THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 



355 



Lastly comes the stalk, composed of a stem bulging at 

 successive points ; it is peculiar to the family of grasses. 



CHAPTER III. 



THE LEAF. 



To the tunic of leaves by which plants are covered is due 

 all the magnificence of creation. The flowers, indeed, form 

 a charming ornament which attracts and seduces the eye, 

 but they remain unnoticed in the grand scenes of Nature, 

 when she unrolls before us her most splendid landscapes, 

 her sombre forests, or her immense extended plains of ver- 

 dure. 



To the leaf is confided one of the most important func- 

 tions of vegetable life, respiration. Leaves, then, are only 



wards, become harder and more compact than those in the interior. The stems 



163. Palm : Horizontal Section of Stem. lUi. Palm : Longitudinal Section of Stem. 



of palms have no true bark, but are covered with a cortical integument similar to 

 that of exogrens. Tr. 



