Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 05.djvu/925

* DASYURE. 801 DATE-SHELL. carnassial, the canines often beinp; large tusks, and there are eight large incisors in the upper jaw: and a c;peuni is lacking. Many of the dasj-ures are strong, fierce, cat-like iieasts of prey, scattered over Australia, New CJuinea, and especially prevalent in Tasmania, where, as also in soutlioastcrn Australia, they have become rare owing to the war made upon them by the colo- nists. All are mainly terrestrial and live in burrows. Prominent among these beasts is the t'lyla- cine. or Tasmanian zebra-wolf or pouched dog (Thi/lacinus cynocephnliis). It is very wolf-like in ajjpearanee, but somewhat smaller than the common wolf, with shorter hair, a long terete, comparatively smooth tail, and more rounded ears. Its color is grayish-brown, with the hinder part of the back and root of the tail barred with blackish stripes diminishing to points on the flanks. It dwells in rocky dens, .seeks its prey at night, and until reduced in numbers was a destructive pest to the flocks of sheep. Another is the ferocious Tasmanian devil (fiarcophiltis tirsinus), which is a heavy, power- ful, long-furred, almost black animal resembling a bear, but only about the size of a badger, and having a long, thick tail. It also is decidedly nocturnal, sleeping by day in some dark lair or burrow, and attacking sheep and lesser prey by night, nothing being safe from its strength and ferocity; but this pest is now nearly extermi- nated. On the continent of Australia several very cat-like or civet-like dasyures occur, of which the handsomest is the spotted 'native cat.' nearly as large as a house cat; but some of this genus (Dasyurus) are much smaller. To the genera Phascologale and its allies belong a variety of small insect-eating dasyures greatly resembling rats and mice in their appearance, and living mainly on insects, birds' eggs, etc. ; and another now very rare form (Antechinomt/s hinifjer) has much the form and appearance of a jerboa. Fi- nally there must be mentioned the banded ant- eater (Myrmecobiiis fasciatiis), "which derives its special interest from the circumstance that it -comes closer to some of the extinct marsupials of the Secondary rocks of Euro[)e than does any other living type." This animal is about the size of a squirrel, but has a viverrine form and long, somewhat Inishy. tail. In nuiny of the dasyures the pouch is rudimentary, but here the female has no pouch, "the young, when first born, being merely concealed by the long hair of the belly as they cling to the tents (four in num- ber)." Its teeth are all small and adapted to eating the insects that constitute its fare — mainlv ants and termites, which are gathered by the long and protrusile tongue. Hence it is found chiefly in the sandy plains of southern and western Australia, where it dwells in the hollows of ant-hills and similar retreats. Its general hue is white beneath, and on the upper part dark chestnut-red marked by broad trans- verse bars of white. See Mabsupialia; and Plate of Phalangers. DATE. See Calendar; Cukonology. DATE, and DATE-PALM (OF. dntc. dnfU. datille. Fr. daffe, from Lat. dactiihifi. Ok. ScJktdXos, dfiktiilos, finger, date: so called from the shape). The common liate of commerce is the fruit of the date-palm (Phcenix dactyUfera). Besides this there are several other species which bear fruits of more or less vahie. but none rank in imjMjr- tance with Plucnix dactylifera. This pkint is a native of tile southwest of .sia and the north- ern half of Africa, finding its most congenial home and most extensive ciiltivatiou in Arabia. The plant is also cultivated in China, in France, Italy, and, very sparingly as yet. in the United States. California, however, promises to be- come a conunercial date-prwlucing section. The date is borne on one of the tree-palms, although many of the representatives of the genus Pha-nix are low-growing plants. The date-palm is a tree ranging from 40 to 100 feet in height, bearing a dense head of pinnated leaves several feet in length. The plant is dioecious, the staminate flowers being borne on one plant, while the pistillate ones are borne by another individual. This peculiarity is well understood by the natives, who cut oil the stami- nate flower clusters and place them in the pistillate trees to insure fertilization. Since each tree reproduces its sex in the sjirouts or suckers from its base, date orchards or planta- tions are made up of the young plants taken from the roots of bearing trees, with only a suflicient number of staminate plants to insure fertilization. The date enjoys a hot, bright, sunny situation, thrives on soils too alkaline for other vegetation, Imt must hiive water within reach of its roots. The bearing age is reached in about eight years, and as the plants are long- lived and frequently bear as much as 300 to 500 pounds of fruit in a season when at full bearing, they become enormously profitable; in fact, the date is the chief source of wealth for Arabia, •and is used as the staple food by caraviins cross- ing the great desert. The fruit possesses a high food value, being chiefly composed of sugar, to- gether with pectin, gum, and proteids. The fruits are eaten both fresh and dried. The seeds when roasted form a substitute for cofTee, and when ground yield a valualile oil, as well as a pomace used as a cattle food. Beside these products the tree itself yields in its leaves materials for baskets and wiekerwork: the trunk yields a fibre from which twine and rope can be made: an edible bud known as 'palm calibage' is jiroduccd at the crown of the tree, and the wood is used for fencing and for the construction of light shelter. Besides these economic uses, the date-palm has long figured conspicuously in religious services among Jews and Christians, as well as among pagans. The palm-tree of the Scripture is I'hmiix dactyUfera, and Christ's triumiihal entry into Jerusalem is to this day celebrated on Palm Sunday. It has other symbolic meanings : to the Hebrews and Hellenes it stood as the symbol of beauty and of victory. See Plate of IIoxocotyledons. DATE LINE. See Ixternationai Date Line. DATE-PLTJM. See Peb.simmon. DATE-SHELL, or DATEFISH (so named from it^ sli:ipi>). (1) . sliell of a small bivalve mollusk or datefish of the genus Lithodonuis (or I.ithnphagus). closely allied to the horse-mussel (^Modiolus), which burrows deeply into calca- reous rocks, the sliells of larger molhisks, etc. One species {Lilhndomus lithophafius) abounds in the Mediterranean, and is of interest mainly because of its perforations of certain columns of