i860.] of flowers. 263 



equals, perhaps even beats, your Listera case ; the sticky- 

 glands are congenitally united into a saddle-shaped organ, 

 which has great power of movement, and seizes hold of 

 a bristle (or proboscis) in an admirable manner, and then 

 another movement takes place in the pollen masses, by 

 which they are beautifully adapted to leave pollen on the 

 two lateral stigmatic surfaces. I never saw anything so 

 beautiful." 



In June of the same year he wrote : — 



"You speak of adaptation being rarely visible,, though 

 present in plants. I have just recently been looking at the 

 common Orchis, and I declare I think its adaptations in every 

 part of the flower quite as beautiful and plain, or even more 

 beautiful than in the Woodpecker. I have written and sent a 

 notice for the Gardeners" Chronicle* on a curious difficulty in 

 the Bee Orchis, and should much like to hear what you think 

 of the case. In this article I have incidentally touched on 

 adaptation to visits of insects ; but the contrivance to keep 

 the sticky glands fresh and sticky beats almost everything in 

 nature. I never remember having seen it described, but it 

 must have been, and, as I ought not in my book to give 

 the observation as my own, I should be very glad to know 

 where this beautiful contrivance is described." 



He wrote also to Dr. Gray, June 8, i860 : — 



" Talking of adaptation, I have lately been looking at our 

 common orchids, and I dare say the facts are as old and well- 

 known as the hills, but I have been so struck with admiration 

 at the contrivances, that I have sent a notice to the Gardeners* 

 Chronicle. The Ophrys apifera, offers, as you will see, a curious 

 contradiction in structure." 



Besides attending to the fertilisation of the flowers he was 

 already, in i860, busy with the homologies of the parts, a 



* June 9,1860. This seems to was reprinted in the Entomologisfs 

 have attracted some attention, es- Weekly Intelligencer, i860, 

 pecially among entomologists, as it 



