-like appearance, having several beautiful little leaves in a whorl at each joint. Button bush is common in wet ground. Partridge-berry is common further north.
Composites .- This order is by far the largest of all. Its flowers are compound, that is, there are several, sometimes many, small flowers crowded close together in a head, as sunflower, lettuce, dandelion, aster, chrysanthemum, May-weed, etc. Their time of flowering is generally late in the season,
Iron-weed is common on flat ground; its summit in August is a beautiful royal purple. Four species of button snakeroot (one called also blazing star) are abundant on protected original prairie, and occur nowhere else. Five species of thoroughwort grow here, that called boneset being abundant. The species called trumpet, or Joe-Pye wced, is a tall, interesting weed, with 3 to 6 leaves in each whorl, that is, at each joint. Kuhnia is not rare; it resembles boneset. Mist-flower grows in our limits. Of the asters there are about 30 species growing within this county; about half of them are very common. The flowers have a starry appearance; hence the name. The most remarkable of them is the New England aster, a large purple flower along the roadsides in September. Five species of fleabane, similar to the asters in appearance, are common, namely : horseweed, which is abundant on waste and cultivated grounds, Robin's plantain, common fleabane, and two daisy flea- banes, one of them called also sweet scabious. About 20 species of golden-rod can be found in this county, only half of them com- mon, however. The most abundant is the Solidago Canadensis. From these much honey is made by bees in September. Four species of rosin-weed used to prevail on the original prairie, but their territory is very limited at the present day. The most noted
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
of them has dvided leaves, and is also called compass plant, or polar plant, theleaves having once been thought to point north and south. They do indeed stand with their faces somewhat parallel, but they are just as apt to have their edges toward other points of the compass. One species of rosin-weed has undivided leaves, large and rough, and is called prairie dock. This and the compass plant flourish on flat prairie soil which is not pastured. The species called cup-plant grows along the banks of channeled sloughs. The leaves join together at the base so as to form a cup. It is a very large weed. Parthenium, a similar plant, is not rare. Rag- weed is the most common weed we have along the roadsides; ealled also hogweed, Roman wormwood, etc. Great ragweed is the largest weed that grows in this country : common along fences. Cockle- bur is on the increase. Ox-eye, Lepachys and six species of cone- flower are almost common. Six species of wild sunflower flourish along fences in unfrequented situations. They are tall weeds, but not troublesome. One kind has tuberous roots, and is really an artichoke. Three species of tickseed occur in this county. The true Spanish needle does not grow here, but three species of its genns abound here, especially during wet seasons, namely, common and swamp beggar ticks and the larger bur-marigold. The smaller bur-marigold is found in shallow running water. Fetid marigold is abundant in dry situations along the wagon roads. When struck, even lightly, it yields a rank, aromatic odor; called also false dog- fennel. Sneeze-weed, which looks somewhat like a Spanish needle, is abundant during wet seasons and exceedingly scarce at other times. May-weed, or dog fennel, every one is familiar with. So with yarrow. The ox-eye daisy or white-weed, a vexatious weed in the East, is just beginning to creep in along the railroads. Biennial wormwood is a common but harmless weed in waste places. Com- mon and plantain-leaved everlasting are common. Fire-weed, abun- dant. Golden rag-wort, several species of hawkweed and Cynthia here and there. The famous Canada thistle is seldom seen; the common thistle abounds more and more. Two other species are common, growing very tall. Burdock and dandelion are abun- dant. Wild lettuce and false or blne lettuce are common milky weeds, growing very tall. Two species of sow thistle, compara- tively harmless, are modestly on the increase.
Lobelias .- The celebrated medical lobelia, or Indian tobacco, flourishes along our garden fences. The great lobelia, or blue ear- dinal flower, is abundant in moist ground. The cardinal flower is the most showy, dazzling-red flower we have growing wild: found in wet ground and on the banks of sloughs. A small and slender species of lobelia is common in protected situations.
Campanula or Bellflower Family .- The tall bellflower is com- mon. Venus's looking-glass is found here and there. "Blue-bells " do not belong here; they are the smooth lungwort, belonging to the Borage family.
Holly .- Mountain holly is common in places.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
Heaths .- Large and small cranberry, black huckleberry, and dwarf, low and swamp blueberries are found here, the first three in swamps. Creeping snowberry (in peat bogs), bearberry in sandy ground, creeping wintergreen, shin leaf, sheep laurel, Labrador tea, Indian pipe and pipsissewa are occasionally found.
Plantain Family .- The common plantain of our door-yards. Two other species of this family may occur in this county, but they are exceedingly rare.
Primrose .- Several species of loosestrife (Lysimachia), chickweed, wintergreen and one or two pimpernels occur. Moneywort is com- mon about some door-yards.
Bladderworts .- Greater bladderwort, in ponds, is very common.
Figworts. - Mullein, toad-flax ("butter-and-eggs "), fig-wort, beard-tongue, two species of Gerardia, two species of louse-wort and cow-wheat are common, while monkey-flower, hedge hyssop, false pimpernel, purslane, Culver's root, water, marsh, purslane, common and corn speedwell and bluc-hearts are sometimes seen. Toad-flax has persistent roots like witeh-grass and threatens to become a pest. The snap-dragon of our gardens is a fig-wort.
Vervains. -- Verbenas belong to this order. The most abun- dant plant belonging to this family and growing wild is the hoary vervain; next are the bracted (prostrate), the white or nettle- leaved, and the blue. They all prefer dry, waste grounds, and are much inclined to hybridize. Fog-fruit is abundant in sandy ground along the rivers. Lopseed is common in woods.
Mints .- Common are wood sage, or American germander, wild mint, bugle-weed, American pennyroyal, and hedge nettle (two species). Motherwort, catnip, heal-all, and wild mint are abundant. Here and there are water horehound, mountain mint, horse-mint, calaminth, Blephilia, (two species), giant hyssop (two species), false dragon head, or lion's heart, mad-dog skullcap and one other species of skullcap. Ground ivy, or gill-over-the-ground, is abundant about dwellings. What is generally called " horse-mint " in the West is " wild bergamot" according to the books. Wild mint is often taken for peppermint. True peppermint, spearinint, and horehound are scarce within our limits. Salvia, sage and Mexican sage are eultivated plants belonging to this order.
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